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BBC Light Programme

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BBC Light Programme
Country
United Kingdom
HeadquartersBroadcasting House, London, England
OwnerBBC
Launch date
29 July 1945; 79 years ago (1945-07-29)
Dissolved29 September 1967; 57 years ago (1967-09-29)
LanguageEnglish
ReplacedBBC General Forces Programme
Replaced byBBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 2

The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2.[1] It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the long wave frequency which had earlier been used[2][3] – prior to the outbreak of the Second World War on 1 September 1939 – by the BBC National Programme.[4]

The service was intended as a domestic replacement for the wartime BBC General Forces Programme which had gained many civilian listeners in Britain as well as members of the British Armed Forces.[3][5]

History

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The long wave signal on 200 kHz / 1500 metres was transmitted from Droitwich in the English Midlands[6] (as it still is today for BBC Radio 4, although adjusted slightly to 198 kHz / 1515 metres from 1 February 1988)[7][8] and gave fairly good coverage of most of the United Kingdom, although a number of low-power medium wave transmitters (using 1215 kHz / 247 metres) were added later to fill in local blank spots.[9][5] Over the course of the 1950s and 1960s, the Light Programme (along with the BBC's two other national stations – the BBC Home Service and the BBC Third Programme) gradually became available on what was known at the time as VHF, as the BBC developed a network of local FM transmitters.[5]

From its first day of broadcasting in 1945 until Monday 2 September 1957, the Light Programme would be on the air from 9.00 am until midnight each day, apart from Sundays when it would come on the air at 8.00 am until 11.00 pm.[10]

There was, however, a period of a year when the Light Programme was forced to end its broadcasting day one hour earlier at 11.00 pm. This commenced in mid-February 1947 as an effect from the appalling winter of 1946–1947 which saw a fuel shortage in the country with the government enforcing electricity saving measures, one of which was losing one hour of broadcasting per day from the Light Programme.[11][12] Even after the fuel shortage had ended by spring 1947, the 11.00 pm closedown each night continued as BBC Radio found itself in financial problems and needed to save money. The midnight closedown of the Light Programme resumed one year later from Sunday 11 April 1948.[13][14] The long-running soap opera The Archers was first heard nationally on the Light Programme on New Year's Day 1951,[15] although a week-long pilot version had been broadcast on the Midlands Home Service in 1950.[16]

From Monday 2 September 1957, [citation needed] the Light Programme's broadcasting hours would start to increase, with a new early morning start time of 7.00 am until midnight, later moving to 6.30 am[17] from Monday 29 September 1958.[citation needed]

In 1964, broadcasting hours were increased even more, with a new morning start time of 5.30 am from Monday 31 August. Up until September 1964, the Light Programme would always end its broadcasting day at midnight; however this changed on Sunday 27 September 1964, when a new closedown time of 2.02 am was introduced.[18][19][20][21][22][17]

The Light Programme closed down for the last time at 2.03 am on Saturday 30 September 1967.[23][6] At 5.30 am, it was replaced by BBC Radio 2 and at 7.00 am by BBC Radio 1 on medium wave.[24][6]

Programming

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Some programmes broadcast from the Light Programme still continue today, such as Junior Choice,[25] The Archers,[11][26] Pick of the Pops,[27] Desert Island Discs[28] and Woman's Hour.[11][29] Other programmes included:

