UNESCO World Radio Day, Thursday 13 February

This year’s UNESCO World Radio Day is Thursday 13 February.

There will be live programmes form Paris on a variety of networks and stations including Radio France Internationale, Radio National de Espaňa, Radio Orient,  China Radio International, WYNU New York.

I expect any radio station of note will also be marking the day with some quality themed programming covering this, so listen out on Radio Sweden, BBC World Service, Radio Romania International, All India Radio etc. 

But don’t expect your local commercial stations Bland FM to bother… it might interrupt a traffic bulletin or the 7^th playing that day of an already overexposed artiste…

Long wave lights up

Photo from: https://www.evensi.com/moskva-tartu-raadio-genialistide-klubi/105731182

Extracts from my Broadcast Matters column, Radio User, February 2014

A programme I have been enjoying of late is on 252kHz long wave, which is of course where you will find RTE 1. On Sundays at six comes The History Show, which is packed full of high quality content. Hosted by Myles Dungan and guest, the past is brought to life as historical events from Medieval times to the recent present are explored. Interviews with interesting experts (and sometimes the public) and book reviews make for a gripping programme with good reception. What more could you ask for? A recent fascinating programme was about the MV Kerlogue, which was a small coaster of the Wexford Steamship company that came to fame by rescuing a multitude of German sailors whose ship had been sunk in World War II. Another programme looked at the history of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, first published in 1768 by Edinburgh bookseller Colin MacFarquhar and engraver Andrew Bell.

Graham Smith reports that Ukraine has reactivated its medium wave station on 936kHz. It runs from 0330 to 2200UTC daily, and it is moderately strong at his location. The Czech long wave station on 270kHz is to close at the end of February 2014. Currently the transmitter carries the Radiožurnál channel, and the schedule is 0400 to 2300 UTC from Mondays to Fridays and 0500 to 2300 UTC at the weekends.

Komla Dumor a silent voice - BBC World Service's Network Africa

I wanted to add my brief thoughts to the many who have shed a tear for the untimely passing of BBC WS Komla Dumor.

For many years in fairly recent times (that is 2006-09 and BBC WS programme Network Africa) he was my dawn to breakfast companion, so to say, with my waking to the BBC WS on my bedside radio every morning. His dependable delivery style, humour and fabulous radio voice made the news stories engaging and listenable, no matter how awful or sick the actual stories continued to be. How sad that he too would come to be one of those tragic tales himself as he made the headlines at the weekend.

He will be missed – a voice that echoed from Bush House’s studios and corridors (and later Broadcasting House) across the airwaves and the internet to a waiting world. R.I.P.


As a small tribute I looked back fondly on some of his tweets:

2013: Alice Baxter has gone shopping for her husband. I'm taking over in studio B at broadcasting house


2013: Madiba's fav joke w his son in law involves a trip to W/Africa and a goat. Personal insight from Isaac Amuah


2013: A big thank you to colleagues @BBCAfrica @BBCWorld who have been so supportive 

2011: Lovely Easter Sunday-heading to Bush house listening to Wiz Khalifa..World Today on BBC world service Monday morning


2011: back at Bush House! New schedule for the World Today BBC World Service Radio.Julian Keane is in Nairobi join us from 0300GMT to 0830GMT

QSL cards and reception reports

Extracts from my Radio Websites columns, Radio User, 2014

Howard Barnett picked up a Trans World Radio (TWR) transmission from India in an unidentified language of that country. He doesn’t give a frequency or time, but he would like a postal address and, as they issue QSL cards, you can write to TWR India, PO Box 4310, Delhi 110019, India. Simpler still you can email them at info@twr.in. TWR India broadcast in an amazing array of almost 60 languages and dialects to Asia, many of which are new to me. For instance there’s 15 minutes a week in Awadhi, 15 in Bondo, Haryanvi, Kui, Mouchi, Tulu and Varli. There is some English to be heard on TWR India as well- far more than 15 minutes a week but last year’s winter schedule for English was only on 882kHz medium wave.  

However this frequency was heard in February by a Finnish DXer surprisingly, see and hear for yourself at http://www.twrbonaire.com/news/view/67/2013/02-02/qsl-request-from-finland  

There are also TWR broadcasts in English to Europe; from 0800 to 0820 UTC on Saturdays and Sundays and a little longer on weekdays, from 0800 to 0850 UTC. All these broadcasts use 7400kHz via Moosbrunn in Austria and 6105kHz from the Nauen transmitter in Germany.

Their European office is in Vienna,  Trans World Radio, Postfach 141, A-1235 Vienna, Austria. 

Starting in 1952, in total TWR now preach “hope to the world” in an astonishing 230 languages and dialects, which brings them 20,000 listener responses every month. 

Romania celebrated 85 years of broadcasting in 2013, and the final QSL card of their 2013 series is now available. It’s of a radio studio in in the city of Resita. The series tied in with their anniversary, consisting of Romanian radio buildings, including concert halls, studios. The nicest card of the dozen, in my view was October 2013’s ancient radio office block in the city of Targu Mures. 

Howard heard a station which he believes was from Bangladesh on 15505kHz from 1530 to 1550 UTC. This was probably their Hindu broadcast. Bangladesh Betar can be heard in  English, if you are lucky, at 1230 to 1300 UTC on 15105kHz from Dhaka; 1235 to 1255 and 1530 to 1545 UTC on 4750kHz from Shavar; and from 1745 to 1900 UTC from Dhaka on 7250kHz. Reception reports can be posted to Senior Engineer, Research & Receiving Centre, Bangladesh Betar, 121 Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, Shabag, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh and emailed to rrc@dhaka.net  

Radio PCJ International from Taiwan (9705kHz at 1330 UTC) issued a Halloween QSL card for those who sent reception reports of the PCJ rebroadcast of War of The Worlds- it features Martians on a lake. Radio Havana Cuba’s Spanish service also issued a commemorative QSL card for the 75th anniversary of the Orson Welles’ classic radio play.

