In 1920, Nellie Melba’s singing was transmitted to Europe and Newfoundland via the wireless. In 1922 the BBC began broadcasting, and from the outset sponsored new music and relayed outside broadcasts to the nation (and from 1932, to the world).

In 1927 the BBC took over The Proms, and in 1946 the Third (alongside the Home and the Light) Programme was instituted.

The BBC’s mission: ‘to be ahead of its public, but not so much as to lose their confidence’.

A lecture by Jeremy Summerly 17 September

The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website:

https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/radio-78

Gresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures a week being made available for free download from our website. There are currently over 2,000 lectures free to access or download from the website.

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