I know nothing about whistles, but knowing collectors of other things, I somehow think there will be whistle collectors watching this who are horrified that you are actually blowing these whistles.
The pea whistles (with the cylindrical bowl) mostly require you blow them with the bowl down for a proper sound. Brady blew them mostly upside down. The whistle with the spherical bowl and the slender curving pipe (with flat vertical plate joining the pipe to the bowl) is a Bosun's whistle, used in navies to "pipe" officers and dignitaries aboard ship, when they disembark, and to call attention of the crew to various orders and announcements. The corroded somewhat cylindrical whistle that wouldn't blow, that one strikes me as a siren (no sound because there should be a spinning disk inside that's now missing or damaged). The bird-shaped whistle and the tin whistle that looks a bit like an oil-can or tea kettle, those are probably intended to be filled partly with water, and will emit bird-like tweeting and warbling when blown. You've got a most excellent collection, there!
Have I been blowing the little ball whistles upside down my whole life, or is he doing it upside down? Ah, being an aussie and it probably appears right side up to him.
this is a lesson to everyone who collects things. no matter how much you care about the subject, after your death someone who doesn't know anything about it will hold it and stuff it in his mouth without permission
It seems like the best thing for your friend to do with the collection would be to find out if a museum would be interested in it. The collection seems like it was intended for that, with all of the detailed tree records the old man kept.
I was wondering if that bird whistle that you couldn't get working might be a worbling whistle, that you're supposed to put water in? Steve Mould made a video about them. But of course, that's just a guess.
I had quite of few of whistles that looked similar to that as a kid, and that's most definitely the case. The don't work unless you put a bit of water in them.
5:03 - this is a bosun's call. The bowl is held cupped in the hand, and the pitch of the call is varied by opening and closing one's fingers. Star Trek viewers are familiar with the resulting sound...
@7:52 Brady FINALLY holds one of those whistles right way up. But still doesn't blow hard enough to get the proper sound out of it (probably in deference to neighbors?)
With all the tags & ID numbers, there's got to be an index of the collection somewhere, and given one of the boxes was labled 'awaiting photo tag' there's likely a file on his computer that might have background information on each whistle ... that's the item the family should be tracking down IMO.
6:52 That part reminds me of Tim from the Grand Illusion channel. He fits the description of "elderly English gentelman who collects stuff" very well. His collection of toys stuffed in suitcases is amazing.
I can see a slight connection. Someone in the pool chemical business might be familiar with pools and lifeguard whistles, which are impressively loud for a simple piece of plastic. Might have just piqued his interest in the field, and it seems he unlocked quite a history.
Some film foley audio company might be interested in that collection. Imagine a film about the 1940s Liverpool Police using historically accurate whistle sounds!
5:06 whistle is a naval whistle. Some may recognize it as the whistle Professor Hooch used (the quidditch coach in the Harry Potter movie). I did a full costume repro of her and it was a JOURNEY to research this whistle and get one. Some of the other whistles create instant visions in my mind … Sherlock Holmes, Sound of Music, field sports. I so hope this collection finds a home in a museum or some other destination worthy of the time and love so clearly in this collection. Ps: women collect things too, not just men. 😊💕
In the future... look for boatswain pipe. You'll have better luck. Also... never let a boatswain hear you call it a "whistle." They get very touchy about that. 😅😅 My dad was a Boatswain's mate in the US Navy... so I learned that at a very early age.
And yet that is what they were for... Not that villains would stop running when they heard a whistle, of course, but it was meant to enlist the general public in stopping the runaway. The result would be 'hue and cry', where it was a public duty to "Stop, thief!"
Very cool - fascinating to go through all the paperwork and maybe see if you can solve the mystery of why this man was so dedicated to collecting whistles.
My dad also collected whisstles. only about 60 of them when he passed. he got into it with the concept that everyone should have one incase they get lost in the Forrest.
