A radio microphone and audio recorder sitting on a desk.

https://nginx-develop-nfsa2.govcms7.amazee.io/sites/default/files/article/hero_image02-2020/world-radio-day_microphone-2627991_1920.jpg

Australia's Diverse Radio History

Highlighting Diversity in the NFSA Radio Collection

Diversity in the NFSA Radio Collection

Mel Bondfield

On World Radio Day, we explore the theme of diversity in Australia's radio broadcasting history.

WARNING: this article contains names, images or voices of deceased Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

The history of Australian broadcast radio goes back almost 100 years and the NFSA radio collection holds many examples of diverse radio programming from the past century.

We're highlighting here the pioneering women of radio in the 1920s and 30s, the showcasing of Indigenous and migrant talent on Australia's Amateur Hour in the 1940s and 50s, and Gaywaves – Sydney's first LGBTQI radio program – in the 1980s.

Women In Radio

The NFSA's Women in Radio collection celebrates a group of talented media professionals who gained prominence in an industry heavily dominated by men at the time.

Binny lum pictured with The Beatles (Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr) in Melbourne, June 1964 — Radio personality Binny Lum with The Beatles (Melbourne, 1964). Courtesy Bauer Media Pty Limited. NFSA title: 1219634

They forged successful careers as producers, directors, writers, performers and interviewers, and included the likes of Grace Gibson, Dorothy Crawford, Binny Lum, Lynn Foster and Queenie Ashton.

The following clip is an excerpt from the 1930s radio serial East Lynne from Grace Gibson Productions, broadcast on 2CH in 1939.

The production starred Queenie Ashton (as Lady Isabel) and Ronald Morse (as Francis Levison):

Excerpt from East Lynne radio serial featuring Queenie Ashton (as Lady Isabel) and Ronald Morse (as Francis Levison), 1939. Courtesy: Grace Gibson Productions. NFSA title: 332146

Australia's Amateur Hour

This radio talent show aired from 1940–1958, a period when white Australian voices were dominant and minority cultures were often overlooked in commercial media.

However, Australia's Amateur Hour regularly featured Indigenous artists, including Jimmy Little, and Olive and Eva, plus other performers from a wide range of backgrounds including Greek and Polynesian.

The NFSA holds 60 episodes of Australia's Amateur Hour. The following clip is an excerpt from the final show which aired in December 1958 and featured an interview with Aboriginal artist and Western Arrernte man, Albert Namatjira: