LEO editor

▪ Sumner, J. (2015), See also in extract from the paper in Articles
section

History and Technology, an International Open Access Journal,
Volume 30, 2014, Issue 4, pages 309-333 | Published online: 24
Feb 2015.
https://www.escholar.manchester.ac.uk/api/datastream?publicationPid=uk-ac-man-scw:261886&datastreamId=POST-PEER-REVIEW-PUBLISHERS.PDF

In 1947, J. Lyons and Company, Britain’s leading catering firm, sent two
senior managers to the USA to investigate American systems of office
management. Their bald conclusion was that established practice could
teach them nothing: ‘We did not find any firm which has developed on
so broad a front as Lyons, most offices only having tackled a limited
number of office problems without having surveyed the whole field’.
Physical layouts – notably including that of the Pentagon – were poor,
and development plans conservative, tending blindly to ignore the
potential of rapid electronic processing. Far more exciting was the
extensive American work on digital computing, but this was still largely
uncommercialised.11 Learning that there were British efforts in the
same direction, the Lyons managers fostered a partnership with
researchers at the University of Cambridge to develop the Lyons
Electronic Office (LEO), which automated the bulk of the firm’s payroll,
stock control and valuation tasks across 1951–54, placing it at the
forefront of international developments in this field. Lyons then formed
a subsidiary to market LEO equipment to other businesses, stressing its
business context as a unique guarantee of user-focused design.
Ref
A similar story played out in parallel at Ferranti, the commercial
electrical and defence contracting group, which in 1948 sent a
representative, Dietrich Prinz, to the USA to assess the state of the art in
digital computing. Prinz’s American hosts, according to company legend,
wondered ‘why he had come there, since the most advanced work was
being done on Ferranti’s doorstep at Manchester University’, where the
cathode ray tube storage system had become the basis for a prototype
computer.

John Sutherland responding to John Aeberhard: I have just finished belatedly
reading your interesting article about the story of LEO and thought you might be
interested in a further development of the story. I started to work for ICL in Dalkeith in 1972
As I understand it, at some stage between then and 1975 when I left, some of my
colleagues were working on a project to put LEO onto the 2960 (I think) for the Post
Office. Apparently, the Post Office unions insisted on retaining their existing LEO system,
so my colleagues were microprogramming the machine, which was also capable of
running VME systems to run DME/LEO

Alison Taylor and Chris Tyson, I am a 77 year old graduate of Aberdeen University,
now living in Jersey. In the 1950’s we lived in Hastings and my parents would take us up
to London to a show, we often used to go to Lyons Corner House for a meal. So I always
loved Jo Lyons. I met my first husband, Christopher Ian Grigor Tyson, at university.
When I graduated in 1963, we came down to London to look for jobs. Chris had failed his
degree, but was delighted to be given a job by Leo Computers Ltd, while I joined English
Electric in their domestic appliance division to do market research. My brother was
working for ICL (the English Electric Computer Co, in Staffordshire). We had another
friend who was working for another computer company, but the name escapes me, and
another for IBM, so when we had parties everyone had to define their terms before they
could start talking about their jobs as each company used different words the the same
thing. Chris Tyson stayed with Leo Computers until his death in 1970, but the company
name changed half a dozen times. Leo was bought out by English Electric and became
“English Electric Leo Marconi”, then it joined with ICL, and was taken over finally by
ICT. As far as I can remember Chris Tyson worked in the same office in Bayswater(?)
despite the changes in company name. I think it was LEO III that Chris worked on. I have
no momentos of Chris’ time at Leo, but I do have a Pelican book “Electronic Computers”
by S.H. Hollingdale and G.C. Tootill first published in 1965. It mentions the beginnings of
the British computer industry, which confirms my memories of the companies above. I
would be very happy to send you this book if you do not have it already. Myself working
for English Electric, I remember using punch cards and paper tape to analyse the results of
my surveys. For many years afterwards we used paper tape to hang Christmas cards from
the picture rail as it was so much tougher than anything else. I hope this snippet of
information is of interest to you and long may the society prosper.