The amount of documentation -- those binders, and all the individual bags -- is impressive. Shows great dedication, which makes the mystery all the more tantalizing. Thank-you, Brady.
I went to a sword shop in Tokyo once that had just purchased a fantastic collection of kogatanas (small utility knives that some swords will have). It's an unusual thing for someone to collect, mostly guys like that buy swords, but this guy, whoever he was, had spent years finding kogatanas from some of the finest smiths in Japanese history. I had to buy them all because I couldn't bear the thought of his collection being broken up.
I find it interesting your blowing the whistle with the round bowl up. As a child, we always did it with the bowl down so the ball rolled around in the airflow to make additional sound. (That long one with a “pipe and round ball bowl” is a boatswains pipe and you place your finger over the bowl hole to play a specific sound associated with ship’s functions.)
After looking it up, it seems that what makes them so unique is that they have two pipes that produce two slightly different high pitched tones. But the difference between those tones tricks our brains into also perceiving a third phantom tone that is much lower.
A lot of these will have been made in Birmingham. J Hudson Whistles (also known as ACME Whistles) are still in Barr St in the same workshops they’ve been in for 100+ years.
The whistle I DIDN'T see here? A Shepard's Whistle. There used (especially in Australia) to command sheep dogs to drive and cut groupings of sheep, with a whole vocabulary of up-and-down pitching sounds from the whistle. These whistles mostly look like a thin, miniature taco shaped from a metal sheet, with a small hole drilled thru both sides. Sounding them requires you to put the whole thing in your mouth and use massive tongue action along the bottom rim...definitely a personal item unless washed. 😜
Thank you Brady for this quirky yet charming little Christmas treat. I think that if you were able to ask Michael Bartlett why he collected whistles, you would not get a coherent answer. There was something about whistles that tugged on Mr Bartlett's soul. Something rooted deep in his psyche. So he collected whistles even though he didn't know why. I'm sure there are thousands of other avid whistle collectors out there. I hope this collection can find a good home.
I have my Great-grandfather's whistle and his ceremonial trudgen. Both have a crown and initials of the area he worked South Shields. Thanks for sharing
Some of the whistles are meant to be carried while outdoors hiking, etc. To be blown to help rescuers locate you if need arises. Ex the boy scout ones, ones with compass, etc. Much more effective than trying to yell constantly! Nice collection, glad you showed them to us!
I think this is a fantastic collection, and so well documented. He may have wanted to collect something, and settled on whistles because they would be easy to obtain, and wouldn't take up much room. About 20 years ago, I found a beautiful old glass juicer in a thrift store, and it set me off on collecting old glass/porcelain/unusual juicers. My collection is small, only 22, so they all fit on 2 shelves, but my little collection is precious to me because it's taken so long to build it up, and I have wonderful memories of the moment I found each one. I would actually love to see a video with Brady and another whistle collector, where the collector picks out the most rare, important, or unusual whistles from this collection and gives us some information about them.
Pretty sure that the whistles with a ball in them is meant to be held with the barrel facing down. Also you have to commit to it, you only get proper sound with a stout blow not the little breeze you were giving it.
My grandfather had a collection of miniature bottles and (regular sized) bottle openers. We didn't really know what to do with them when he died. My grandmother called an antiques guy who said he'd come take a look at them to see if there was anything worthwhile. I'm told, when he showed up his reaction was "Woah. Yeah, I'll buy these off you." This was several decades ago, and I was very young, so I don't know much more details than that."
might be worth the daughter putting say 20 of the most distinctive in a glass frame, put it on the wall, it could be a family heirloom that goes down the generations. My father recently passed away and he left a collection of Helmets, ranging replica Viking ,Roman, to genuine 19th century Pith helmets, WW1, WW2,(actual shrapnel damage) and current. The serve a history in the family as my nan(fathers mum) used to wear the German helmets, and sing songs from the 20's at Christmas with a few 2 many whiskeys. She wasn't even German :). It's important to keep , maybe not all, but some.
