British Relay Wireless

From the 1930's to the early 70's there was what seems an almost forgotten method of broadcasting that of relay wireless (seems a strange name for something that was anything but wire-less, but that's what it was called). In my area, Brierley Hill in the West Midlands this was provided by "British Relay Wireless" (later to become "British Relay" when they also relayed TV.) All council houses and schools were wired up with a 4 station audio system and subscribers had a station selector and a speaker similar to the one below.
	Station Selector This one incorporates a Volume Control and was mainly used in School installations, whereas the normal domestic installation had the Volume Control on the Loudspeaker itself photos & text courtesy of Colin Hadley  (Click to enlarge, then back to return)
	Typical Loudspeaker (Click to enlarge, then back to return)
Schools had large open baffle speakers, at school we listened or joined in Singing Together", "Music & Movement" etc. My friends who had relay at home used to boast that they could get good reception on "Radio Luxemburg"   The school I went to is amazingly still wired up all round the building, I have taken some photos before someone realizes that it don't do anything anymore and rips it out! it is very neat wiring and must have been there since the 1940's.   I have often wondered how they boosted the signal and imagined repeater stations with amplifiers but having received some old journals I have found that what they did was to have high voltage amplifiers at the station which were transformed down to "medium voltage feeders" 650v rms which went to local kiosks where it was transformed down to "service level voltage" 60 volts rms. I can expand on this if anyone is interested.   Does anyone have more information or photos of speakers, specially the open baffle type used in schools? Please contact me if you have any information. mailto:mmearman@hotmail.com Here are the photos of the school, followed by some taken of what's left of the later television relay upgrade (c.1960) on a local housing estate.   Please click a photo to enlarge then back on your browser to return.

Technical Information

fig.1 shows a typical        fig.2 a distribution overhead line.                 kiosk
I'm pleased to say that I've been contacted by Colin Hadley who worked for British Relay for 30 years. His information and photos are below:
Originally, Central Relay Wireless had a 3-way (UP-Home service; CENTRE-Off; DOWN-Light Programme) Switch, used on the Audio Networks, around Smethwick, Oldbury, Bearwood, Cradley Heath & Brierley Hill, the audio channels in these areas being fed by "Brute Force" of 1kw Amplifiers at the Main Stations. With the advent of Television,(1950's) these areas, and more, were rewired for the TV Programmes, and the company name changed to British Relay Wireless and Television. I was with British Relay for 30 years (less 1 month). I joined in 1954 on leaving school, then worked in the various departments, commencing with the Wiring Team, We were based at Gilbert Road, Smethwick, at the junction with Waterloo Road, on which was based the Central Relay Wireless Equipment for distributing the Audio around the networks. The Receiving Equipment Console (all Radio Programmes arrived via Landline) was in the window of the double fronted shop with operators manning the controls at all times, in full view of the public walking by. (In fact there was a Bus Stop - for buses to Bearwood, directly outside the showroom window) Radio Luxembourg was received via Landline from the South Coast, Saxmundham, and distributed around the region. (This included, Brierley Hill, Cradley Heath, Gloucester, all via GPO Landlines). Here are some photos of the Brierley Hill Station being built. This was on Merry Hill, by Mount Pleasant, - BEFORE Merry Hell! - behind the few Bungalows and Houses that were there, pre-Merry Hill Shopping and while Round Oak Steelworks was thriving.
	1.The Station Building  2. Aerial Mast  (with, I believe, myself on top)   (Click on each to enlarge, back to return)
	Various Equipment Racks being wired in (I'm the person with the hair-that's also gone!)
	Main 1Kw Audio Amplifiers, usually 2 for each programme, BBC Home service, BBC Light programme, BBC 3rd programme, 4th Radio Channel - Radio Luxembourg from, I think, 7pm until Midnight - all other times light music from Europe was transmitted throughout the networks. There is some testing going on, hence the Signal Generator and Wave Analyser.

