Radio, model U195; English 1953 man. EKCO

Moulded rectangular mottled brown plastic case, the top and bottom are slightly bowed. The front piece is a single piece of moulded white plastic, with an integral grille of horizontal 45° vanes. Running the full vertical length of the set, on its proper left side, is an inset rectangle with two circular control discs, with lozenge-shaped knobs attached. The top is for volume, the lower tunes the radio to pre-set stations. On the lower proper right side is the manufacturer's name.

Purchased by the V&A Circulation Department in 1976 from Gustav Metzger [76/444].

The first successful radio transmission was made by David Edward Hughes (1831-1900) in 1879. Some years later, in 1896, Gugliemo Marconi (1874-1937) patented a system of electromagnetic radio wave communication which, unlike the already-established telegraph system, was ‘wireless’, meaning signals could be heard by anyone with a radio receiver in range of the broadcast. Marconi established the world’s first radio factory in Chelmsford in 1898, where sets were hand-built to high specifications for mostly scientific, governmental and military customers. Another early customer was Queen Victoria who in 1898 had a set installed at Osborne House, Isle of Wight, so she could communicate with the Prince of Wales, the future Edward VII, as he convalesced aboard his yacht at Cowes.

Military applications meant that radio technology advanced rapidly during the First World War, and in the 1920s regular civilian broadcasting began, changing the domestic experience forever. The previously diverse parts of the radio; the valves, controls, wires and speakers, began in the mid-1920s to be enclosed inside a single cabinet. In this early period, radios were seen essentially as furniture and some companies employed cabinet-makers and well-known furniture designers. As radios were new to the domestic interior, their design had no precedent, which allowed manufacturers to design them creatively. This struck a chord in the late-1920s and 1930s with the expanding synthetic plastics industry; oil-based plastics were also a recent innovation, the first, Bakelite (phenol-formaldehyde), having been successfully synthesised in 1907. The collaboration between industrial designers and manufacturers gave rise to many very modern radio designs, particularly in America. Tastes in Britain remained, in general, more conservative, favouring wooden cabinets or Bakelite cabinets imitating wood. During the Second World War the manufacture of civilian radios essentially ceased in the United Kingdom, with the exception of the ‘Utility’ radio (see V&A CIRC.678-1975) produced under government directive by 42 companies.

Eric Kirkham Cole Limited, better known as EKCO, was formed in Essex 1926. Cole (1901-1966) had begun making radios in 1922, at a rate of about six per week, selling them for £6 10s each. EKCO became known for their early adoption of plastic materials, installing compression-moulding apparatus in their Southend-on-Sea factory in 1931, allowing them to produce Bakelite cabinets of their own design. They were also known for their work with famous designers such as Wells Coates and Serge Chermayeff, producing, respectively, the iconic circular AD65 (V&A W.23-1981) and AC86 (W.15-1978). EKCO continued to expand, first into car radios and later into television, and was a leading British manufacturer of plastics. In the Second World War, their production and research capabilities were put to use in developing and making radar sets for military use. Injection-moulding facilities were incorporated in 1948, allowing EKCO to produce products with new thermoplastic materials, such as polystyrene.

Eric Kirkham Cole Limited (aka EKCO) was formed in Essex in 1926. They became an early adopter of plastics, and were known for their work with famous designers such as Wells Coates (see V&A W.23-1981) and Serge Chermayeff (W.15-1978). This simple, attractive radio could be bought new in July 1953 for between £11 and £14. It lacks a traditional tuner, stations were pre-tuned and selected using a switch on its front. The pre-set stations could be adjusted, allowing one long wave and three medium wave stations to be 'stored' at one time. This type was available through Radio Rentals (formed 1930), a company that offered customers home radio sets for an affordable monthly fee.

CIRC.292-1976