Category Archives: Radio History

BBC Interval Signals – Then and Now

by Dan Greenall

A half century ago, the BBC World Service used a number of different interval signals. A few minutes prior to the start of a broadcast, a recognizable, often repeating tune would be played that would enable listeners to more easily locate the BBC in a crowded band on a typical analog receiver.

A peek into the 1975 World Radio TV Handbook notes a few of these. There was the Morse signal V (as in, V for Victory), primarily used for broadcasts to Europe. It was also identified as 4 notes tuned B-B-B-E, and an example can be found on Jerry Johnston’s page of shortwave interval signals:

https://www.iaswww.com/swmp3/intervalsignals/simple_is.php

Next, a version of the children’s nursery rhyme “Oranges and Lemons” was used during the 1970’s, and I have managed to save a recording of it here:

https://archive.org/details/oranges-and-lemons_202510

Then, there were the three notes “B-B-C” in tonic scale. This was assigned to the World Service for Africa and other services.

Finally, though not listed in this edition of the handbook, was the highly recognizable sound of the Bow Bells. This one came into common use during World War Two when it was broadcast as a symbol of hope for the people of Europe. At least one source states that the original recording was made in 1926, now 100 years ago. Many recordings of the Bow Bells interval signal can be found online via YouTube.

More recently, many of the BBC World Service broadcasts seem to start up very abruptly. An open carrier appears on the frequency to be used only minutes, or even seconds, before the program (already in progress) begins. One example is noted in this recording made on February 5, 2026, just prior to 2200 UTC sign-on, on a frequency of 11645 kHz.

However, two of the above-mentioned tuning signals appear to still be occasionally in use. The three-note B-B-C was observed on March 4, 2026, at 0028 UTC on 7445 kHz. This recording was made through a Kiwi SDR on the island of Cyprus.

I also logged them using their Bow Bells interval signal on December 28, 2025 at 2358 UTC on 6155 kHz while listening on a Kiwi SDR in Thailand. Here is how they sounded then.

As well, SRAA reporter Paul Walker noted reception of the Bow Bells back in September 2025 on 9410 kHz. Follow this link to his report:

https://shortwavearchive.com/archive/bbc-world-service-carrier-and-interval-signal-september-19-20-and-25-2025?rq=paul%20walker

I would be curious if other listeners have heard any of these interval signals recently preceding BBC World Service broadcasts.

BBC Seeks Shortwave Recordings and Listener Stories—Can You Help?

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SWLing Post readers,

I’m currently helping a BBC reporter who is producing an upcoming program about shortwave radio—and she’s hoping to tap into the incredible collective knowledge and experience of the SWLing Post community.

There are a few specific things she’s still trying to track down:

Recordings of what was heard when stations like Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, or Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty signed off. In other words, do you have final recordings for any of these broadcasters?
Audio recordings of a coronal mass ejection (CME) as heard on shortwave. I’ve heard this before–those broadband waves of fading–but I have no recordings.
Personal experiences of listening to shortwave while living in a closed or restricted country.

If you have recordings, firsthand experiences, or even strong leads, your contribution could help shape this program.

If you’d like to help, please leave a comment on this post–I’ll share your contact details with the producer.

As always, I’m continually amazed by the depth of knowledge and experience within this community—thank you in advance for any help you can offer!

Radio Waves: Remembering CBS Radio, Taking Back the Airwaves, Women-Led Radio Stations, Russian Great Firewall, and WLRH Audience Crisis

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Radio Waves: Stories Making Waves in the World of Radio

Welcome to the SWLing Post’s Radio Waves, a collection of links to interesting stories making waves in the world of radio. Enjoy!

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributors Dennis Dura, NT, and Mark Pascoe for the following tips:

Remembering CBS Radio’s Beginnings (Radio World)

The recent news that CBS is shuttering its radio network caused us to reflect on the glorious 99-year history of the company’s radio business, and gaze backward from this stretch of the road toward the media organization’s beginnings.

