Podcast uncovers new radio firsts in 100th episode release

The British Broadcasting Century Podcast has marked its 100th episode by correcting some of the earliest myths in UK radio history.

The independent podcast, created by comedy writer and broadcaster Paul Kerensa, has spent five years revisiting the BBC’s beginnings and spotlighting forgotten figures in broadcasting — especially women and regional pioneers overlooked in official histories.

In its centenary episode, the podcast reveals several key corrections to widely accepted accounts of radio firsts. These include:

• Britain’s first DJ was not a man in the 1920s, but Gertrude Donisthorpe broadcasting from Worcester in 1917. A newly unearthed clip of her discussing her broadcasts features in the episode.
• The first radio drama is now credited to Phyllis Twigg for The Truth About Father Christmas in 1922, predating Richard Hughes’ A Comedy of Danger by two years. The podcast’s new research with Professor Tim Crook also links Twigg to the first TV cookery demonstration.
• The earliest religious broadcast has traditionally been attributed to the BBC in December 1922, but a Peckham preacher was on air five months earlier with a sermon that reached listeners as far as Coventry and Frinton.
• The first BBC sports broadcast is now believed to have come from Wales in April 1923, rather than the Derby commentary by Edgar Wallace in June.
• The first BBC song was not Drake Goes West but Liebesleid, played on day two from 2ZY in Manchester.

Paul said: “Men from London wrote the history books. It’s about time we set the (gramophone) record straight.”

The show is not affiliated with today’s BBC but has gained a following for its humorous and well-researched deep dives into early radio. Paul is also taking the podcast onstage at Camden Fringe on 5–6 August with An Evening of (Very) Old Radio at The Water Rats pub.

Listen to the podcast via paulkerensa.com/bbcentury or on all major platforms.