Radio Week

Radio Week was a bilingual, weekly magazine produced by the South African Broadcasting Corporation in Cape Town.

History

Radio Week was a bilingual, weekly, 32-page magazine produced by the South African Broadcasting Corporation in Cape Town to advertise the week's radio highlights, was registered at the GPO as a newspaper and sold for 3 pennies (also called a "tickey," thruppence or written as 3d). A yearly subscription to Radio Week could be had for 6/- (six shillings) if you were a "licensed listener" (1½d per copy). Non-licensed listeners could purchase a subscription at the regular price of 12/6 per annum.

Each week Radio Week carried detailed schedules for the South African Broadcasting Corporation's (SABC) radio stations: Cape Town "A" (English), Cape Town "B" (Afrikaans), Durban and Pietermartizburg "A" (English), Durban and Pietermartizburg "B" (Afrikaans), Johannesburg, Bloemfontein and Grahamstown "A" (English), and Johannesburg, Bloemfontein and Grahamstown "B" (Afrikaans).

Although a Black radio station was introduced in the winter of 1940 for wartime propaganda purposes, Radio Week completely ignored any news regarding its broadcasts.

Vol 1, No 1,was launched on Friday, 26th October, 1945, just eight weeks after World War 2 ended on September 2. This was quite remarkable when considering the worldwide shortage of paper since South Africa was totally dependent on Britain for her paper supply. After the Germans occupied Norway, the world's major supplier of wood pulp, Britain's supply was drastically curtailed and it was not till the end of the war when supplies slowly started returning to normal.

Station Programmes and Personalities

Each of the three transmitting centres, 1) Cape Town, 2) Durban and Pietermartizburg, and 3) Johannesburg, Bloemfontein and Grahamstown, broadcast two stations, one in English and the other in Afrikaans. Transmissions began at 7.20AM and continued non-stop until closing time, which varied but which was usually around midnight.

Johannesburg, Bloemfontein and Grahamstown "A" (English)

8th November, 1945: No Flowers for Carmen a murder drama set in an opera house, written by Ralph Trewelha, He was also the composer of the song So Long, Sarie.

November 1945: Die Gelukkige Huwelik (The Happy Marriage) a play by W.A. de Klerk, directed by Anna K Pohl (Anna S Pohl?) later Anna Neethling-Pohl?

Barchester Towers, a daily drama read by Dorothy Spring.

Forces and Ex-Forces Favourites presented by Haidee Cassell.

For Military Hospitals a music show presented by Sybil Seecker.

Chief Inspector French's Cases was a series of broadcasts based on the 1924 mystery detective novel by the British author, Freeman Wills Crofts, and featured Inspector Joseph French, a Scotland Yard detective known for his methodical techniques.

Johannesburg, Bloemfontein and Grahamstown "B" (Afrikaans)

(These entries still to be correctly placed.)

"Fish with Leonard Flemming"

"Nuwejaarskets" with Freda Linde.

Yoland d'Hotman entertained Durban hospital patients.)

Sources

Various editions of Radio Week.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inspector_French%27s_Greatest_Case

Return to

Return to South African Venues, Companies, Societies, etc

Return to The ESAT Entries

Return to Main Page