In the 1920s, Arthur L. Judson was a well-known manager of musical artists. After a meeting with RCA chief David Sarnoff, he thought he had a verbal agreement to provide musical talent for the new National Broadcasting Company, but he soon discovered that Sarnoff had instead set up his own NBC artist’s bureau. Furious over the humiliation of being outmaneuvered, Judson resolved to start his own radio network, to be called the United Independent Broadcasters.

He lined up a few investors, rented studio space at WOR in New York and signed up 16 stations. The network would pay the stations for carrying its programs, plus the talent costs and the hefty AT&T network line charges. All expenses would be paid for by advertising. The Columbia Phonograph Company agreed to provide an infusion of cash, and it became the Columbia Phonograph Broadcasting System. [Continue reading….]

After CBS: Let’s Take Back the Airwaves (Radio World)

It’s a wakeup call. Our future should belong to Main Street not Wall Street

The announcement of the pending shutdown of CBS News Radio isn’t just another media headline — it’s a wake-up call.

A clear example of what happens when decisions about our information, our communities and our voices are made in corporate boardrooms disconnected from real life.

This wasn’t a programming failure. It wasn’t a lack of audience. It was an accounting decision — made by people who don’t live in the communities radio serves, don’t rely on it and don’t understand its true value.

And that’s exactly why they got it wrong.

Radio has never been more important. In an era flooded with misinformation, algorithm-driven content and faceless digital noise, radio remains immediate, local and — most importantly — trusted. It’s the one medium that still shows up live, every day, in real time, for real people. [Continue reading…]

Empowering Airwaves: Women-Led Radio Stations Amplify Unheard Voices (Nieman Reports)

On March 8, 2021, a new radio station launched in Kabul: Radio Begum, run by women, for women. The timing was deliberate — the station opened on International Women’s Day, and just as the United States military was withdrawing from Afghanistan.

“I decided to launch this radio station in order to be ready for the day the Taliban takes power,” said Hamida Aman, the station’s founder. “We knew that as soon as they take power, it will be segregation, and again, it will be against women.”

Five months later, the Taliban retook Kabul and imposed new laws restricting women’s access to schools and their movements in public. Five years later, Radio Begum is still on the air. The station follows the letter of the law, even as restrictions tighten. It doesn’t cover politics or any subjects that are off-limits to public discussion among women under Taliban edicts. Instead, it focuses on health, religion, and providing educational programs to replace the schooling women are now prohibited from receiving.

“They banned schools, but not education,” Aman said. [Continue reading…]

Does a ‘Great Firewall’ loom? Why Russians are buying up walkie-talkies and road maps (SBS News)

Pagers, walkie-talkies and portable radios have reportedly been flying off the shelves of Moscow after the city’s roughly 13 million residents were hit with week-long internet disruptions, which some believe could be part of the Kremlin’s trial of a nationwide internet censorship system.

The blackout, which was first reported on 5 March, occurred initially in some of out suburbs in the capital, Moscow, before later spreading through the city’s downtown areas.

During the disruption, many foreign websites were blocked on mobile phones, while online government services, top banks and taxi apps also stopped working.

Russian media outlet Kommersant estimated that a five-day shutdown cost the city’s businesses between $54 million and $89 million. [Continue reading…]

An Audience Crisis at WLRH (Michael Krall – Blog)

The latest audience numbers from WLRH reflect a new reality — the audience that once listened for NPR programming is gone.

The station posted a 1.3 share for January 2026 (Nov-Dec-Jan).

This is a real loss caused directly by the format change.

Because WLRH dropped all NPR programming on October 1, 2025, this book represents the first full three months of the new format. (See my previous post for a more detailed explanation on how the Huntsville radio market is measured.) [Continue reading…]

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The Genesis of Carlos Latuff’s Illustrated Radio Listening Reports

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Carlos Latuff, who writes:

The first time I thought about illustrating news I listened to on the radio, I was a kid, in the kitchen of my aunt’s apartment, I think in the 80s. From her Philco Transglobe receiver, I was informed that a sea lion had appeared on Copacabana beach, or something like that. I imagined what it would be like to draw that unusual event. But it remained just an idea; I never got around to drawing it.

