#082 The BBC at Marconi House: 14-11-1922 to 30-04-1923

The British Broadcasting Century with Paul Kerensa

Welcome to season 6 of The British Broadcasting Century Podcast - and our 82nd episode.

Back in our podcast timeline, telling the moment-by-moment origin story of British broadcasting, we reach a bittersweet moment: the BBC moves out of its first studios, the temporary studio on the top floor of Marconi House.

We pay tribute with a look at the Beeb's final day at MH, 30 April 1923 - a broadcast promoting Women's Hour (by a man) and Hawaiian guitar music (hear it here!).

And we spend much of the episode re-examining Auntie's first day at Marconi House - indeed BBC Day 1 - as I've just discovered a 1942 memoir from Arthur Burrows, first voice of the BBC. And he says some things I've never read anywhere else before. Was there music on the BBC's first day? He thinks so...

..but we don't! And by 'we', I mean our invited guests: Newspaper Detective Andrew Barker and The Great Collector Dr Steve Arnold. We look at the evidence, from newspapers to the archives to best guesses, and try to piece together the jigsaw of the BBC's first 3 days.

Also some more recent BBC memories, as Radio 2 leaves Wogan House, Paul reflects on his memories of broadcasting from there - and working briefly with Steve Wright - a tribute to the great DJ, now Jockin' in the Big Show in the sky.

SHOWNOTES:

• This is an independent podcast, nothing to do with the BBC or anyone else for that matter.
• Original music by Will Farmer.
• BBC copyright content reproduced courtesy of the British Broadcasting Corporation. Al rights reserved.
• Huge thanks to the BBC Written Archive Centre for help and permission regarding the memoir in this episode - and to the Burrows family... if you're out there, I'd love to say hi!
• Listen to the Burrows memoir without interruption here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/audio-first-bbc-96829718
• Some Patreon links for patrons only (do join! £5/mth, cancel whenever)...
  • Steve Wright - a video of my waffling away about him a little aimlessly, and walking between Broadcasting House and Wogan House: https://www.patreon.com/posts/vid-steve-wright-98460958?cid=129996334
  • I mention on the podcasat a Patreon video of my walk around (the outside of) Savoy Hill: https://www.patreon.com/posts/patron-vid-savoy-75950901
  • ...and the walk from Magnet House (first BBC HQ) to Marconi House (first studio): https://www.patreon.com/posts/magnet-house-to-68777192
• ...Interested in joining a live actual walking tour around those first BBC landmarks? I'm thinking of running one, early 2024. Email paul at paulkerensa dot com for details of when.
• My Radio 2 Pause for Thought in tribute to Steve Wright: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0hbpwgr
• Paul Gambaccini's moving tribute to Steve Wright/Wogan House: https://twitter.com/airchecks/status/1759491760827351416
• I also mention my son's Minecraft version of Marconi House. It's got quite a few inaccuracies - but it was made by a 10-year-old with little-to-no knowledge of the Marconi House history - just access to a few plans. So admire the effort if not the accuracy! It's here, if you'd like: https://youtu.be/TatzKmF1z3k
• Details of Paul's tour of An Evening of (Very) Old Radio at www.paulkerensa.com/tour
• Find us on Facebook or Twitter, or Ex-Twitter.
• Join us on Patreon.com/paulkerensa, from £5/mth, and get written updates and videos.
• Your ratings/reviewings of this podcast REALLY help get the podcast noticed. It's solo-run, so thanks!

Next time: We've closed Marconi House, so let's open Savoy Hill!

More info on this radio history project at:

paulkerensa.com/oldradio