Kitchen radio

A simple swirl along the dial at this time of year brings a host of wonderful variety from European stations. 

For me, baking festive treats in the kitchen and wrapping up last minute presents are made all the sweeter with an ear tuned to some of the following stations’ own festive fare:

Mayak Radio on 549kHz from Russia; Czech Radio from Prague on 639kHz; Croatian Radio on 1134kHz and Magyar Radio 4 from Hungary on 1188kHz are just a few suggestions. At the very least you will surely hear the strong signals from stations in Germany, Spain, France and the Netherlands beaming out on medium wave. They can light up a dark evening as they reach the British Isles too.

I have been tuning into medium wave a lot lately- there’s something about the winter nights that adds to the atmosphere of mw for me- as I listen I picture swathes of historical regions of Europe blanketed in snow. On Saturday nights Deutschlandfunk on 1422kHz airs a play. Even though my understanding of German is weak, I can get a feel of the programme and I can sometimes eke out some of the storyline (especially with some online research and preparation in advance). 

Recent delights from DLF have included a play called Russian Salad which was supposedly set at the BBC in London. A Russian presenter drops dead at the mike during a live broadcast. Chaos breaks out among the editors, less because of the death as how to fill, pardon the pun, dead air. It is determined the presenter was poisoned… Another play was about a trapeze artist from Bristol and another about a gambler who is kidnapped in Hollywood. It’s gripping stuff in any language.

Other medium wave frequencies that I pick up clearly on the car radio as well as on a basic kitchen set include Czech Radio on 954khz. Radio Maria from Lopik in the Netherlands on 675kHz plays a mix of folk and religious music, Dutch station NOR5 on 747kHz from Flevo has news bulletins which you can pick out odd sentences of and translate quite easily. The old Radio Sweden frequency of 1179kHz is used by various stations from Antenne Saar in Germany including Radio France International at 1700 UTC. 

For a selection of French music try France bleu on 864kHz while France Info delivers interesting programmes on 945 and 792kHz among others. BBC Radio Scotland is always an entertaining listen for me and easy to catch on medium wave from here in the north of England on its 810kHz frequency.

A little Latin

Extracts from my Radio Websites columns, Radio User, 2013

This time we go a little Latin with some Argentinean and Brazilian radio stations, dip into some blogs to review logbooks and radios new and old, and finish off with a wide selection of readers' website tips. She finishes off in a time machine to the 1950s.

Stations and shows
I've long been a big fan of shortwave stations Radiodifusión Argentina al Exterior (RAE), the international radio and online service of Radio Nacional Argentina. But it's not always easy to hear on shortwave so the World Radio Network online option is something I turn to at www.wrn.org/ Other options include the RAE website at http://rae.radionacional.com.ar/  

and there are two sites for the wonderful Latin Jumpstart music programme; on Facebook and Soundcloud https://www.facebook.com/LatinJumpstart and https://soundcloud.com/latinjumpstart Latin Jumpstart is presented by Fernando Farias, DJ G Mega, Melanie Henderson every Friday evening at 11.30pm on the RAE channel of Argentina's Radio Nacional. www.radionacional.com.ar/vivo/4-rae

Feeling in need of some Brazilian music as well I turned to Streema to start my journey to the land of the samba and so much more. http://streema.com/radios/country/
Brazil offered me a good choice. Radio Paqueire at http://streema.com/radios/Radio_Paiquere_FM and www.paiquerefm.com.br/ was a good start, playing as it did some Brazilian ballads and tunes to brighten the gloomiest of days.  Nova Brasil FM in Sao Paulo on 89.7 delivered me folk, samba and bossa nova http://www.novabrasilfm.com.br/

Tune In, with 70,000 global stations, unsurprisingly showed me one thousand Brazilian stations, some of which were western rock but most were offering local musical fare. I hasten to add that I am yet to work my way through all 1,000 but would gladly do so if I had time. A little project for the autumn perhaps...Start at http://tunein.com/radio/Brazilian-Music-g137/  I enjoyed Rádio Samba dos Gêmeos at http://sambadosgemeos.com/ and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/sambao.dosgemeos. I kid you not, as soon as I clicked onto the station and the music started streaming, the sun came out! The music was a little too cheesy and mainstream at times for me, but I would persevere. Likewise Rádio Planalto do Oeste AM 1490 www.radioplanaltodooeste.com.br/

QRM and NZ

Extracts from my Radio Websites columns, Radio User, 2013

Two other recommendations from Ian Brothwell are this video on QRM (interference).
Thilo Kootz DL9KCE, of Deutscher Amateur-Radio-Club (DARC), demonstrates findings when they tested a range of LED lamps. http://www.ukqrm.org.uk/lighting.php. In a different mood, watch a rather nice video of moon rise over Wellington, New Zealand on Mark Gee’s Vimeo channel http://vimeo.com/58385453 

Why not tune to radio from Wellington et al online as you watch, or select from other kiwi stations. A handy guide is at http://www.nzradioguide.co.nz/

Also, I found an interesting "design a radio" NZ competition (see photo above) at 
http://bestawards.co.nz/entries/interactive/category/interactive-marketing/radio-new-zealand-sounds-like-us-competition-website/