David Tebbs Date of Birth: October 1938, joined LEO 1964 left 1969 Memoir:
I joined the company earlier enough to qualify for the society, starting work at
Hartree House. However, I was assigned mainly onto a KDF 9 client project and then and
System 4 Sales. My only LEO computer work was self- study of the LEO coding manual
(to fill in 3 weeks awaiting my first programming course – which turned out to be KDF9)
and taking on, as area manager, responsibility for the Lyons’ account shortly after their
computer room fire. Even the latter was short lived as I was then promoted to set up and
run the new Real Time department.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/x1060y7bk8djvf7/David%20Tebbs%20memoir.doc?dl=0
For a listing of David’s current activities (October 2018) see
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/davidtebbs###

John Thompson , born 4th January, 1935, joined LEO with no knowledge of computers
But got some very good training and education at the training centre. I worked on the
LEO I II and III as maintenance engineer and later at Minerva Road building and
installing systems I do recall some funny things One year we selected the wrong cow as
the winner at the dairy show, and we did payroll for the RAF officers and once made an
error that made every officer donate half his pay to RAF Benevolent Society but the
problems were always fixed very quickly and considering the amount of work being done
it was good for the early time in that industry.
I installed a number of systems in the UK and we had very few delays in the scheduled
handover to the customer thanks to fast response to any calls for help
I was just one of a great team that worked hard and had FUN. Later I moved to Canada
and completed my career
there.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/wgeg807wthgqsa5/John%20Thompson%20memoir.doc?dl=0

John Tomlinson, LEO Operator. Bob Stevenson notes: “The John Tomlinson that I knew was an
operator and shift leader on III/1 in Hartree House. I knew him well and I can’t remember
him mentioning that he worked on Leo1. The picture is dated in John Bird’s book as
1953, which would make John T., pretty young at the time I would guess. I remember
that it was John who went to Moscow to work on a demonstration Leo III at a Computer
Show there. I wanted to go but the Bureau management wouldn’t let me, so I nominated
John.”

MINISTRY OF PENSIONS & NATIONAL INSURANCE
In 1960 I was working at MPNI in Coventry. Our payroll was put onto a Leo II in
January 1961 but I never saw the machine. I do remember that the printer had a limited
character set because instead of using the figure 8 it used capital S and instead of zero it
used O.
DUNLOP RUBBER CO LTD
My first programming job was at Fort Dunlop in Birmingham on Leo III/3. I
started there in 1963. My first program was part of the payroll suite. I remember there
was a complaint from one of the rubber workers that he’d worked a lot of overtime but
only been paid just over £2:00:00. It turned out that he should have received £102:00:00
but the program only allowed for £99:19:11.There was another occasion when the
payroll system crashed overnight and the Coventry factory workers were going to get
their wages late. Our manager arranged that all those programming staff who lived in
Coventry should go straight to the factory and help fill the pay packets. When we arrived
we were not asked to show any identity but were given a case containing £2,000 in used
notes and pointed in the direction of a room where we could work. The next suite I
worked on was the Production Control System for aircraft parts at the Coventry factory
still written in INTERCODE. We had our programs punched onto on 80 column cards.
When we needed to do amendments we punched those ourselves using a hand punch. We
rarely added comments as these involved multi-punches (pressing 2 or 3 keys together to
get a character). In 1964 we started using CLEO for a suite of programs we wrote for
Dunlop Footwear in Winsford. So then our programs were perforated onto paper tape.
When we had to perforate our amendments we got to use a decent Creed machine with a
QWERTY keyboard. By this time Leo III/3 was filling up with production work so Dunlop
ordered another machine. I know one of our managers wanted an IBM 360 but
we got the first Leo 360. By now we were getting just one amend & trial per day even
though III/3 was running 24 hours a day. While we were waiting for delivery of LEO
III/23 some of us had to do our trials at BOC in Swinton Manchester on LEO III/13.
Each Monday we went up there and took a few mag tapes in a car. On the last week we
realised we had 57 mag tapes to bring back but we did manage to fit them all in the Mini
around the passengers.
TOTE INVESTORS LTD
In 1966 I got a job as Senior Programmer at LEO III/21. We were just
maintaining an accounting system that had been written in INTERCODE. We wrote later
programs in CLEO. A major incident while I was there was an infestation of iron filings.
The air conditioning system had managed to spread these liberally around the computer
room. The Leo III was out of action for a week while engineers wearing protective
clothing vacuum-cleaned every piece of hardware. While they were doing that we used
one of the GPO machines at Charles House in Kensington. Just before I left Tote I was
invited to the Minerva Road factory to see the new System 4.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cndh08h4iy95lsy/Mike%20Tyzack%20Memoir.doc?dl=0

