"Jeremy Rogers" wrote in message
...
Mike Causer in message
pan.2004.01.09.22.30.44.797561@firstnamelastname. org wrote:

Phillip Eden did a nice job of explaining current vs historic
forecast
technology today on R5 (given the limited slot just before midday),
but
as he stated that he's a radio-only weatherman, when was the first
public broadcast radio forecast made?

26 March 1923 was the date daily forecasts started. Now did anyone
remember last year to celebrate the 80th anniversary ...


As above for first *routine* radio (scripted) broadcast specifically for
the BBC; I believe that the British Broadcasting Company (when first
started IIRC 1922) would read out the weather forecast printed in the
daily papers (as was the news - a collation of all the newspapers at the
time): the date I have for this is 14th November 1922, which is the same
date for initial broadcast of 2LO. [BBC become a public corporation in
1927]. Presumably in March 1923, someone thought it would be a good idea
to have a dedicated radio weather forecast. (However, this conflicts
with the BBCi Weather Centre site, who say that the 1922 issue was a
*scripted* forecast from the Meteorological Office.)

1936 Weather forecast in *caption* form on the embryonic television
(BBC) service.

1939 Forecasts for the public (including broadcast) suspended 'for the
duration'

1945 (May/June?) Radio (scripted) forecasts resume.

1949 July - TV captions resume.

1954 First live TV (BBC - there was only the BBC!) as noted elsewhere.

1959 London WC opens - and I *think* it was around this time that the
first 'live'/unscripted radio presentation was made from the studio
there - I used to have the date but can't put my hand to it - certainly
very early 1960's at the latest. But, much was still scripted on radio.

Martin.