How it all began

1924 saw more expansion with the opening stations at Plymouth, Edinburgh, Belfast, Hull, Nottingham, Dundee, Stoke on Trent, Swansea and on December 28th the BBC's Chelmsford transmitting station began to transmit an alternative programme. During 1923 the number of radio receiving licenses, which cost 10 shillings, had grown to 500,000 driven by the high quality programmes transmitted.  BBC London, 2LO, moved from Marconi House to new studios at Savoy Hill, while BBC Birmingham, 5IT, moved to new studios at The Picture House on New Street.

On November 14th 1923 John Reith became Managing Director of the BBC and declared that the BBC must bring the best broadcasting to the widest possible number of homes. John Reith was a Scottish engineer who envisaged that the BBC's mission must be to "inform, educate and entertain".

On 31st December 1923 Big Ben chimed in the new year for the first time by radio, while just a matter of weeks later, in February 1924, the Greenwich Time signal ("The Pips") was broadcast for the first time on BBC radio. By the mid 1920's programmes from the BBC could be received my most of the population, including programmes of talks, variety entertainment and classical music concerts from its London studios at Savoy Hill.

Development of the home Radio Left: 1924 advertisement for the Pye Two Valve radio. W.G. Pye and Co began manufacturing radio sets as early as 1920. THE CRYSTAL SET or "Cat's Whisker" and Other Home Made Radio Sets Many early radio listeners opted for crystal sets, which required no electricity or batteries and were very much cheaper than valved radios which could cost around £7 for a simple one valve model.  Crystal sets only provide headphone reception and need relatively strong signals. These radio waves need to be collected as efficiently as possible to provide enough signal for the crystal set to work. Therefore a large long-wire aerial usually had to be erected - often in the back garden or across the roof-top. Left: A Czechoslovakian Crystal Set with galena detector. .