The whistle Brady has out at 5:09 is a Bosun's (or Boatswain's) Whistle. I purchased a replica on vacation last summer and the little card with it says that the whistle can produce a piercing sound that cuts through all the noise heard on a ship. By altering how hands are held and how the tongue is manipulated when blowing the whistle different pitches can be produced which meant different commands. This type of whistle shape dates back to the crusades, 1248 A.D.
Love it. I never realized there were so many different kinds of whistles. I would love to hear a comparison of each one at full volume recorded in a nice studio.
Oh wow you still have that sheet of math paper you put on the wall from when you and Graham met! I just listen to that episode of Hello Internet where you talked about it! That makes me really happy for some reason.
I'm sure the V&A would be overjoyed to receive such an amazing collection. I saw a few water Whistles (Specifically the bird and the one that looks like a pipe. and a bosun's whistle. And I cringed every time Brady added his costic spittle to an antique.
I'm pretty sure someone at the Royal Society has made studies of whistles and how they work. You could ask Keith if he can find some papers about that, could make a nice episode on its own.
The whistle at 4:41 I believe is a BIRD IMITATOR whistle. You must put some water into it so the water gurgles as you blow into it and it sounds like a bird.
Understanding a whistle's purpose requires a heartier blow than what Brady was gently applying. However, I assume there has to be a whistle collecting community that could provide some answers for each, and there is definitely a side-series in here somewhere.
Quite correct. I think its proper name is "Boatswain's Call" (pronounced Bo'sun's Call, of course). Details on how to hold one, and pipes for different orders, are only a quick Internet search away!
I have an Acme Thunderer which I use on the Talyllyn Railway and Birkenhead Tramway. I think it's relatively old, it has a tapered mouthpiece rather than the parallel sides of the modern ones.
I really hope that a proper home can be found for this collection. It'd be a shame for the care that the gentleman put into this to go to waste. Either another collector, or a museum. With all the police whistles perhaps there is a police or public safety museum somewhere that would be interested.
Brady may not have wanted to do this, as the whistles are not his own, but for many of them, proper blow technique requires you to cover the mouthpiece opening with the tip of your tongue, so you can build up a bit of pressure as you try to blow, then quickly remove your tongue to allow the air to be expelled forcefully. He was using a very soft blow w/o tongue involvement. Some whistles absolutely require this pressure buildup to sound off as intended. Without the tongue technique, you're not likely to give the whistle the needed air pressure. Also, many whistles (e.g. police and sports) are VERY loud when blown properly (90 - 100+ dB), so you'd not want to do this indoors w/o hearing protection or your fingers in your ears.
Ship's whistle or Bosun pipe and you pipe a VIP aboard. Some whistles YOU need to blow into the whistle like you blow into a flute and you make the sound by the angle you blow into the instrument. Some of those whistles are Silver Brady.
i see a dog whistle, with therounld silver ball is a whistle used in the navy, water whistle, whistles wrongly used up side down. histles used bij boyscouts and so on
I'm a big fan of the ACME whistle company and their pealess designs. I became attracted to them when I realized that most NFL referees' whistles were another pealess design by the Fox 40 company. The physics are simple and effective, two chambers sounding two tones just tens of hertz apart, and their proximity causes a beat note that replaces the trilling created in a traditional sports whistle with a pea. No pea to get stuck, frozen during a cold game or covered in slobber after a lot of whistling action = no whistle malfunctions. IMO, ACME has better pealess designs than Fox 40.
I'm a collector of particular old things and in my pursuit I came to know of a man, I believe his name was Alan, who in partnership with a woman, who's name I don't recall, ran Pig & Whistle Promotions, they hosted a collectors fair at the Ally Pally a couple of times a year for the longest time. He collected Whistles and she Pigs. I sold at his event on a number of occasions.
