TELEVISION FOR 1939

1938 Pye

1938 RADIO OLYMPIA at London's Olympia venue was the last pre-war radio and television exhibition to run its full course. At this show the 1939 model-year sets were released. The following year's show was interrupted by the outbreak of war.

By now television was becoming more established. The BBC Television Station at Alexandra Palace was settling down to a regular fare of drama, hobby demonstrations and musical turns with the occasional outside broadcast included for good measure. Broadcasts such as Wimbledon and the Boat Race were seen as 'treats' and involved considerable organisation and technical skill.

The year 1938 saw the second generation of television sets come onto the market. There was an effort to bring down the prices to broaden the appeal and the lower cost sets, such as the Pye shown here, generally had smaller screens. The older, more expensive models continued alongside.

For more background on television events in this seminal year, click HERE for Jon Evans' excellent site.

The selection of sets shown here is based on a catalogue originally compiled by Kolster-Brandes Ltd which described many of the sets on display at the show. I would also like to thank 'brianc' who provided the original scans. The sets are listed in alphabetic order. Click on a thumbnail image to see it greater detail and it will open in a new window.

First, Mr C.G. Graves, Deputy Director General of the B.B.C, sets the scene. This was broadcast on the National Programme on 23rd August 1938.

BAIRD T18

BAIRD T18 CONSOLE
BAIRD T19
BAIRD T20
BAIRD T20 CONSOLE

BAIRD T14 & T21

COSSOR 54
COSSOR 437T
COSSOR 1210
COSSOR 137T
EKCO TC103
EKCO-SCOPHONY ES104
FERRANTI T3 & T4
G.E.C. BT8090
G.E.C. BT8161
G.E.C. BT9121 & BT9122
HIS MASTER'S VOICE 900
HIS MASTER'S VOICE 907 & 901
HIS MASTER'S VOICE 902
HIS MASTER'S VOICE 905 & 904
INVICTA TL4
KOLSTER-BRANDES 780
MARCONIPHONE 701
MARCONIPHONE 702
MARCONIPHONE 703
MARCONIPHONE 704
MARCONIPHONE 705
MARCONIPHONE 706
MARCONIPHONE 707
MARCONIPHONE 708
MARCONIPHONE 709
MURPHY A56V
PHILIPS TEL61
PILOT T65
PYE 815
PYE 817
PYE 819
PYE 838
PYE 4046
ULTRA T22 & T24
READ THE ORIGINAL DETAILED COMPARISON CHARTS - HERE
READ ABOUT HOW MANY SETS SURVIVE TODAY - HERE
   
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