BBC Radio 4 (LW) - The Archers: December 23, 2016

Live, off-air recording of the Christmas 2016 episode of "The Archers" broadcast by BBC Radio 4 Longwave (LW) on 23 December 2016 beginning shortly after 19:00 UTC on a frequency of 198 kHz from the 500 kW transmitter at Droitwich, near Worcester, England. 

"The Archers" is the world's longest-running radio soap opera, with a pilot series broadcast in 1950 and the first regular episode broadcast on 1 January 1951. The series was initially broadcast on the BBC Light Programme and subsequently on the BBC Home Service (now Radio 4).

Reception was very good. The recording begins with an introduction to the program and the Greenwich Time Signal (the Six Pips), followed by a short news bulletin. 

The broadcast was received by the Web-interface wideband software-defined radio at the University of Twente in Enschede, The Netherlands, with a "Mini-Whip" antenna in AM mode with 9.09 kHz RF filtering.

Antena Satelor: September 14, 2015

Antena Satelor, Romania recorded in London, UK on September 14, 2015 at 0100 UTC on the frequency of 153 kHz using a Lowe HF-150 radio with a Lowe PR-150 preselector and a Wellbrook ALA1530S+ antenna (positioned indoors). The transmitter is located in Brașov, Romania and has a power rating of 200 kW. This is a local service targeted at the domestic audience. The recording ends with the Romanian national anthem.

Polskie Radio Jedynka: December 25, 2013

Polskie Radio Jedynka recorded in London, UK on December 25, 2013 at 0004 UTC on the frequency of 225 kHz using a Lowe HF-150 radio with a Lowe PR-150 preselector and a Wellbrook ALA1530S+ antenna (positioned indoors). The transmitter is located in Solec Kujawski, Poland and has a power rating of 1000 kW. This is a local service targeted at the domestic audience. The recording is of the Polish Christmas service that was broadcast nationally.

BBC Radio 4, The Shipping Forecast: September 29, 2015

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Richard Langley, who notes:

Live recording of the Shipping Forecast broadcast by BBC Radio 4 Longwave on 29 September 2015 beginning at 23:46 UTC on a frequency of 198 kHz from the 500 kW transmitter at Droitwich, near Worcester, England. 

Reception was fairly good with slight co-channel interference and some static. The recording includes "Sailing By," the introductory music for the late-night version of the Shipping Forecast. The recording ends with the national anthem ("God Save the Queen") signalling the end of the broadcast day for Radio 4, and the Greenwich Time Signal (the Six Pips). 

The broadcast was received by the Web-interface wideband software-defined radio at the University of Twente in Enschede, The Netherlands, with a "Mini-Whip" antenna in AM mode with 8.09 kHz RF filtering.

Radio Nederland ("Happy Station Show"), "Why Join a DX Club?", LW Beacons: December 27, 1976

Greg Shoom used a Sony CRF-5090. (Photo courtesy of Universal Radio)

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Greg Shoom, who submits this recording which includes Radio Nederland's Happy Station Show from December 27, 1976.  Greg writes:

"This is the first of a set of DX cassette tapes I made back in the late 1970s. Most of it is a recording of the broadcast of the Christmas 1976 edition of the Happy Station program on Radio Nederland.

Following that is a short segment "Why join a DX club?" (broadcaster, date, and frequency of recording unknown), and a few minutes of longwave beacons."

He also includes the playlist/log with notes:

DX Tape 01

1. "Happy Station" - R. Nederland English language show, Host: Tom Meyer, Dec. 27, 1976, 6165 kHz, 0200-0320 UTC,  SINPO 44444 
2. "Why Join a DX Club?" 
3. IDs: Q, Y, P, W, M, YGK (Longwave beacons) 

Greg made these recordings from 1976-1977 with his Sony CRF-5090 portable radio in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below. Remember, you can download all of the Shortwave Radio Audio Archive as a podcast by subscribing to our iTunes or RSS feed. 

If you can help ID the broadcast, "Why Join a DX Club?" please comment!

WG2XFQ: December 26, 2013 (Longwave)

Reginald Fessenden: “The Father of Radio Broadcasting” (Source: Wikipedia)

A few weeks ago, on The SWLing Post, I published an article about Brian Justin’s holiday longwave broadcasts commemorating Reginald Fessenden’s Christmas Eve 1906 AM voice transmission. Click here to read the full article.

I don't spend a lot of time in the longwave portion of the radio spectrum, so this special event station gave me an excuse to venture a little lower on the radio dial.  Fortunately, LW propagation was in my favor, and Justin's signal made it the 215 miles to my home. While it's not armchair listening, it's most impressive, especially considering the transmitter used is "home-brewed" with modest output power.

This recording of WG2XFG was made when the signal seemed to be at its strongest on December 26th, 2013 starting around 12:40 UTC (Christmas evening, EST). Click here to download the recording as an MP3, or simply listen via the embedded player below: