Category Archives: Nostalgia

The Secret Listeners

Our friend Bill Meara at SolderSmoke just shared a link to an excellent Hackaday article highlighting Britain’s “secret listeners”—the skilled amateur radio operators who intercepted enemy transmissions during WWII. These unsung heroes quietly monitored Axis communications, contributing to vital wartime intelligence.

This piece offers a compelling look into how amateur radio skills were used for national defense and how listening—often overlooked—played a key role in the war effort.

We actually featured the 1979 BBC documentary, “The Secret Listeners” eleven years ago (!!!) here on the SWLing Post. It’s a brilliant video:

Can you identify this radio and loop antenna in “Young Sheldon”?

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Bruce, who writes:

This episode, S02E22, was aired on May 16, 2019. In the story the year is circa 1990. The “broadcasts” of CHU (not named) and Radio Sweden International are not actual ones.

I give this episode high marks for taking the time to demonstrate a Shortwave Radio and an Antenna, more than anything I’ve seen before on any TV show or movie.

Can anyone identify the radio and the loop antenna? Please comment!

How Radio Carried the News of D-Day: Broadcasts from June 6, 1944

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American GIs heading toward the shoreline of Omaha Beach around June 7, 1944. (Photo Courtesy of The National WWII Museum)

Today marks the anniversary of D-Day—Operation Overlord—the Allied invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944.

If you’ve never listened to how the news broke here in the U.S., the Internet Archive hosts a remarkable collection of recordings from that historic day. It’s fascinating to hear the unfolding coverage in real time—an extraordinary window into the role of radio during one of the most pivotal moments in history.

Complete Broadcast Day – D-Day (June 6, 1944)

Hallicrafters’ 1944 Film, “Voice of Victory”

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Fred Waterer, who writes:

I’ve fallen down a YouTube rabbit hole.

This time a video that is part propaganda, part Hallicrafters ad, and part documentary.

Pretty interesting how they adapted the radios to wartime conditions:

Click here to view on YouTube.

Spotted in Countdown: Can You Identify This Radio?

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Robert, who writes:

Hi Thomas – I am a huge fan of space movies and recently watched the 1967 film “Countdown” starring James Caan and Robert Duvall. There is a radio sitting on the nightstand in a hotel room in this scene.

Maybe your readers can identify it?

Cheers,

Robert

Thanks, Robert! This photo isn’t high definition, but I bet some of our intrepid radio sleuths will soon find the model number of this tabletop radio. Please comment!

Rafael Spots Several Radios in “Young Ones”

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Rafael Rodriguez, who writes:

Hi Thomas

Greetings from Colombia. Yesterday, I saw a movie called “Young Ones” (2014). It is about an apocalyptic future where water is the most precious resource.

In the film, radio is present through a station called “The Voice of the West shortwave”, which even has the slogan: “Where the airwaves live free”

A pair of radios are also shown, the first one seems to be a Sony 7600d and then an HF transceiver that I can’t recognize, a Handie also appears.

Interestingly, it shows a way to mark an agricultural robot so that whoever finds it can communicate with its owner via citizen band.

I hope it is of interest to you and the readers of The SWLing Post.

Bye and good DX

Rafael Rodriguez R

Patrolling The Ether: A 1944 Film About Tracking Down Nazis With Radio!

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Fred Waterer, who tipped us off to Patrolling the Ether—a 1944 short film produced by the U.S. Office of War Information. This wartime documentary highlights how amateur radio operators and federal agents collaborated to monitor the airwaves and track down enemy spies. A fascinating glimpse into radio’s role in World War II era homeland security:

Click here to view on YouTube.