Biography
Eric Desmond Robertson was a British radio journalist, forestry scientist and Army researcher in Malaysia and India.
Eric Robertson graduated in Science and Forestry from Aberdeen University. In 1937 he moved to Malaya as Scientific Officer employed by Messrs Guthrie and Co. Starting in 1938, he served as their Scientific Adviser, where he planned and implemented the extension of the embryonic organisation set up by Guthrie's for research into soil science and plant genetics. He went on to work in the Malayan Forest Service where his duties included the preparation of a 10-year working plan for the Matang Mangrove forest. He spent his leave with Pat Noone, Field Ethnographer based in Perak, and he was interested in the effects of a shifting cultivation on tropical forests.
In 1940, he was seconded from the Forest Service to Malaya Command, serving in a unit called ‘Frontier Patrol’, which was engaged in intelligence gathering along the Thai-Malay frontier. They were also involved in a belated attempt by Malaya Command to give some training in jungle warfare to units of the British forces in Malaya. Robertson was involved in the evacuation of a number of key British personnel two days before Singapore surrendered to the Japanese.
In 1941, Robertson joined the Malaya Broadcasting Corporation and from 1943 was appointed Special Officer in charge of Far East Broadcasts based in Delhi, India. He spent the war years broadcasting radio updates throughout Asia and India. He helped to broadcast regular detailed news updates of the Allied struggle against the Axis forces, with updates coming from Europe, Asia and Africa. His detailed transcripts reveal a fresh perspective towards radio broadcasting, with the introduction of dramatized news reports so that radio would appeal to a wider audience.
After World War II Mr. Robertson joined the BBC in London, and eventually retired from his position as Controller of English Services and Deputy Managing Director, External Broadcasting, in 1974.
Sources: [British Empire & Commonwealth Collection](https://becc.bristol.gov.uk/records/2000/017); The Japanese File
Eric Robertson graduated in Science and Forestry from Aberdeen University. In 1937 he moved to Malaya as Scientific Officer employed by Messrs Guthrie and Co. Starting in 1938, he served as their Scientific Adviser, where he planned and implemented the extension of the embryonic organisation set up by Guthrie's for research into soil science and plant genetics. He went on to work in the Malayan Forest Service where his duties included the preparation of a 10-year working plan for the Matang Mangrove forest. He spent his leave with Pat Noone, Field Ethnographer based in Perak, and he was interested in the effects of a shifting cultivation on tropical forests.
In 1940, he was seconded from the Forest Service to Malaya Command, serving in a unit called ‘Frontier Patrol’, which was engaged in intelligence gathering along the Thai-Malay frontier. They were also involved in a belated attempt by Malaya Command to give some training in jungle warfare to units of the British forces in Malaya. Robertson was involved in the evacuation of a number of key British personnel two days before Singapore surrendered to the Japanese.
In 1941, Robertson joined the Malaya Broadcasting Corporation and from 1943 was appointed Special Officer in charge of Far East Broadcasts based in Delhi, India. He spent the war years broadcasting radio updates throughout Asia and India. He helped to broadcast regular detailed news updates of the Allied struggle against the Axis forces, with updates coming from Europe, Asia and Africa. His detailed transcripts reveal a fresh perspective towards radio broadcasting, with the introduction of dramatized news reports so that radio would appeal to a wider audience.
After World War II Mr. Robertson joined the BBC in London, and eventually retired from his position as Controller of English Services and Deputy Managing Director, External Broadcasting, in 1974.
Sources: [British Empire & Commonwealth Collection](https://becc.bristol.gov.uk/records/2000/017); The Japanese File
