As with the Envoy Wide Angle, the Watson Premier Half-Plate is not, strictly, an Ilford camera, as it was not badged with the Ilford name. However, it was marketed by Ilford Ltd (see 1955 Ilford Photographic Materials, General Catalogue).

Alongside is an advert for the camera by the makers, W.Watson & Sons Ltd of 313 High Holburn, London, WC1, as it appears in the BJPA for 1955

The Watson half-plate camera was a square bellows camera of traditional design suitable for commercial, scientific, architectural and general record photography. The camera and dark slides were made of polished mahogany, with fitings of lacquered brass. The bellows were of linen-lined leather.

Focussing was by rack & pinion movement, acting on the camera back only, leaving the lens position fixed (i.e. it was a Tailboard camera). Provision was included for lens cross movement and rise & fall. Also, the back could be tilted in two planes. The focussing screen and dark slides could be used either in the vertical or horizontal position. Dark slides were of the double book-form type.

Price of the camera (without lens) and 3 dark slides was £52.10s (£52.50p) in 1955 with extra dark slides costing £5 each.

(The following contains some speculation and is in need of further research)

The connection between Ilford Ltd and the name Watson (scroll upwards) is possibly via the old Rajar company. Rajar Ltd was an off-shoot of the Brooks-Watson Daylight Camera Company Ltd, formed in 1901, which had works in Great Homer Street, Liverpool. This company marketed the 'Rajar System of Photography'-a film pack adaptor for plate cameras covered by a number of patents taken out by Arthur.A.Brooks and G.A.Watson (probably J.A.Watson - thanks to Roger Gittins for that correction) in the years 1900 to 1902.

The Rajar works at Mobberley, Cheshire, were built in 1903 (see 1919 picture, below) and in 1907 a company, Rajar (1907) Ltd, was formed with a capital of £25,000 in £1 shares: 'to adopt an agreement with Rajar Limited, H.T.Parke and others to carry on the business of manufacturers of, and dealers in, photographic films, plates, cameras, apparatus, materials, etc.' A gentleman named C.F.S.Rothwell, being well known in the Liverpool area for his interest in the science of photography, later became Managing Director.

The scan alongside of a June 1904 postcard has been made available to me by Terry Mitchell of the Mobberley Village Society. On the reverse is a picture of Mobberley church. As can be seen in the header of the postcard, it was 'Printed & Published by The Brooks Watson Daylight Camera Co. Ltd; Liverpool & Mobberley'.

Brooks and Watson appear to have subsequently severed connection with Rajar for, although taking out more patents in the period from 1904 to 1908, these were not associated with the name of any company.

Rajar Ltd amalgamated with Ilford around 1928 and Ilford took over the Rajar factory site. It eventually became the sole paper production factory of Ilford, Limited and is now the sole home of Harman Technology trading as ILFORD Photo (though in newer buildings on the far side of the original site). For views of the old Rajar buildings at Mobberley, including the original position of the Rajar Ltd company plaque and its new resting place, visit Tony Ushers site and scroll down to see various interesting old and new pictures. Although most all of the original Rajar factory buildings are now demolished (since April 2004), the main building (see picture below) has been refurbished into a village community facility (see Tony's site).

The picture below is of the Rajar works in 1919, e-mailed by Roger Gittins, taken from 'Mobberley Reflections', courtesy of the Mobberley Village Society. Roger has also suggested that perhaps the name Rajar was contrived from the names / initials of Arthur.A.Brooks and J.A.Watson.

Roger has also let me know that a long time Mobberley resident, Brian Caveney, recently (Autumn 2008) gave a talk to Mobberley villagers on his family connection with Mobberley and included information on Ilford and The Rajar Building. Brian's grandfather owned/farmed the land which subsequently (from 1903) became the Rajar site. Brian believes that the name Rajar derived from the names of the five individuals who purchased the plot from his grandfather, one of whom was named Rothwell (from Liverpool). Unfortunately he did not know the others. Brian also recalled the regular arrival of the Selo van, maybe the one in the photo (below), to pick up emulsion coated paper.

Brian also believes there was a link with Rajar and a paper mill which was located halfway between Mobberley and Knutsford. A human interest story mentioning this paper mill can be read here.

Below is a negative image and corresponding positive, sent by Roger Gittins, though owned by his brother Mike who worked at the Rajar building in Engineering all his working life, joining direct from leaving school. The images are taken from a glass negative (approx 1/4 plate size, some 110mm x 85mm) given to Mike by Roger & Mike's Uncle Philip Thorpe who worked in the Rajar building's head office. It is believed the negative (maybe amongst others) was used for producing test prints from different emulsions/paper. The image is of Nether Alderley Mill some 4 miles, 'as the crow flys', from Mobberley and 1.5 miles south of Alderley Edge on the A34. In the image foreground is believed to be the photographer's child with camera case.

Their Uncle Phil Thorpe was an ex-navy photographer and Roger has black and white prints from some of his Uncle's pictures.