The 20th century passed, and in 2019, I decided to rescue that childhood idea from the past. I made my first illustrated radio logbook:

This minilog would be the embryo of what I now call an “Illustrated Radio Listening Report.” A way to record, in illustration form, historical moments listened on the radio.

I hope to leave to those who come after me, research material, both on History and on radio. With this in mind, I’m making available here on SWLing Post this PDF with some of my illustrated reports of news captured by radio in 2025, related to climate change, a crucial theme of our times. This is my legacy as an artist AND radio enthusiast. Enjoy! ?

Celebrating 90 Years of Radio Bulgaria’s English Voice

Radio Bulgaria Marks Its 90th Anniversary with a New QSL Card Series

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Paul Jamet, who shares the following update and QSL card images related to Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) and Radio Bulgaria.

As Radio Bulgaria looks ahead to its 90th anniversary in 2026, Bulgarian National Radio has announced a new commemorative QSL card series for listeners who submit reception reports. The series will include 12 different QSL cards, each highlighting a key moment from the history of BNR and the Radio Bulgaria service. According to BNR, a new card will be released each month, along with a short publication explaining the historical background behind the featured image.

One of the cards commemorates Bulgaria’s first radio transmission in 1929, an important milestone that marked the beginning of organized radio broadcasting in the country. Additional background articles from BNR revisit the early days of Radio Bulgaria and trace how the service evolved into an international broadcaster with listeners around the world.

Paul also points to a broader retrospective titled “BNR at 90 – A Story of Pride and No Prejudice,” which looks back on nine decades of Bulgarian National Radio. The piece reflects on BNR’s history through periods of political change and technological transition, while underscoring the role of public broadcasting in preserving culture and maintaining a connection with international audiences.

Attached at the top and bottom of this post are two QSL cards from Paul’s own collection.

Many thanks again to Paul for sharing both the news and the QSL images!

The Remarkable Life of Dr. Leslie Radnay, W1PL

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Dan Greenall, who writes:

I know many of your readers are amateur radio operators and have a passion for all things radio. A couple of years ago, I was sorting through some of my old ham QSL’s and this one from W1PL caught my eye. A quick internet check confirmed he was indeed a silent key, however, I also uncovered his incredible story which I thought I would share here. Truly a remarkable individual.

Dr. Leslie (Laci) Radnay, W1PL

Dr. Leslie (Laci) Radnay, W1PL (1912-2008), is a story of how perseverance, determination, and the love of radio got him through the most challenging of circumstances imaginable, time and time again. In fact, it is truly the stuff that Hollywood movies are made of.

In spite of all of this, he was never too busy to help others. Certainly someone to look up to and admire for what he was able to accomplish, and I feel privileged to have had even just a brief contest-style QSO with him. He was instrumental in helping to start the Hungarian Radio Amateur Association and got on the air with a self-assigned callsign in 1928.

Click on this PDF file link to read his incredible story.

Attached are images of a number of QSL cards he issued over the years.

Thank you, Dan, for sharing.

Reading through Laci Radnay’s life story, I’m struck not only by the sheer scale of what he endured, but by how completely radio remained a constant thread throughout it all. Time and again, regimes changed, borders closed, equipment was confiscated, and lives were upended—yet radio, and the community surrounding it, always found a way back into his life.

W1PL’s story is a powerful reminder that amateur radio is far more than a technical pursuit; it is a human one. It builds resilience, forges lifelong friendships across borders, and, in Laci’s case, provided continuity, purpose, and connection through some of the darkest chapters of the 20th century.

I’m deeply grateful to Dan for sharing this remarkable story, and honored to help preserve the memory of an operator whose life so beautifully embodied the very best of our radio community. -Thomas