Monday Jul 20, 2020
#009 2LO London Calling
The British Broadcasting Century with Paul Kerensa
100 Years of the BBC, Radio and Life as We Know It. Be informed, educated and entertained by the amazing true story of radio’s forgotten pioneers. With host Paul Kerensa, great guests and rare archive from broadcasting’s golden era. Original music by Will Farmer. www.paulkerensa.com/oldradio
Listen on:
Episodes
Episodes
Monday Jul 13, 2020
Monday Jul 13, 2020
Feb 14th, 1922: Britain finally gets a regular broadcast service. Only it's a little dry. Till Peter Eckersley gives his engineers gin and tonics (also dry), runs to the mic, and brings entertainment radio to the masses with jokes, songs, impressions and severe over-running.
Hear all about it - including archive clips aplenty - including more from broadcasting historian Tim Wander (buy his books here).
Plus an early broadcasting memory - now called 'AM' (Airwave Memories) from Jamie Dyer of the Watching the Wireless podcast.
We're nowt to do with the BBC - we just like to talk about them. (Though if you work for the BBC and can commission us to make this entire series again for you, get in touch... and can we have access to your archive please?)
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This podcast needs you!...
- ko-fi.com/paulkerensa chips in £3
- patreon.com/paulkerensa starts at £5/mth and you get benefits - join our merry small band who help keep us on air.
And/or just share, rate, review, tweet + talk about this podcast. It really helps.
We're also on Facebook and Twitter - 'like' us there.
Original music is by Will Farmer. Clarinet is by Adam Smith.
Join your host Paul every Tuesday 8pm for PK's Uplift Live: a Facebook Live of fun and games, mostly unrelated to this podcast, but normally with a broadcast history reading most weeks.
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Monday Jul 06, 2020
Monday Jul 06, 2020
Thank Eckersley for the BBC! It's almost entirely down to him. Never heard of him? Then listen on, to the original PPE...
We chat to broadcasting historian Tim Wander (who knows more about Eckersley than anyone on the planet). Plus hear clips from Captain Eckersley himself, both in wild action on air, and looking back over his amazing career as first BBC Chief Engineer, first regular voice on British radio, and pioneer of air traffic control. Oh yes, he also built an airport. And he was a spy in WW2. What a tale!
It's all here on this unaffiliated-to-the-BBC-we-have-to-make-that-clear podcast.
Support the podcast:
- ko-fi.com/paulkerensa buys me a coffee
- patreon.com/paulkerensa has tiers and benefits - thanks to Mel, Chris and Andrew who've joined up this month!
- and thank you for sharing, rating, reviewing, tweeting + talking about this podcast. It really helps.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for extra bits and pieces.
Original music is by Will Farmer - wrangler of notes.
Your host Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Monday Jun 29, 2020
Monday Jun 29, 2020
A minisode that somehow ends up longer than a normal episode... Instead of telling you all about 1922's pioneer extraordinaire P.P. Eckersley, we're putting him back a week. Well, the radio hams of the day had to wait 18 months - you can wait 7 days.
Before him, we bring a tale of William Le Queux, amateur broadcaster of 1921 - oh and he was a writer from Guildford. Like your host...
Plus a tale of hospital radio, and a TV memory from illustrator Rachel Berman.
Support the podcast:
- ko-fi.com/paulkerensa buys me a coffee
- patreon.com/paulkerensa has tiers and benefits
- and your sharing, rating, reviewing and talking about this podcast is hugely appreciated.
Follow our Facebook page and Twitter handle for pictures and things to go with this podcast.
Original music is by Will Farmer - if you need music, visit his page.
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Monday Jun 22, 2020
Monday Jun 22, 2020
Meet the guv'nor: BBC's first newsreader, children's presenter, actor, Head of Programmes... but before all that Arthur Burrows was one of broadcasting's lone prophets, convincing journalists, ministers and future listeners-in that mass entertainment from a small box was A Good Thing.
Plus we exclusively hear from a pirate radio legend. Emperor Rosko tells us his journey from naval ship DJ to Radio Caroline, Radio Luxembourg and the first line-up of BBC Radio 1.
This podcast has nothing by the way to do with the BBC. We're talking about them, not with them... It's just a one-man band here.
If you'd like to support that one-man band:
- ko-fi.com/paulkerensa buys me a coffee
- patreon.com/paulkerensa has tiers and benefits
- and your sharing, rating, reviewing and talking about this podcast is hugely appreciated.
Follow our Facebook page and Twitter handle for pictures and things to go with this podcast.
Original music is by Will Farmer - if you need music, visit his page.
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Monday Jun 15, 2020
Monday Jun 15, 2020
Hip hip hurrah! Our centenary special, landing on the 100th birthday of professional public broadcast radio in Britain. Hear the best/only (possibly) re-enactment of the Melba Concert, sent from Chelmsford to the world on June 15th 1920 - exactly a century before this episode lands.
Relive the songs, the fire, a genuine joke, the panic when it goes off-air... and discover how an attempt at Daily Mail Radio sparked British broadcasting into being.
This podcast is here to inform, educate + entertain on the origins of the BBC, radio and life as we know it - but has no affiliation with either the British Broadcasting Corporation or the British Broadcasting Company (which, in fairness, ceased trading in 1926, so that was always unlikely).
Pleas rate and review wherever you got this podcast - it really helps spread word. It's a one-man operation!
