The British Broadcasting Century with Paul Kerensa
#097 Manchester, Birmingham, Gardening, Radio Circle + a Wireless Elephant: The BBC in August 1923
Published: 13 March 2025 at 14:00 UTC
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Episode notes
Episode 97 finds the BBC in August 1923...
Two of its studios get upgrades - 2ZY Manchester and 5IT Birmingham began under electrical companies Metropolitan Vickers and General Electric. So it's time for the BBC to give them new city centre premises, and for the stations to leave their old studios in style ('The Etude in K Sharp by Spotsoffski'... "The studio ghost looks round - burial forever of the carrier wave...")
Their new studios include a heavy goods lift with a pulley that the instrumentalists need to pull themselves, so put down your cello and get hoisting...
At the Birmingham station, we check in with Uncles Edgar and Thompson and their innovative Children's Hour, who now has a Radio Circle - the origins of Children in Need, perhaps?
We visit London 2LO to find Marion Cran, one of the first gardening presenters, as well as a wireless elephant. We visit Glasgow 5SC, with guest expert Graham Stewart.
We're grateful to other experts: comedy historian Alan Stafford, Children's Hour historian Dr Zara Healy, and Newspaper Detective Andrew Barker - among others. This podcast is a group effort! If you listen, you're part of that too, so do get in touch...
...In fact DO get in touch ahead of our 100th episode. We'd love to hear from you with your favourite parts of the story so far. Write an email or record a voice memo, send to paul at paulkerensa dot com - anything about a moment from early broadcasting that you particularly found marvellous. Peter Eckersley on 2MT Writtle? Gertrude Donisthorpe the WW1 DJ? The drunken launch of Savoy Hill? The first BBC Christmas? What's your favourite? Do tell. Email us!
SHOWNOTES:
- I'm now posting on Substack: https://substack.com/@paulkerensa - My first post is on the bizarre history of the BBC Concert Hall/Radio Theatre/WW2 dormitory. Do subscribe if you'd like a fortnightly long-form blog post type of reading thing.
- Last episode's guest Beaty Rubens brought this to Radio 3 recently: Between the Ears: Listen In
- Alan Stafford's biography of John Henry is Bigamy Killed the Radio Star: https://www.fantompublishing.co.uk/product/bigamy-killed-the-radio-star/
- Paul Kerensa's books include Hark! The Biography of Christmas: https://amzn.to/4iuULoB - with the audiobook read by Paul: https://amzn.to/4gdlYud
- Original music is by Will Farmer.
- Paul's on tour: An Evening of (Very) Old Radio visits these places: www.paulkerensa.com/tour - come and hear about the first firsts of broadcasting, live.
- This podcast is nothing to do with the BBC. Any BBC copyright content is reproduced courtesy of the British Broadcasting Corporation. All rights reserved. We try to use clips so old they're beyond copyright, but you never know. Copyright's complicated...
- Comments? Email the show - paul at paulkerensa dot com.
- Do like/share/rate/review this podcast - it all helps!
- Support us on Patreon (£5/mth), for bonus videos and things - and thanks if you do!
Next time: The first Irish broadcast - on 2BP in Dublin, with guest Eddie Bohan. Seek out his books to grace your bookshelf!
More info on this broadcasting history project at paulkerensa.com/oldradio
