{"id":63185,"date":"2025-06-14T07:58:46","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T11:58:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/?p=63185"},"modified":"2025-06-14T07:58:46","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T11:58:46","slug":"the-secret-listeners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2025\/06\/the-secret-listeners\/","title":{"rendered":"The Secret Listeners"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-17282\" src=\"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial.jpg 800w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/Scott-Marine-SLR-M-Dial-500x281.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/a>Our friend Bill Meara at SolderSmoke just shared a link to an excellent Hackaday article highlighting Britain\u2019s \u201csecret listeners\u201d\u2014the skilled amateur radio operators who intercepted enemy transmissions during WWII. These unsung heroes quietly monitored Axis communications, contributing to vital wartime intelligence.<\/p>\n<p>This piece offers a compelling look into how amateur radio skills were used for national defense and how listening\u2014often overlooked\u2014played a key role in the war effort.<\/p>\n<p>Read more at SolderSmoke: <a href=\"https:\/\/soldersmoke.blogspot.com\/2025\/06\/britains-secret-listeners.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/soldersmoke.blogspot.com\/2025\/06\/britains-secret-listeners.html\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>We actually featured <a href=\"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/09\/wartime-radio-the-secret-listeners\/\">the 1979 BBC documentary, &#8220;The Secret Listeners&#8221;<\/a> eleven years ago (!!!) here on the <em>SWLing Post<\/em>. It&#8217;s a brilliant video:<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"youtube-player\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RwbzV2Jx5Qo?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;start=1&#038;wmode=transparent\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" style=\"border:0;\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox\"><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our friend Bill Meara at SolderSmoke just shared a link to an excellent Hackaday article highlighting Britain\u2019s \u201csecret listeners\u201d\u2014the 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 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3,305,288],"tags":[10840],"class_list":["post-63185","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-nostalgia","category-radio-history","tag-secret-listeners"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pn3uc-gr7","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":58606,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2023\/12\/soldersmoke-7j6cbq-on-okinawa-and-a-translation-of-a-science-fiction-novel-about-ham-radio-in-china\/","url_meta":{"origin":63185,"position":0},"title":"SolderSmoke: 7J6CBQ on Okinawa &#8212; And a Translation of a Science Fiction Novel about Ham Radio in China","author":"Thomas","date":"December 30, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to\u00a0SWLing Post\u00a0contributor, Bill Meara who shares\u00a0the following article from the excellent SolderSmoke Podcast: 7J6CBQ on Okinawa -- And a Translation of a Science Fiction Novel about Ham Radio in China The\u00a0article about Sergeant Malik Pugh USMC\u00a0on Okinawa brought back memories from the 1990s. David Cowhig was 73 Magazine's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Ham Radio&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Ham Radio","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/ham-radio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/image-2.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10920,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2014\/09\/wartime-radio-the-secret-listeners\/","url_meta":{"origin":63185,"position":1},"title":"Wartime radio: The secret listeners","author":"Thomas","date":"September 28, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"After publishing the post about\u00a0Geoff Hanley and the\u00a0Radio Security Service\u00a0last week, I discovered this brilliant 1979 documentary from the BBC which highlights\u00a0civilian involvement in radio-based intelligence during WWI and WWII. Here's a description from the East Anglian Film Archive: \"It was the tireless work of amateur radio enthusiasts during World\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;International Broadcasting&quot;","block_context":{"text":"International Broadcasting","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/international-broadcasting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"RadioSecretService","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/RadioSecretService.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/RadioSecretService.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/RadioSecretService.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":58285,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2023\/11\/bills-shortwave-listener-qsl-cards\/","url_meta":{"origin":63185,"position":2},"title":"Bill&#8217;s Shortwave Listener QSL Cards","author":"Thomas","date":"November 25, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Bill Meara who shares\u00a0the following article from the SolderSmoke Podcast: Some Short-Wave Listener QSL Cards http:\/\/soldersmoke.com\/soldersmoke249.mp3 I haven't received many, but I always like QSL cards from shortwave listeners. Someone out there is listening! The top one is from recent contact. It arrives from\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/SWL-QSLs.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/SWL-QSLs.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/SWL-QSLs.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/SWL-QSLs.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/SWL-QSLs.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":54731,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2022\/11\/from-soldersmoke-watching-shortwave-broadcast-stations-on-the-tinysa-spectrum-analyser\/","url_meta":{"origin":63185,"position":3},"title":"From SolderSmoke: Watching Shortwave Broadcast Stations on the TinySA Spectrum Analyser","author":"Thomas","date":"November 22, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and friend, Bill Meara, from the amazing SolderSmoke podcast who shares the following post that originally appeared on the SolderSmoke Daily News: Watching Shortwave Broadcast Stations on the TinySA Spectrum Analyser by Bill Meara November 18, 2022 1244 UTC. I was using a TinySA\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Articles&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Articles","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Dos-Equis-Vatican-Radio-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":63025,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2025\/05\/hcjbs-legacy-lives-on-in-western-australia\/","url_meta":{"origin":63185,"position":4},"title":"HCJB\u2019s Legacy Lives On in Western Australia","author":"Thomas","date":"May 25, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Bill Meara, who recently connected with VK6JMS\u2014an amateur radio operator working from none other than HCJB\u2019s former shortwave site in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. In his latest SolderSmoke post, Bill shares details about the station\u2019s legacy, its impressive TCI antennas, and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Norelco-Dial-Angle-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Norelco-Dial-Angle-1.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Norelco-Dial-Angle-1.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Norelco-Dial-Angle-1.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Norelco-Dial-Angle-1.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48212,"url":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/2021\/03\/how-to-make-a-cheap-receiving-outfit\/","url_meta":{"origin":63185,"position":5},"title":"&#8220;How To Make a Cheap Receiving Outfit&#8221;","author":"Thomas","date":"March 17, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Our friends over at the SolderSmoke Daily News recently posted this fun piece from a January 1921 issue of Radio News: This is great! I've often thought a proper ground needed daily watering. And we know it must work: Mars is some serious DX!\u00a0 Professor Nutty T. Wyrlus was way\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Funny&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Funny","link":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/category\/funny\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Cheap-Receiving-Outfit.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63185","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63185"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63185\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63187,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63185\/revisions\/63187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63185"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63185"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swling.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63185"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}