King of the airwaves : SLBC's 90-year journey

Broadcasting on an experimental basis was started in Sri Lanka, then Ceylon, by the Telegraph Department in 1923, just three years after the inauguration of broadcasting in Europe. Gramophone music was broadcast from a tiny room in the Central Telegraph Office with the aid of a small transmitter built by the Telegraph Department engineers, with the radio equipment of a captured German submarine.

The results proved successful and barely three years later, on December 16, 1925, a regular broadcasting service came to be instituted.

Edward Harper who came to then Ceylon as Chief Engineer of the Telegraph Office in 1921, was the first person to actively promote broadcasting in Ceylon.

He launched the first experimental broadcast as well as founding the Ceylon Wireless Club together with British and Ceylonese radio enthusiasts. Edward Harper had been dubbed the 'Father of Broadcasting' in Ceylon.

The SLBC, to this day, is one of the finest radio stations in the world. It is also one of the oldest radio stations in South Asia.

Vernon Corea was one of the pioneers of this radio station and he was deeply proud to be part of the history of Radio Ceylon. He loved the Station.

King in South Asia

Radio was King in South Asia in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s and Radio Ceylon really did rule the airwaves - the station was like no other - it led the field in South Asia.

People in the Indian sub-continent tuned into Radio Ceylon. The station was known as a 'market leader' in the field of entertainment. People wrote to Radio Ceylon from all over the world.

On December 16, 1925, the then British Governor, Sir Hugh Clifford, inaugurated the broadcasting service - It was first known as Colombo Radio. The name was changed to Radio Ceylon and the radio station shifted to Torrington Square on October 5, 1949.

Radio Ceylon broadcaster Gnanam Rathinam in her book 'The Green Light' (Memories of Broadcasting in Sri Lanka) notes: 'In 1943 the Broadcasting Station premises was sited in a bungalow named The Bower, in Cotta Road, Borella (in the city of Colombo).

In early days the programs in all languages were scheduled and produced by announcers who covered airtime as well. The Colombo radio station at 'The Bower' ceased broadcasts by midnight on December 31, 1949 and Radio Ceylon came into being on January 1, 1950. On January 5, 1967, it became a State corporation - the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation. Commercial broadcasting from Radio Ceylon was inaugurated on September 30, 1950 and Clifford Dodd was seconded for service via the Colombo Plan.

Dodd was charismatic and innovative and there was a real 'buzz' in Radio Ceylon after his arrival.

Australia sent Clifford R. Dodd to Radio Ceylon under the 'Colombo Plan' and it was a 'ground-breaking' experience, as far as broadcasting in Ceylon was concerned.

Radio Ceylon grew in popularity and stature. The 'Playback and Fast Forward Magazine in India noted: 'For millions in this country, Radio Ceylon was not just a broadcasting station. It had a form and a personality.

Soon after conquering Mount Everest over half a century ago, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay turned on their transistor radio - and lo and behold the first thing they heard was the All Asia Service (English) of Radio Ceylon, more than 3,000 kilometres away. They joined millions of people across the Indian subcontinent who regularly turned in to these broadcasts.

Greatest broadcasters

A pioneer in broadcasting in Asia, Radio Ceylon for decades informed and entertained an overseas audience many times the population of Ceylon, now Sri Lanka'

In this scenario some of the greatest broadcasters in the world come to mind - Director of the Commercial Service, Clifford R. Dodd, Vernon Corea had the joined the 'greats' - Livy Wijemanne, Pearl Ondaatje, Tim Horshington, Greg Roskowski, Jimmy Bharucha, Claude Selveratnam, Mil Sansoni, Eardley Peiris, Shirley Perera, Bob Harvie, Chris Greet, Prosper Fernando, Ameen Sayani (of Binaca Geet Mala fame), S.P. Mylvaganam (the first Tamil Announcer on the Commercial Service), Thevis Guruge, H.M. Gunasekera, Nihal Bhareti, Leon Belleth, Vijaya Corea, Myrle Williams, Harold Fernando and Mahes Perera. They blazed a trail in broadcasting in South Asia.

Veteran broadcaster Nihal Bhareti who counts 50 years in broadcasting said during his heyday standards were high.

The one-time Director of the SLBC's English Service for ten years said his career was more than a mere job. It gave him immense satisfaction and he continues to be held in high esteem by listeners of all ages.

He recalled that letters and postcards were the only means of communication at the time to integrate with listeners. It was all fun and a hobby. Private radio stations were unheard of at the time, he said. The English Records Library boasts of over 78,000 records at present. A former broadcaster once remarked that the SLBC has some records where even the master copies have been destroyed in the UK.

The SLBC has featured some of the finest talents of the nation - Pandit Amaradeva, H.R. Jothipala, Nanda Malini, Premasiri Khemadasa, Nimal Mendis, Bill Forbes, (who starred with Cliff Richard in 'Oh Boy' the television show in London) Cliff Foenander (who went on to sing in Las Vegas), Desmond Kelly, Mignonne Fernando and the Jetliners, Clarence Wijewardene, Annesley Malewana, A.E. Manoharan, Desmond de Silva, C.T. Fernando and a host of artistes became household names through the airwaves of the SLBC.

The current Director of the English Service, Yusuf Noordeen, said the SLBC is striving to change with the times. However, it still stands out as the only radio station compared to the other `music stations.'