Thanks again to Colin for his information and pictures

Graham Priestley's Memories I just came across your article and thought the following small memories might be of interest. I was born in 1947 in Lincoln and we had the relay system installed in two rooms of our home. I don’t remember there being more than two programmes to choose from, but that was probably dependant on how much you paid. Being of an inquisitive nature, I soon found out how the system worked, and ‘adjusted’ it to give us more volume. The transmitted signals were carried on twisted pair cable and the program selector box had load resistors inside so the amplifier ran at constant power even when you had nothing selected. The speaker cabinet included a wire-wound potentiometer for volume control and a step-down transformer to convert from the line level down to a lower voltage for the 15 ohm 8” speaker. I realised that the maximum power level was fixed by the transformer ratio and changing the tappings altered the level. I subsequently found the same configuration on the open baffle speaker we had at school, which was already set to maximum… Some time after this I made friends with another boy who lived nearby and was invited to his home to see his electric train set. I was amazed to find that he lived above the local repeater station and the original ‘front room’ of the house was filled with amplifier racks. I’ve never found out what type they were, but the power amplifiers used pairs of valves which were about 5 inches in diameter and two feet high – I’d guess they produced at least 10kW of audio – enough for about 5000 subscribers. From your comments, I now realise that the output was routed at high voltage to the local ‘street corner’ distribution cabinets, where it was stepped down to a lower voltage for the shorter lengths of wire to each house. By 1960, I was building amplifiers of my own to use with a pop-group and we’d stopped paying for the Radio Relay service, as we now had a radio of our own. The wiring was still live when I moved from there in 1968… Thank you Graham for your interesting contribution

Tony Curtis's Memories Hello, I came across your BRW (that was how I knew it) webpage and offer some historical data. We lived in Rodney Road, London, and had a wireless speaker hired from BRW. Knowing nothing about it I stripped the wiring (twin-pair) and found greater volume by earthing one of them. Some time later a Technician arrived and I was cautioned severely, being only 14 yo! After passing A-Levels, 1959, I got a job as a 'Trainee Junior Executive' with BRW who operated out of premises in Albany Road, London. Mr MacDonald, the GM, actually came to our home to offer me the job! For 3 months I sat with 4 women each of us winding transformers on ferrite rods for the TV attenuators ("Inserts") used for connecting subscribers to the TV wired network just coming in. Then the Company moved to Croft Street in Bermondsey and I spent 3 months attached to various departments: Accounts: TV Test: running a line of factory women producing attenuators (remember Valerie Chappell --- spitting image of 'Denise' in 'Roadhouse,' at 19 yoa, enough said!); Installation - where I had to climb a ladder for 3-stories some got halfway up and froze!); test Department: Workshop: finally being attached to the Development laboratory. The audio system utilised 1Kw valve amps emitting AF at 100V and was transformed down at each subscribers outlet. The 405-line TV methodology was a vestigial sideband system modulated on a 3.75MHz carrier. At each subscriber it was attenuated by "Inserts" of varying attenuation (10, 20, 30 dB) installed into a black poly box inserted in the 8-pair 87.5 ohm cable reticulated from 'Stations' used to amplify the TV signal at various low-level places on-route. As I remember, each station had 4 channels of 19 inch rack-mounted units. There were 4 channels for TV and 4 channels for audio, the latter being modulated on 2.1 MHZ, DSB, Heising modulation. There was an, 'Automonitor' at each station consisting of a unit that oscillated checking signals and switching 'spare' paths when signals failed. This 'oscillator' consisted of 3 'feedback' GPO relays that one had to 'adjust' by 'bending' spring contacts to make them work! When 625 approached the technology was worrying as the 5.5 MHz wider video bandwidth was a problem with a carrier of 3.75 MHz. The R&D lab produced TV modulators working at 3.75MHz multiples to do the modulation and the resulting DSB filtered to VSB and downconverted to 3.75MHz, using a mix of valves and transistors. During this time I developed a newer version of the sound carrier modulator using valves, and a Video Insertion Test System using monostable valve phantastrons. This allowed Pulse & Bar testing on-line. The wider bandwidth of 625 colour meant the transmission-line losing levels at 10MHz so my boss, Richard Whorwell, was tasked with developing an amplitude equaiiser with no Group Delay. I built his prototype and it went into production to be distributed to all the Stations. Another bloke, Bob Shilling, built an improved TV PA using EL something o/p bottles. I wanted to join the R&D lab but Ferdy Main (Chief R&D) was against this. I was sent to Birmingham to educate the staff in the 'New 625 line' stuff. I was offered a job there but refused. While hotelling with the aforementioned, 'Bob Shilling,' I asked why the other blokes in my Group, (there were 3) had all been, 'promoted?' His retort was that I didn't wear a suit and tie, was too friendly with the 'Workers' and this was the reason. I travelled around London instructing and at 'Station 1,' in Walworth Road saw an intriguing venture. A COMPUTER using cold-cathode thermionic devices. It charged a large capacitor in the BR TV sets and then discharged them at a 'coinage-set-rate.' It was the ORIGINAL Pay-TV System but the British Government outlawed it!!! This in about 1962!!!!!! I got a job with the Marconi Company in Chelmsford designing High Power Amplifiers. When I handed in my 'Notice' I was offered a position in the R&D lab!!!!! I joined Marconi!! Hope this is interesting? regards Tony Curtis (In Oz)