Join Paul TONIGHT on Facebook Live, with a live talk/Q&A on The History of the BBC (basically this entire podcast series condensed into an hour). £Pay What You Want, details here or on our Facebook page.
Your questions/comments (written) or early broadcasting memories (recorded) are welcome via email.
This episode's guest was Lorna Farrell, and her Facebook page of prayers and poems is here.
Support the show at Patreon / Ko-fi ...Please?
Then we can pay people, like composer of our original music, Will Farmer
Visit BBCentury on Facebook / Twitter
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BROADCASTING! Here's to the next 100...
Thursday Jun 11, 2020
Thursday Jun 11, 2020
The 1st woman on British radio! Radio's 1st professional artiste! The 1st listings! The 1st programme with a title!
Journey back to early 1920 for episode 3 of the story of pre-BBC broadcasting, and meet W.T. Ditcham, Captain H.J. Round and Winifred Sayer - the girl from the ball-bearings factory who brought song to our radio sets.
We're here to inform, educate + entertain on the origins of the BBC, radio and life as we know it. I say 'we'. It's just me.
Oh, and original music by Will Farmer
Oh, and our guest is Emily Jeffery, who presents the fab Edge of England podcast.
(To be our guest, email an audio clip of your early broadcasting memories.)
Support the show at Patreon / Ko-fi
Visit BBCentury on Facebook / Twitter
Please Share/Rate/Review wherever you got this podcast. It really helps.
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
BTW, we have no affiliation to the BBC, or to the BTW, whatever that is.
Monday Jun 08, 2020
Monday Jun 08, 2020
Episode 2 of our journey towards British broadcasting's birth: Dr Crippen, Titanic, war, a ghost + 2 brilliant engineers.
Be informed, educated + entertained on the origins of the BBC, radio and life as we know it. (We've no affiliation with the BBC, to be clear.)
Original music by Will Farmer
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Email an audio clip of your early broadcasting memories, or send your questions/comments
Support the show at Patreon / Ko-fi
Visit BBCentury on Facebook / Twitter
Please Share/Rate/Review wherever you got this podcast. It really helps.
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Pip pip!
Friday Jun 05, 2020
Friday Jun 05, 2020
Episode 1: Morse, Marconi + Reg Fessenden's first entertainment show.
This episode covers 1830-1906, yes, we're not even in the last 100 years yet... but first we have to invent wireless telephony.
Be informed, educated + entertained on the origins of the BBC, radio and life as we know it.
(We've no affiliation with the BBC, to be clear.)
-
Email an audio clip of your early broadcasting memories, or your questions/comments
Visit BBCentury on Facebook / Twitter
Support the show at Patreon / Ko-fi
Guest Philip Simon's Youtube
Original music by Will Farmer
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Closing down now...
Tuesday Jun 02, 2020
Tuesday Jun 02, 2020
Happy 100th Birthday Radio! Welcome to the podcast that informs, educates + entertains on the origins of the BBC, radio and life as we know it.
(Oh, we've no affiliation with the BBC, to be clear.)
Original music by Will Farmer. All other clips are public domain, by our understanding, due to their vast age. If we're wrong and you own a clip, get in touch.
Be on the podcast: Email an audio clip of your early broadcasting memories, or send your questions/comments
Support the show at Patreon / Ko-fi
Visit BBCentury on Facebook / Twitter
Please Share/Rate/Review wherever you got this podcast. It really helps.
Paul's Mailing list | Books | Facebook | Twitter | Youtube | Website
Pip pip!
About this project
This is a 3-part project (at least)...
THE BOOK:
Intended as a trilogy, Auntie and Uncles comes out in 2023. Book 1 tells the BBC tale up to its launch, from the perspectives of four pioneers: Arthur Burrows, Peter Eckersley, Hilda Matheson and John Reith. Matheson only joins the BBC later - but she's somehow on hand for some key moments in British history. And she's awesome, so I had to include her.
But in researching the book, I was looking for a podcast about early broadcasting. I couldn't find one, so...
THE PODCAST:
When the pandemic hit, and my live performing work went, I saw the centenary approaching of Melba's famous 1920 broadcast. Not famous enough it seemed - I couldn't see anyone talking about it. No radio shows, no TV documentaries, and certainly no podcasts. So I started The British Broadcasting Century. The more I kept digging, the more stories I found, the more characters needing their day in the sun, the more old clips in need of rescue and a new audience... so here we are. And it's still growing. We've taken 50 episodes to reach the start of 1923. A LOT of stories to tell. The slow way. With a podcast, you can.
THE SHOW:
In 2022, for centenary year, I toured a show - The First Broadcast: The Battle for the Beeb in 1922. I'm a comedian, but wanted to put on a one-man show that told this story via two characters, Arthur Burrows and Peter Eckersley. It wasn't intended as a comedy. It came across that way, a bit.
That show's in storage for now, but ready to be dusted down if anyone wants it.
Meanwhile I have two other potential shows/talks: Auntie's First Year (a presentation on the landmarks of 1923) and The First Religious Broadcast (a re-enactment of what led to and what happened at Britain's first ever broadcast sermon, pre-BBC, in the summer of 1922).
Interested in either? Book me. Paul at paulkerensa dot com.
And buy the book.
More info on all this at paulkerensa.com/oldradio
Thanks for stopping by. Keep listening.