S1 Ep221: Laser 558, the end - 1985
Laser 558 was one of the last influential mass-market pirate stations to serve the UK. Its influence helped to move a still traditional UK commercial sector towards a back-to-back music policy: "never more than a minute away from music. Until Laser, extended segues on UK radio were rare, as were female voices on slick music radio: Jessie Brandon on Laser became one of Laser's best known voices....
2m Nov 04, 2011
2m
S1 Ep220: YCR - launch jingles
18s Nov 04, 2011
18s
S1 Ep219: The World at One - Duration Change
1m Nov 04, 2011
1m
S1 Ep218: Tony Blackburn, first Pick of the Pops - 2010
When Tony Blackburn hosted his last Radio 1 show in 1984 after 17 years, maybe he never suspected he'd be back on BBC national radio.  He was - and now it seems as if he'd never been away.  Here, he hosts his first edition of the legendary Pick of the Pops programme on a reinvigorated BBC Radio 2; a programme he was born to do. Sadly, his spell was curtailed, but how great to hear him back on-a...
4m Nov 02, 2011
4m
S1 Ep217: Fire - work - Mercia
29s Nov 02, 2011
29s
S1 Ep216: Elton John - Chris Moyles on Radio One
2m Nov 02, 2011
2m
S1 Ep215: Paul Kaye - Radio London
What a voice. As befits the actor he once was. After on-air work in Kenya, Cyprus and Canada , Paul Kaye arrived in Britain at the stage when pirate stations were about to claim huge audiences. As Head of News, it was Paul’s job to ‘re-purpose’ the transcripts of BBC news to relay on the half hour on the powerful Radio London. In August '67, it was also Paul’s duty to introduce the announcement...
2m Nov 02, 2011
2m
S1 Ep214: Mark Thompson
BBC Director General, Mark Thompson, speaks at the Radio Festival 2011. Firstly, his set-piece - on radio cuts, and then BBC local radio. Then, he responds to questioning on BBC Local radio.
10m Nov 01, 2011
10m
S1 Ep213: Jimmy Savile- Radio 4
This clearly sounded very odd just a few weeks after, as the Savile story exploded. But, on the night, it was pure vintage Peter Donaldson. This was coverage of Jimmy Savile's death on the 6.00 p.m bulletin on BBC Radio Four bulletin. Hear, particularly, his deadpan performance of the Savile catchphrases.
1m Oct 29, 2011
1m
S1 Ep212: Roger Scott - The story
Traces of the Roger Scott vocal influence are to be found in so many of the presenters on the most successful of the first generation of UK commercial radio stations. Slightly American, almost self-compressed, a marginally extended s, and utterly slick. To this day, a generation reflects on his seemingly effortless command of music radio. In the words of Richard Allinson "making me feel, as a l...
4m Oct 28, 2011
4m
S1 Ep211: Tony Hancock - 1954
To this day, Birmingham-born Tony Hancock is remembered for his contribution to entertainment and to distinctive, brilliantly-timed, deadpan radio comedy. The show to which he lent his name: Hancock's Half Hour, was written by the famous Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. Here was a show which moved on gently from the time-honoured variety genre, inherited from the stage, into sitcom. Hancock was alr...
2m Oct 27, 2011
2m
S1 Ep210: War of the Worlds - 1938
This was some Halloween stunt. Possibly the most famous on radio ever. On October 30th 1938, ‘The War of the Worlds’ was broadcast in the US on the Columbia Network of stations as an episode of ‘The Mercury Theatre on the Air’. The programme, an adaptation of the 1898 novel by H.G Wells, was directed and narrated by Orson Welles. Witness the simulated news bulletins and commentary which made s...
8m Oct 27, 2011
8m
S1 Ep209: Douglas Cameron - LBC
1m Oct 25, 2011
1m
S1 Ep208: Matthew Bannister - 1993
Matthew Bannister speaks here, on taking up the role as Controller at Radio 1, taking the reins from Johnny Beerling in 1993. It was Matthew, later with Trevor Dann alongside, who engineered the station's shift from the comfy red and light blue Radio 1, driven by DLT and Bates, to become a spikier, darker blue younger brother. His tenure was j...
1m Oct 23, 2011
1m
S1 Ep207: BBC Radio Leicester, launch - 1967
BBC Local Radio began in 1967. An experiment originally, and part-funded by local councils. BBC Radio Leicester was the first. Here, you hear the voices of the first station manager, Maurice Ennals, also BBC local radio manager Tom Beesley; and early comments from a young journalist there, Mike Hollingworth
3m Oct 22, 2011
3m
S1 Ep206: John Peel - KLIF, Radio London, BBC Radio 1
John was a surprising success story, rebelling just enough at just the right times of day (out of the limelight) to keep himself in a job long enough to become a national treasure by the time of his death. John graduated from being a self-appointed spokesman for Liverpool whilst in America just at the height of 60s beat-pop; to a late show on the pirate Radio London where he hosted what became ...
1m Oct 22, 2011
1m
S1 Ep205: Sunset Radio, Manchester - launch
1m Oct 20, 2011
1m
S1 Ep204: Paget - Marconi
'It was about half past twelve when I heard three little clicks in the earphones. Several times they sounded, but I hardly dared believe', said Guglielmo Marconi. Imagine putting an earphone to your ear and hearing signals from afar for the very first time. December 12th, 1901, saw the first trans-Atlantic wireless signal being received. Marconi gambled £50,000 on an experiment even many scie...
1m Oct 20, 2011
1m
S1 Ep203: Attenborough
1m Oct 20, 2011
1m
S1 Ep202: Rim - Radio WM - Oct 2011
1m Oct 20, 2011
1m
S1 Ep200: Kerrang - launch
9m Oct 20, 2011
9m
S1 Ep199: Galaxy Scotland - launch
2m Oct 20, 2011
2m
S1 Ep197: 2CR - launch
Funny the things one remembers. I visited Bournemouth once in the 80s for a few nights of decadence. Ever the anorak, I asked for a trip round 2CR. My one memory is the carpet in reception into which the station name was embroidered. That never happened at Trent; albeit it did happen at Annie Walker's 'Rovers Return'. 2CR - Two Counties Radio - launched in 1980 from an old carpet shop in Bourn...
3m Oct 19, 2011
3m
S1 Ep196: Isle of Wight Radio - launch
4m Oct 19, 2011
4m
S1 Ep195: Xfm, South Wales, launch - 2007
Xfm South Wales launched beautifully from Cardiff on 29th November 2007. After the sale by GCap Media to Town and Country in 2008, it was re-launched as Nation Radio in June 2008.
2m Oct 18, 2011
2m
S1 Ep194: Radio Orwell, launch - 1975
'East Anglia has its own local radio station' announced Tim Ewart proudly in the first news bulletin on Radio Orwell - after words from the company chairman Commander John Jacobs and the managing director Donald Brooks.  Keith Rogers hosted the first breakfast show on relaxed form - complete with signature tune  - with the first record from Gladys Knight and the Pips'-  The Best Thing That Ever...
4m Oct 16, 2011
4m
S1 Ep193: Radio Tay launch - 1980
Radio Tay launched on 17th October 1980 for Tayside and northeast Fife. It began from its Angus transmitter - with the Perth transmitter switched on five weeks later. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independent_Local_Radio)
1m Oct 14, 2011
1m
S1 Ep192: Frank Gillard on BBC Local Radio, 1968
BBC radio began on a local model. If only because getting the signal from transmitters in neighbouring cities was a challenge. By the late twenties, as technology advanced and the Post Office became less worried about how its lines were being used, we’d moved regional and national. The BBC local story, thankfully, was to start a new chapter. The 1951 Beveridge report recommended local radio ex...
27s Oct 14, 2011
27s
S1 Ep191: Cecilia Garnett, Secretary, AIRC, 1974
The first years of Independent Local Radio (the word 'commercial' was seen as inappropriate) were troubled. A poor economy and industrial action coupled with tough regulation and simply the industry's newness made for challenging times. The first phase of development only amounted to 19 stations, so the poor UK coverage for the medium was also an issue for national clients. AIRC, the Associatio...
3m Oct 13, 2011
3m
S1 Ep190: Graham Neale news bulletin - Radio Trent - 1985
You don’t expect a colleague to be capable of murder. Graham’s crime, resulting in the death of his ex girlfriend and then the suicide of her new partner was an awful one. (More about that time at Trent in my book ‘Radio Moments)
1m Oct 13, 2011
1m
S1 Ep189: Jack De Manio - Presenter, 'Today'
Jack De Manio was one of the earliest personalities from the initial era of the Radio 4 Today Programme (58-71). He hosted the programme for over a decade in its more relaxed and single-header format - and, as heard here, is best remembered for his clock confusion. 
23s Oct 13, 2011
23s
S1 Ep188: Lord Gainford - BBC Chair, May 1923
A bit like online, broadcasting started as a ‘techy thing’: radio manufacturers testing their transmissions. One , two, three, testing. Although a few engineers had actually also been rather good on-air, notably Peter Eckersley, they realised that some decent programmes were needed to fuel radio-set sales. Content was king even back then. Accordingly, on 18th October, 1922, a group of six Brit...
