Phil Tate

Bandleader Phil Tate helmed one of the most popular British orchestras of the postwar era, later serving for over a quarter century as the musical director of the Miss World pageant. Born outside of Leeds, England, on April 28, 1922, Tate began violin lessons at age eight, from there teaching himself clarinet and saxophone. While in high school he formed his first band, the Five Quavers, and despite entering World War II as a Royal Air Force radar mechanic, he ended his military stint as leader of the RAF Silver Wings Dance Orchestra. After the war ended, all 12 Silver Wings members agreed to continue their collaboration in the civilian world, billing themselves Phil Tate & His Orchestra upon settling in for a long residency at Folkstone's Leas Cliff Hall. Their arrangements were unique among their contemporaries, featuring five saxophones and three flutes. After wrapping production on the Richard Burton feature vehicle Green Grow the Rushes, in 1950 Tate's band graduated to a residency at London's Hammersmith Palais, sharing billing alongside the Lou Praeger Orchestra. They also signed to the Oriole label and, from 1955 onward, were fixtures of the television showcase Palais Party. Tate remained at Hammersmith Palais for a decade, until the venue's restrictive policies drove him to relocate the orchestra to Mecca's newly renovated Ilford Palais, which allowed the addition of contemporary pop and rock music to their repertoire. During the early '60s, he also hosted the BBC radio program Non-Stop Pop, on July 30, 1963, interviewing the Beatles, a much-bootlegged broadcast in years to follow. Tate also appeared regularly on the BBC television series Come Dancing. Upon relocating his orchestra to Streatham's Locarno Ballroom in late 1963, he added a string section and the following year launched a new BBC program, Music Through Midnight. In 1965, Tate also signed on as musical director for the Miss World pageant, a position he held for 27 years. He dissolved his orchestra in 1967 to serve as managing director of the talent firm Mecca Agency International. Upon retiring in 1992, Tate served eight years as director of the consumer group Music Users' Council. He died December 9, 2005, at age 83. ~ Jason Ankeny