1953: Those Radio Times
BBC Radio 4 Extra marks the 60th anniversary of The Queen’s Coronation. In the week of the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’'s coronation, Nick Baker rummages in the Radio Times to hear gems from that week, as well as other material from 1953.
The Coronation convinced thousands to buy a television, but judging by these programmes, radio was still going strong.
Gracing the front cover of the year’s first Radio Times in January 1953 were the stars of radio’s Take It From Here, Dick Bentley and Jimmy Edwards. But in that first week, for the first time, television listings, once regulated to the back of the magazine, now followed the pages on the Home, Light and Third Programmes. This was to be the year in which the television audience, for the first time, exceeded that of radio, thanks to The Coronation. Nick Baker listens in, assesses the mood and marks the changes in both the country, and on the airwaves.
An entertaining reflection on the nation’s radio, in an auspicious year, as it attempted to make the transition from here to modernity. The year which saw Britain shaking off its shabby post-war austerity and preparing for fun, pomp and a great summer of sport, as revealed through a selection of programmes, music and radio highlights.
Producer/Testbed Productions
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