Jonah Jones's Memories I to worked  at the (relay) starting late 1954 Oct/Nov from Gilbert Rd Smethwick I am writing to you to ask you would you remember any of the old team on the (M A W T) Harry James, gaffer I think Sam Bayless  (foreman), Dougie Rowley, Ernie Ballantyne,   Little Jock, Sammy Cummings and myself  Jonah. I always remember my first day at work stepping off the B82 bus from Bearwood to Gilbert Road terrible weather absolutely pouring with heavy rain what a nice day to start work  would you remember the old two wheeled wooden handcarts with all the gear on cable etc plus the double 20's wooden ladders and would you remember Barbara that sat the controls in Waterloo Rd with the double frontage shop windows and what about the old cable colours yellow for the (Home service) green for the (Third programme)  blue for the (Light programme) and grey for (Radio Luxembourg) I hope this little bit of information has enlightened you Happy days? all the best and regards and best wishes for the future Jonah anyone remember Jonah?

Stephen Smith's Memories I remember we used to 'listen in'  via BRW here in Leeds from the late 50s.Later on we moved on to a combined tv/radio set right up to around 1975. When I started a hosptal radio service in 1987 at St.Mary's,Leeds,our team had to re-connect the system from a Milbank 100 volt amp to get the thing going again so we could start broadcasting to the wards. Down in the 'bowels' pf the hospital were runs of cable going into junction boxes marked 'British Relay'.The downside was having to have thecable re-spliced, following 'prangs' from delivery lorries, catching the wires clipped to the hospital walls! Our station from 2005 broadcasts in the local community on the web. Happy Days, Stephen Smith, Radio Poplar. www.radiopoplar.co.uk