1m Oct 13, 2011
1m
S1 Ep187: Lord (John) Reith
A bit like online, broadcasting started as a ‘techy thing’: radio manufacturers testing their transmissions. One , two, three, testing. Although a few engineers had actually also been rather good on-air, notably Peter Eckersley, they realised that some decent programmes were needed to fuel radio-set sales. Content was king even back then. Accordingly, on 18th October, 1922, a group of six Brit...
17s Oct 13, 2011
17s
S1 Ep186: fox
7s Oct 12, 2011
7s
S1 Ep185: BBC Wiltshire Sound - launch
#radio
2m Oct 11, 2011
2m
S1 Ep184: Clyde FM 102.5 - First AM/FM split
2m Oct 11, 2011
2m
S1 Ep183: Cousin Brucie - WABC
When we think of American music radio, this is what we think of. The likes of Bruce Morrow: 'Cousin Brucie'. From his early days in Bermuda, off to New York in 1959. It was there - on the great '77 - WABC' that we know him best. Not surprisingly maybe, it was Brucie they chose to introduce the Beatles on stage at the Shea Stadium. WABC was his home for 13 years, before moving to WNBC and a ho...
2m Oct 11, 2011
2m
S1 Ep182: Bradford T and A - Pennine
1m Oct 10, 2011
1m
S1 Ep181: Virgin 1215 - launch
National commercial radio was a long time coming to the UK. Had it been established sensibly on FM as radio itself grew, then the history of commercial radio might have been altogether more sensible. Vacillating government policy, regulatory caution and, in fairness, a defensive industry meant it was not until the Broadcasting Act 1990 that the way was paved for three national stations. They we...
2m Oct 10, 2011
2m
S1 Ep180: Saga 105.7 launch - 2001
The first in the stable of regional stations owned by Saga came on air in 2001 in the West Midlands. The network was to grow into the East Midlands and to Scotland too, each carrying localised programmes. Whilst a licence was to be awarded in the North East too, it would never come on air under the Saga name.
1m Oct 10, 2011
1m
S1 Ep179: UK Theme, first airing - 1978
The UK Theme was created in 1978 at the behest of the new Radio 4 Controller. Fritz Spiegl, an Austrian-born composer, was commissioned to produce an arrangement of traditional British melodies when Radio 4 became a full UK service on Long Wave. It was aired around 5:54am on weekdays (later weekends) from Thursday 23 November 1978, before News Briefing. In 2006, the then Controller of Radio 4, ...
1m Oct 09, 2011
1m
S1 Ep178: Bradford Fire commentary, Tony Delahunty - 1985
After Hillsborough, the fire at Bradford City's stadium, Valley Parade, in 1985 was the second worst sporting tragedy in England, leaving 56 dead and over 250 injured. It was supposed to be a day of celebration, with the  Division Three championship trophy - Bradford's first trophy in 56 years - presented before the start of their match against Lincoln City. The day turned to tragedy when the m...
1m Oct 09, 2011
1m
S1 Ep177: DevonAir - Test
1m Oct 09, 2011
1m
S1 Ep176: BBC Radio Sheffield - launch
1m Oct 09, 2011
1m
S1 Ep175: Chris Tarrant package
Tarrant is hailed as a radio great. Certainly, like Moyles and Les Ross, he owned his market for a generation. An ex-teacher who then sloshed around with buckets and gunge on TV, he joined Capital in 1984, hosting lunchtimes. In clearly inspired casting, 1987 saw Programme Director, Jo Sandilands, ask him to don the breakfast crown. It is easy to think the whole tenure was plain sailing, but t...
2m Oct 09, 2011
2m
S1 Ep174: Mark & Lard clips
Sometimes shows work at some times of day and not at others. John Peel on breakfast might have ended his career prematurely. That is not to say the presenters are to blame, it’s just about picking the right talent and the right format for the right daypart and the right audience. Breakfast is the toughest call of all: you need to be distinctive, but not too distinctive; and the appeal must be s...
2m Oct 09, 2011
2m
S1 Ep173: JFK shot. KRLD, Dallas telescoped - 1963
8m Oct 09, 2011
8m
S1 Ep172: BBC Radio Manchester - MediaCity launch
2m Oct 08, 2011
2m
S1 Ep171: Bombing of Broadcasting House
Broadcasting House was first bombed just after 8 p.m. on 15th October 1940. A 500lb delayed-action high explosive destroyed the BBC switchboard before the gram library on the fifth floor was hit. Staff tried to move the bomb, but it exploded. Seven BBC staff were killed. Parts of the fifth and sixth floor frontage of Broadcasting House were blown into Portland Place and studios were demolished....
1m Oct 08, 2011
1m
S1 Ep170: BBC Radio Manchester - MediaCity - Day One
1m Oct 08, 2011
1m