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To the City for a meeting with top Barclays banker, Matthew Bullock to talk computer policy and then back home to find my parents visiting so that I could play them our recent videos
Up on time and after my normal breakfast and preparations for the day, to spend an hour or two in the office clearing the mail and making a few calls. Then by car to Wembley Park, there being no London trains in mid-morning, and on by Metropolitan tube to the City of London. A walk to Lombard Street and at 12.30pm to meet, by appointment, my hosts at The Headquarters of Barclays Bank PLC. First some drinks with Ian Duffel, Head of the Hiteck Unit, who explains the various ways in which a head office service advises the branch network, spreads the word in trade shows, and organises technological transfer events. We are soon joined for lunch by Matthew Bullock, Head of the Corporate Finance Division, and a splendid conversation on the range of issues facing the industry. Barclays is the largest computer buyer outside of the public sector and are putting together the applications for the value added networks for the financial community. There is a high dependence upon IBM for the mainframe and an urgency for services; but there is equally an awareness of the dangers of dependency on IBM proprietary SNA network protocols. In relation to the independent computer industry, Barclays have recently won a number of computer company accounts including Apple, Commodore and others. They also confided in me plans for the opening throughout the country of a network of corporate branches into which the most technocratic 100 bankers will be placed from the completion of an intensive training programme.
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Decisive meeting in London with Brian Willott, the head of the DTI IT Division and most pessimistic civil servant about the prospects of the British Computer industry that influenced their policy about the IBM/BT Jove license application where I won the argument but now awaited the decision as the Miners Strike drags on and a father drugs and drowns his 6 year old daughter because he cannot bear the thought of her growing up in ‘a terrible world.’
An early awakening at 7.00am, as Diana was determined to start the day well. Breakfast of toast and fruit juice before a delayed arrival of The Financial Times to read. I catch up on several days of my journal whilst Diana races around and has to race into town to rescue the old house keys from Daniel who had taken them by accident. A thorough body and hair wash in preparation for my meetings today before arriving at the office whilst Diana collects the dry cleaning from town. Time to make a number of phone calls and accept a call from Informatics Daily Bulletin on my views on the IBM/BT venture. It is now widely known that I am meeting the DTI this afternoon and the first conclusions of the NCC report are being released today. Eventually Diana returns from the cleaners with my suit and I leave for London. By car to Wembley Park and then onwards by tube to Baker Street and then to Covent Garden. A short walk to the end of Longacre and to meet Margaret Park, the Associate Editor of Venture UK Magazine, who took me off to a lunch and an interview on the history of the UK microcomputer retail industry. Then off by taxi to Bressenden Place by appointment to meet Brian Willott, the appointed Head of the DTI Information Technology Division. He was joined by Andrew Dogood, the principal officer interested in the BT/IBM license application and, despite an agenda that covered the range of BMMG interests, it was this one issue that they were preoccupied with. Interesting and rewarding to note the relevance that the DTI attach to my views and an energetic debate developed, which lasted well past the time anticipated for Brian Willott and I to meet. Brian had been billed as being the most resistant person in the DTI to the support of British Computer Manufacturing Interests.
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Flurry of press interviews and calls takes up most of this (sunny but cool) day with news of the campaign against the IBM/BT standards plan coming our way as Thatcher sets the judiciary on Arthur Scargill and the Johnson Matthey Bullion bankers goes bust and is rescued by the Bank of England
I struggle to get up, washed and ready for breakfast so as to be available in the office at soon after 9.00am. Then to conduct my normal tour and open the post for both Saturday and today. On the telephone answering machine was a message from Jane Bird to phone on Saturday morning and when I returned her call, I found that, as a Sunday Times Journalist, she works Saturdays and has Mondays off. I receive today copies of ‘Your Business’ magazine with my ‘success’ feature (all pictures of me with my feet up in the sun and boating on the proceeds) and also the last two months back copies of Electronics Weekly and the last three weeks of Computing. From these, I was able to get reasonably up-to-date on the press cuttings late in the day. Also share certificates for Barclays and Kode; although the children’s’ trust, Kode Shares are in the name of Richard rather than Roger Brittain; the first Trustee. A muddled start, trying to sort out all this reading and paperwork with so many matters needing written reply and filing. Then the phone calls started with Tom Farenski of Computing leading the pack asking about latest developments on the IBM/BT opposition. This goaded me into other calls. Sarah Underwood of Informatics told me of the imminent release of the NCC report of IBM/BT nationwide consultations. Calls to the NCC and an indication from Derek Scriven that I would be happy with its recommendations. Rumours that OFTEL might be willing to oppose the licence application outright… and things seem to be moving slightly our way. Other calls from Computing, Electronics Weekly, to make the morning hectic to say the least.