David Howard's Memories I was just looking at a schematic I approved with my initials D. W-H back in 27 Sept 1964, when I got to wonder whether BRW was actually on the web! And hence I get to send you this e-mail. I was hired by Macdonald and worked with Richard Whorwell. Boy oh boy I do have some very strong telling memories so do look forward to your reply . The above schematic dated 27/9/64 was my circuit design for viewing unit for Royal Gardens Hotel. What distinguished it was that it sensed whether the picture was 405 or 625 lines which was my own design (and I still have some!) the electronics which sensed and drove a solenoid switching the line timebase between 405 and 625. It was the only part which was solid state rather than vacuum tubes.   I had been employed by BRW for 10 years split in middle when I was called up for National Service, I returned to Croft Street. From there I went to Southampton University etc to M.Sc., D.Sc., etc., moved my family to Australia, then to USA where I now live in California near Disneyland!   In Croft Street my closest buddy was Richard Whorwell, tried to contact him through I.E.E., but no luck, fear he has passed on. I'm now 70, which would put Richard close to 80.   Long time back a Denis Holdrook and I went to a dance in Croydon where we both met with and danced with our future wives - so that was a major major event for us all! Does anyone remember me from Croft Street?, do you remember the work I did like putting pulse and bar on a frame blanking period - major achievement using ye olde vacuum tubes: Meant you could pulse and bar during active transmissions = BIG EVENT back then! Hey I can take jpg's of some great memory stuff to add to web site, (hey I still have my 2/6 pair of BRW pliers!) did you know Richard Whorwell -is he still around ? He had such a cool sense of humour we had a disagreement over some Maths, and the funny guy peered over at my slide rule thinking that mine may say something different! (which I still have as a memento).  After passing 2 years  on exams  Macdonald gave me a day off a week to get an HNC  I had to get all  distinctions  getting 90% for Maths (which really pissed me off for I swear I should have got 100%. then I got a scholarship from ICL to go  as post Grad to  Southampton University to get two Master's degrees, then years later D.Sc. Did you know Dennis Holdbrook who also was in the Croft Street  BRW division?  For a laugh he and I  went to a dance in Croydon Surrey, the two ladies we met there, both Mary's, well one Mary  married Dennis  and the other Mary married  myself,  she is downstairs this moment speaking with our daughter, we have all just returned sun burnt and exhausted from our vacation at Lacosta a resort spa in San Diego. I have since taken many routes one being academic in Australia I taught at a Masters level both Atomic Physics and Non-Linear Control System theory  all of which has gone  void in my mind since having a stroke: Ironically I remember BRW as though it was yesterday...hehe :-) You mention radio relay. My only radio connection was that BRW had a special  receiver  in middle of cow field which provided especially good reception of Radio Luxembourg. Trouble was there was a background clicking noise which I found was due to the cow field within which the receiver was located. In case you are thinking I'm totally daft well the cow pasture was surrounded by an electric fence. I could only reduce  the clicking  by mitigating the back EMF which of course meant the flyback voltage was reduced. Trouble was I could not reduce the flyback low enough to both not cause radio interference on one hand and for cows to stay away from the fence! At the time in the 50's it was one of those problems that never quite went away. Of course BRW came into being same era as the Soviet Red Square started broadcating propaganda "Moscow Calling" both stepped down from 100V R.M.S. BRW started out by renting out speaker boxes which included a rheostat stepping volume control a big waxy capacitor and step down transformer to set down the 100 V RMS the capacitor ensured entry looked open circuit that way helped linemen locate a short across the line. Forget now how many pairs, no I don't there were two quad pairs meaning 8 stations, plus opportunity for phantom pairs. The afore was great for the working class for they could afford to rent a speaker. Trouble was since no active component all power was driven from the head end which meant really enormous vacuum tubes which where so expensive. Hey I came up with the bright idea of a push pull transistor design which I thought kinda cheated because all power came from internal battery which the push pull pair converted to audio via BRW signal input. But that was way ahead of its time, least wise I first watched the piles upon piles of these speakers being destroyed. You see the advent of the transistor, and before that the vacuum tube changed the economics allowing the average worker to eventually own their own transistor radio which was the first really freedom empowering technology. Anyway I could keep nattering for some idiot came up with the crazy idea of vestigial sideband transmission of television pictures running on 3.75Mhz carrier per cable pair with center tap in which the now lower voltage audio could be injected. Of course technology kept moving forward preparing for 625 I designed and had all manner of problems of getting all artefacts 40db below quiescent picture level but of course at a 3.75 Mhz carrier that only only became impossible but advent of colour finally pushed BRW into the dust. Ironically my experience pre-dated that of all folk over here in USA who now are the "cable" leaders. As a result I headed up a division for Time Warner and put together and ran a joint venture with Toshiba in Tokyo which meant a lot of commuting to Tokyo which was necessary for the Internet had yet to displace physical air travel, etc.  BRW of course is distant vacuum tube era founding stuff, amazing how much we did with so little. I attached more recent stuff and my final cable work I did in USA between Time inc and Toshiba in Tokyo, etc. I founded a number of technologies not least being XML. Dr Dave Does anyone remember David or can answer his questions?  e-mail him or me mailto:mmearman@hotmail.com

