Not currently on display at the V&A

Pye Model 1108

Radio
1965 (designed), 1966 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

The furniture and product designer Robin Day was born in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire in 1915 and became one of the most renowned designers of the 20th century. This radio is made with a long, low cabinet of wood. It is coated in aluminium, a typical feature of British audio goods during the 1960s. Although television was by then making a serious impact on entertainment patterns in the British public, radio was still a popular form of entertainment. This radio won a Design Centre Award in 1966.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePye Model 1108 (manufacturer's title)
Materials and techniques
Teak veneer, aluminium and plastic
Brief description
Radio, Britain, designed by Robin Day in 1965, for Pye of Cambridge Ltd., 1966
Physical description
Mono Radio Reciever model 1108. Cabinet veneered natural satin straight grained teak, with anodised aluminium trim and lags. Loadspeaker grille, turning scale and knobs in grey, black and white plastic.
Dimensions
  • Height: 20.3cm
  • Width: 66cm
  • Depth: 17.7cm
Production typeMass produced
Credit line
Given by the Council of Industrial Design
Object history
Historical significance: Winner of Design Centre Award 1966
Historical context
Robin Day was recommended to Pye by Godfrey Imhof, owner of a trendsetting New Oxford Street shop which sold electrical goods, for whom Day had designed packaging for record-player needles. Day began working for Pye in 1949, his designs for the company won two Design Council Awards: the first in 1956 for the CS17 television (see CIRC.231-1963); the second, in 1966, for this radio.
Production
Reason For Production: Retail
Summary
The furniture and product designer Robin Day was born in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire in 1915 and became one of the most renowned designers of the 20th century. This radio is made with a long, low cabinet of wood. It is coated in aluminium, a typical feature of British audio goods during the 1960s. Although television was by then making a serious impact on entertainment patterns in the British public, radio was still a popular form of entertainment. This radio won a Design Centre Award in 1966.
Bibliographic reference
Jackson, Lesley Robin Day, Lucienne Day : pioneers of contemporary design : Barbican Gallery, 8 February-16 April., London, Barbican, 2001 p.77
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.394-1967

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Record createdSeptember 25, 2000
Record URL
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