I am eighty years old and not in very good health at the moment.
I started my career in computers by learning to program in basic machine code
and Intercode, on a Leo II at Whitely house in London in 1959/60.
In fact I wrote, in machine code, the ‘Boot strap’ program to load up and start the
operating system running for Leo III.
The company I was working for, a subsidiary of the South African mining house Rand
Mines, took delivery on one LEO III.
Leo Fantl pays tribute to her contribution, as the first programmer recruited by him in
South Africa in chapter 25 of the Incredible Story Of the First Business Computer

Alan Wakefield: On 21 Jun 2019, at 19:56, Alan Wakefield wrote: Dear Hilary, Your note below has prompted me to offer a personal reminiscence of LEO-related activity, or more specifically LEO personnel – related events, and relating in particular to your father, David Caminer. ( If you will permit this!). I was not an original LEO person, but, originally as an early 60’s ICT recruit, I had the good fortune, in the late 1960’s/70’s, to work in a group led by David in the newly – formed ICL New Range Planning Group in ICL House, Putney, shortly after the formation of the ICL merger of the former ICT and EELM ( and other subsids.) British computer companies. David’s role and contribution to this phase of ICL’s development is well documented and applauded. I have an amusing (I hope) small episode during my time in that group, which I hope may be of interest to you, and some others. For reasons undisclosed to me at that time, part of our NR planning activities required ICL to partake in some discussions with the French computer industry, in connection with theirPlan Calcul, and their CII computer company, based near Versailles, west of Paris, as I recall. (There was a lot of political activity in Europe at that time with the proposals to form a “European” computer organisation involving the French, German and Italian computer companies ; but not initially the British!)
A small group of four(?) of us from ICL, led by David (I can’t recall the other two
participants) were delegated to go to CII ( Paris ) and have some exploratory discussions;
I’m not sure about what, but it was probably about whether ICL could participate in the
joint European plans, and whether any of their products or technology had relevance for
ICL’s New Range plans.
We set off from Putney, in David’s company car ( as I recall a Ford Zephyr 6 of the
period; very angular and dark green? (actually yellow: Editor) The vehicle was an
adapted automatic to facilitate David’s driving), with David driving us “ in spirited style”
( we were late!) to Heathrow airport for a flight to Paris.
The next stages are a bit hazy, but we arrived and were accommodated near Versailles (
which was close to the Bull/ CII works complex.) The following day we were taken to the
CII complex for a series of meetings and viewings of the facility, and tour of the site.
Whilst walking around the facilities, David was in full flow animated conversation with
their senior executives ( we were following in the rear!). Passing through one of the areas,
he tripped slightly, and then keeled over gracefully, but immediately bounced back up on
the rebound, rather like a rubber ball, and without any break in the flow of conversation! (
We from ICL were, of course, not unfamiliar with David’s occasional “tumbles” with his
prosthetic leg). The French were gobsmacked and bewildered at this; after that episode,
the they could not do enough to accommodate whatever requirements our delegation had
on CII and David was celebrated as the war hero he was.
I don’t think the talks finally led to anything for ICL, but the episode certainly gave us in
ICL more fine anecdotal material about a fine gentlemen, on which to reminisce!

https://www.dropbox.com/s/fqzvpc5ftyle00w/Alan%20Wakefield%20reminiscence

Harry Warner: I worked as an operator on the CAV – Lucas, Leo III at
Acton (High Street ?) from October 1963 to April 1964.
One of my clearest (and dearest) memories is of a blond haired engineer (from
Somerset?) who would get the printer to “play” God Save the Queen.
I later programmed on the IBM 360 at Castrol, became Manager of Computer
Services at Lever Bros. Canada and later was a Professor of Business Computing at
Ryerson University in Toronto.
I retired at age 47 and live on a small commune in BC.