Rod Fryatt's Memories More information on British Relay Wireless for you.   In the 50's and 60's I lived near the BRW receiving station a few miles from Saxmundham in Suffolk. It was managed by Bill Filby, the father of one of my first primary school friends. The station was a green wooden hut like a small bungalow in the middle of a large field surrounded by tubular metal masts about 100 feet high with aerial wires between them. Inside were banks of Marconi Marine receivers of the CR100 or 300 type (Not sure of exact models). The hut also had a small workshop for maintenance of the receivers as well as an office. There were special earth connections outside which I think used to be kept wet.   The station was manned continuously by a single operator, one of at least three on shifts. My friend and I would often sit and talk with one of them in the evenings. The operators' duties were to switch stations to different feeds at certain times and also change aerials as conditions changed. Diversity reception, I guess it would be called. There was a big monitor speaker in one corner of the operating room behind a baffle about five feet square. I remember it was capable of very good loud music.   The most memorable thing about "The Hut" as it was called, was the smell. All those valves and hot transformers produced that wonderful aroma that only real radio men have known and appreciate!     Rod Fryatt G3ZEH

Brian Krebs's Memories I was curious and just typed in the subject and up popped details, I was interested because my father (Bill) was employed by BRW from about 1942 until mid 1950s. he started up the training school for linesmen in Walworth London before becoming station manager in Brandon Street. These relay stations employed about 15 staff, the foreman in this instance was a Ted Rawbone and a group of linesmen to carry out new wiring systems for new customers and to see to any problem matters out in the field, there were also several collectors who went around on a weekly basis to collect the rental charge. After a few years , and I see from one of your letters who mentioned it, the company opened a new office in the Walworth Rd and my father was promoted to Chief of the Lines which meant he was responsible for all the cabling etc  and workforce. I cannot remember how many relay stations there were in London at the time but at least 30. so there was quite a large staff.  The Head Office at the time was in the Strand. In about 1954 my father and the Chief Engineer left BRW and started a new company in Rugby based on the same system and I believe it was known as Multi Broadcast. At the time my mother didn't want to move to Rugby so after a couple of years Dad went to the BBC as a sound engineer but died at the age of 55 in 1961. I hope this can add to your blog on BRW Brian Krebs   PS my dads name was Bill Krebs Anyone remember Bill? mailto:mmearman@hotmail.com

Trevor Goodenough's Memories I was always interested in TV even from a young age probably because my Dad had built a viewmaster tv in the 50's and we had it till 1961, I was 7 at this time and still remember it well. There were loads of 6V6's & EF50's in the house so I caught the bug. By the time I was 15 I hated school and wanted to be a TV engineer with no exceptions!! I had written to a few places in December 1969 and got 3 interviews, I actually got the 3 jobs and I had time to choose where to start because of the Christmas & new year break, it was easiest to go British Relay in Prestwick by train. So I started on 4th Jan 1970 in the TV workshop, my service manager was Larry Middleton and the engineer in charge of me was Jim Clark. Because I had been dabbling about with sets beforehand I was let loose on the bench straight away, the first set I worked on was a Murphy V310 (hence my name on the forum) I loved every minute and took to it like a duck to water. I was repairing M19/11's Mark 9 & 10's, M17/3's and the Pye 11U mods that went into the new cabinets. I worked in the workshop for around a year. I was then offered to become a "Trainee Station Engineer", which I eagerly responded with a yes. Hugh Walsh was the district engineer & Stuart Lanes (deceased) & David Clark were the station engineers, the area engineer was Henry Chmiel, he was an amazing man from Poland and very knoweledgable there was nothing he didn't now about the Relay system. To start with I got the dirty jobs of cleaning the cooling filters, keeping the 40 watters hoovered out, replacing the KT88's and changing the 10,000pf mica decouplers that went every week. I also learnt to drive with the engineers, never took any paid lessons and passed first time in a BRW Escort estate TSG103J. During this time I went to day release at Motherwell Technical College doing the C&G TV technicians course. I enjoyed my time doing Station Engineering driving my little Simca 1100, by late 74 though line rentals were dropping like a stone so I thought it was time to move on. I then left to go to Clydesdale, I was with them 18 years but that's another story. Cheers Trevor Goodenough  Anyone remember Trevor? mailto:mmearman@hotmail.com

Cambridge British Relay

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