Presenters

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "BBC Light Programme". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  2. ^ a b "BBC Light Programme Launch". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  3. ^ a b Hancock, Dafydd (15 August 2001). "Forces of Light". The Transdiffusion. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  4. ^ "Close down of Television service for the duration of the War". BBC. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  5. ^ a b c BBC Sound Broadcasting: Its Engineering Development (PDF) (Report). BBC. August 1962. pp. 28, 30–31, 35, 94. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  6. ^ a b c "History of Radio Transmission in the UK" (PDF). Frequency Finder UK. pp. 3, 9. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  7. ^ Sabbagh, Dan (9 October 2011). "Radio 4's long wave goodbye". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  8. ^ Phillips, John F. (December 2006). "Droitwich Calling". BBCeng.info. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  9. ^ Martin, Roy (4 January 2023). "Absolute Radio to switch off all AM transmitters across the UK". RadioToday. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Briggs, Asa (1979). Sound and Vision (PDF). The History of Broadcasting in the United Kingdom. Vol. IV. Oxford University Press. pp. 55–56, 61, 113, 543–545, 849. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Cain, John (1992). The BBC: 70 years of broadcasting (PDF). BBC. pp. 60–62, 146. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  12. ^ Martin, Andrew (5 March 2017). "The Sunday Post: The 1947 Fuel Crisis and the BBC". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  13. ^ "SUNDAY Light Programme". Radio Times. No. 1278. 9 April 1948. p. 9. Retrieved 28 February 2024 – via BBC Genome.
  14. ^ "MONDAY Light Programme". Radio Times. No. 1221. 7 March 1947. p. 11. Retrieved 28 February 2024 – via BBC Genome.
  15. ^ Reynolds, Gillian (24 August 1996). "William Smethurst: the man who turned The Archers into a cult". The Telegraph. UK. Archived from the original on 31 January 2014.
  16. ^ Smith, Andrew (29 May 2015). "The Archers pilot episode - 65th anniversary". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  17. ^ a b c d e Gillard, Frank; Manduell, John; Graham, Russ J. (13 March 2017). "The new look in radio". Transdiffusion. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g Graham, Russ J.; Bowden-Smith, Kif (31 July 2019). "Tonight's BBC Radio... in 1964". Transdiffusion. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
  19. ^ "Light Programme – 26 September 1964". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. BBC Genome.
  20. ^ a b c "Light Programme – 2 September 1957". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. BBC Genome.
  21. ^ "Light Programme – 29 September 1958". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. BBC Genome.
  22. ^ "Light Programme – 29 July 1945". genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. BBC Genome.
  23. ^ a b c d e f "BBC Light Programme schedule for 29 September 1967". BBC Genome. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  24. ^ "Why create Radio 1?". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  25. ^ "Junior Choice". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  26. ^ "The Archers". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  27. ^ "Pick of the Pops". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  28. ^ "Desert Island Discs". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  29. ^ "Woman's Hour". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Light Programme Comedy". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  31. ^ Mann, David (October 2010). "An Aristocratic Plod, Erstwhile Commandos and Ladies who Craved Excitement: Hammer Films' Post-War BBC Crime Series and Serial Adaptations" (PDF). Scope (18): 3.
  32. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad Potter, Simon J. (14 April 2022). This is the BBC: Entertaining the Nation, Speaking for Britain, 1922-2022. Oxford University Press. pp. 116–121, 148, 171–174. doi:10.1093/oso/9780192898524.001.0001. ISBN 9780192898524.
  33. ^ "The BBC celebrates The Beatles". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  34. ^ a b c "Live at the BBC". The Paul McCarthy Project. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  35. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Light Programme Music". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  36. ^ a b c d e f "Light Programme Demise". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  37. ^ a b "Light Programme Drama". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  38. ^ "Meet the Huggetts". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  39. ^ "Movie-Go-Round". BBC Genome. December 1957. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  40. ^ "Midday Spin". BBC Genome. 27 September 1966. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  41. ^ a b Wellington, Lindsay (30 September 2022). "The new pattern of sound broadcasting". Transdiffusion. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  42. ^ "7th Dimension: Orbiter X". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  43. ^ "Richard Attenborough's Record Rendezvous". BBC Genome. 2 September 1951. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  44. ^ "Riders of the Range". BBC Genome. 6 July 1953. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  45. ^ BBC Year Book 1947 (PDF). BBC. 1947. p. 48.
  46. ^ "Show Band Show". BBC Genome. 16 July 1953. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  47. ^ a b "Schedule: Sunday, 1 June 1952". BBC Genome. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  48. ^ "The Slide: 1: Moment of Silence". BBC Genome. 13 February 1966. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  49. ^ "Waterlogged Spa". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  50. ^ "Barry Alldis". Radio Rewind. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  51. ^ a b c d e f g h Pedrick, Gale (4 March 2022). "The story of announcers and announcing over thirty years". Transdiffusion. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  52. ^ "Broadcast - BBC Programme Index". Genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. April 1950.
  53. ^ "Programme Index - January 1, 1965". BBC Genome. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  54. ^ "Desmond Carrington". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  55. ^ a b "Two-Way Family Favourites". BBC Genome. 15 November 1964. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  56. ^ Barker, Dennis (30 November 2004). "Obituary: John Dunn". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  57. ^ "Tributes paid to former BBC Radio 2 host". Radio Today. 26 June 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  58. ^ "Simon Dee's rise and fall in pictures". The Guardian. 2009. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  59. ^ "Schedule - Friday, 9 December 1949". BBC Genome. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  60. ^ Bagchi, Rob (19 November 2011). "BBC's Tim Gudgin calls time with: Airdrie United 11, Gala Fairydean 0". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  61. ^ "The Beatles live: Sydney Stadium, Sydney". Beatles Bible. 24 January 2024. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  62. ^ "Obituary: Paul Hollingdale". The Times. 9 August 2017. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  63. ^ "The Radio 2 Timeline". BBC. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  64. ^ "Ray Moore". Radiocafe. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  65. ^ Utton, Dominic (12 January 2024). "RIP Annie Nightingale: Trailblazing DJ and the 'Coolest Woman Who Ever Graced the Airwaves'". Q Magazine. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  66. ^ "Schedule: Saturday 27 June 1964". BBC Genome. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  67. ^ "Schedule: Tuesday 1 March 1949". BBC Genome. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  68. ^ "How bona! Round The Horne named best radio comedy ever". Chortle. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  69. ^ Barker, Dennis (24 March 2006). "Obituary : Ken Sykora". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  70. ^ Harding, Tony (15 July 2022). "Ocean sound and me". Transdiffusion. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  71. ^ "Schedule: Saturday 23 September 1967". BBC Genome. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
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