Radio Luxembourg in the 30’s
“… the first regular broadcasts on 1.191 metres with a power of 150 kW and omnidirectional antenna went on air in January 1933… Every evening was devoted to a different country. From the outset, there were English evenings, French, German, Luxembourg, Belgian and Dutch evenings, and, less frequently, Italian, Swiss, Czech and Polish evenings. The formula was good because it was simple: very little talking, a lot of classical music with a good soloist every evening …”
“… From 1934, the station broadcast a weekly travel programme on the Grand Duchy – The 22 May 1934 marks a première for radio and for Luxembourg: a live broadcast of the Echternach dance parade …”
“… in 1937, Radio-Luxembourg launched a new initiative baptised ” reportage à trois faces ” in conjunction with the press and the cinema industry. This innovative approach consisted of presenting a news topic or documentary simultaneously on the cinema screens, in the newspapers and on the radio. Quiz programmes were introduced … fiction too made a resounding début with its attendant sound effects and “noises off “… in 1936, weekly broadcasts totalled 104 hours compared with 87 hours in 1935 and 40 in 1933.”
The sound and video clips link to the CLT Site . The files have to be downloaded before streaming unforunately (click on the appropriate link and wait).
Here is a video about Radio Luxembourg from the 1930s.
« CLR » (373 Kb)
A movie about CLR in the 30’s
(requires the Real Player )
The famous Tunes of Radio Luxembourg
« » Tune in
Radio Luxembourg’s first theme tune in December 1933
« Bonjour les amis » with Camille Felgen as singer
Tune of the « Amis de Radio Luxembourg » programm
« Gong – This is Radio Luxembourg – Tune in »
Radio Luxembourg’s tune in the 40’s by Geoffrey Everitt
« Belle of the Ball » by Leroy Anderson
Tune of the German programm which began on the 15th July of 1957 with Peter Perleberg as speaker
« This is Radio Luxembourg – Your station of the Stars »
Tune of Radio Luxembourg in the 60’s – The first one with Teddy Johnson as DJ
« Top Twenty Show » signature tune
Hits programme presented under 8 years (1959-1966) by Barry Alldis
What an intriguing look back at Radio Luxembourg’s history! 📻
Can someone explain what “reportage à trois faces” means?
I’ve always loved classical music. Wish I could time travel to those evenings! 🎶
Were the Echternach dance broadcasts well-received back then?
Radio Luxembourg really had a diverse range of content. Impressive!
This article brought back so many memoriees. Thank you! 😊
How did people react to the first live broadcast of the dance parade?
I’m curious, why did they start with so many different language evenings?
150 kW seems like a lot of power for back then. Was it really that powerful?
That “fiction début” sounds like it must have been quite the event! 🎭
Was the “Top Twenty Show” similar to today’s music charts?