Editing Timeline of the BBC (section)

== 1930s ==
* '''1930'''
** 9 March – The majority of the BBC's existing radio stations are regrouped to form the [[BBC National Programme]] and the [[BBC Regional Programme]]. 
** April – The [[BBC Research & Development|Research Department]] is formed after a renaming of the Development section of the BBC.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/rd/about/history#1937-01-01 |title=History – BBC R&D |website=www.bbc.co.uk |access-date=20 March 2020}}</ref>
** 14 July – Transmission of the first experimental television play, ''[[The Man With the Flower in His Mouth]]''.<ref>{{cite news|title=The Man with the Flower in his Mouth|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02d2sm7|publisher=BBC|date=9 October 2017}}</ref>
** 30 September – BBC Yearbook 1931 states that "The number of radio licences in force on September 30th, 1930, was 3,195,553, representing about 12,000,000 listeners, or roughly every second home in the country".<ref>BBC Yearbook 1931, p. 26</ref>

* '''1931'''
** 2 June – First live outside broadcast with transmission of the [[Epsom Derby]].<ref>{{cite news|title=The first Tel OB|url=http://www.bbceng.info/additions/2016/first-scanner-prospero-2010a.pdf|publisher=Prospero|first = John|last = Trenouth|date = March 2010}}</ref>

* '''1932'''
** 15 March – The first radio broadcast is made from [[Broadcasting House]].
** 15 May – [[Broadcasting House]], the BBC's headquarters and home to its main radio studios, is officially opened.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=1930s |url=https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/timelines/1930s/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241206142015/https://www.bbc.com/historyofthebbc/timelines/1930s/ |archive-date=2024-12-06 |access-date=2025-01-19 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en}}</ref>
** 22 August – The first, experimental television broadcast is made from Broadcasting House.
** 19 December – The [[BBC Empire Service|Empire Service]] (precursor of the [[BBC World Service|World Service]]) launches, broadcasting on [[shortwave]] from Daventry's [[Borough Hill]].<ref name="WS closures 2005 analysis">{{cite news |last=Repa |first=Jan |date=25 October 2005 |title=Analysis: BBC's voice in Europe |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4375652.stm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080727002945/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4375652.stm |archive-date=27 July 2008 |access-date=16 July 2012 |work=BBC News}}</ref>
** 25 December – King George V becomes the first monarch to deliver a [[Royal Christmas message|Christmas Day message]] by radio, on the Empire Service.<ref name=":0" />

* '''1933'''
** 24 May – The BBC broadcasts a speech by Prime Minister [[Ramsay MacDonald]] on Empire day.<ref>Radio Times 19 May 1931</ref>

*'''1934'''
** Unknown – The Type A Microphone was first used.<ref name=":0" />
** 7 October – The new high-power long-wave transmitter at [[Droitwich Transmitting Station|Droitwich]] takes over from [[Daventry transmitting station|Daventry 5XX]] as the main station radiating the [[BBC National Programme]].
** The BBC broadcasts a [[Interval signal|Tuning Signal]] for the first time. It was a simple line and circle broadcast using [[John Logie Baird|Baird's]] [[Mechanical television|30-line system]], and was used to synchronise the mechanical scanning system.<ref>{{cite web|title=BBC Tuning Signals 
|url=http://www.meldrum.co.uk/mhp/testcard/bbc_tune.html |date=29 March 2000 |publisher=Meldrum |access-date=14 August 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223154155/http://www.meldrum.co.uk/mhp/testcard/bbc_tune.html |archive-date=23 February 2009 }}</ref>

*'''1935'''
** The BBC establishes its first [[Scottish Gaelic|Gaelic]] department.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=-1VRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=LjQNAAAAIBAJ&pg=5559%2C2302193 |title=BBC Gaelic Assistant: {{lang|gd|An Comunn|nocat=y}} Official's Appointment |work=[[The Herald (Glasgow)|The Herald]] |date=16 August 1935 |page=8 |access-date=8 June 2016}}</ref>

* '''1936'''
** 2 November – The BBC opens the world's first regular high-definition television service, from [[Alexandra Palace]].<ref name=":0" />

* '''1937'''
** 24 April – The very first children's television show ''[[For the Children]]''.
** 12 May – First use of TV outside broadcast van, to cover the procession that followed the [[coronation of George VI and Elizabeth]].<ref name=":0" />
** 21 June – The BBC broadcasts television coverage of the [[Wimbledon Championships|Wimbledon Tennis Championships]] for the first time.
** 16 September – The BBC makes the world's first live television broadcast of a football match, a specially arranged local mirror match derby fixture between [[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] and Arsenal reserves.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/funny_old_game/2260280.stm |title=Happened on this day – 16&nbsp;September |work=BBC Sport |access-date=10 October 2010 |date=16 September 2002}}</ref>

* '''1938'''
** 3 January – The BBC begins broadcasting its first foreign-language radio service, in [[Arabic language|Arabic]].<ref name=":0" />
** 11 February 1938 – The BBC broadcasts its first Science Fiction (SciFi) television programme, a thirty-five-minute adapted extract of the play ''[[R.U.R.]]'', written by the Czech playwright [[Karel Čapek]], was broadcast [[Live television|live]] from the BBC's [[Alexandra Palace]] studios.<ref>{{cite news |title=Radio Times |date=6 February 1938}}</ref> See [[British television science fiction]].
** 14 March – Inauguration of the Latin American service, broadcasting on shortwave in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
** 30 April – The BBC broadcasts television coverage of the [[FA Cup]] for the first time.
** 27 September – Start of the European Service on radio, broadcasting in French, German and Italian. Portuguese and Spanish are added before the start of the [[Second World War]].

* '''1939'''
** Creation of [[BBC Monitoring]]
** 1 September – The BBC Television Service is suspended, around 20 minutes after the conclusion of a [[Mickey Mouse]] cartoon (''[[Mickey's Gala Premier]]''), owing to the imminent outbreak of [[World War II]] and amid fears that the VHF transmissions would act as perfect guidance beams for enemy bombers attempting to locate central London. Additionally, the service's technicians and engineers will be needed for such war efforts as the development of [[radar]]. On radio, the National and Regional Programmes are combined to form a single [[BBC Home Service|Home Service]].
** 17 October – '''The First World Radio Broadcast''', the most sensational live radio broadcast ever attempted by the [[BBC]] hit the airwaves. It took place at the [[RAF Hendon]] base in North London, in front of a specially invited audience of RAF personnel. The whole show was relayed worldwide across the airwaves, the first time a live show had ever been broadcast around the globe. The bill starred [[Adelaide Hall]], [[Mantovani]] and His Orchestra, [[The Western Brothers]], and [[Harry Roy]] and his Band.<ref>{{cite web | work=Band Wagon | volume=1 | number=1 | date=14 October 1939 | page=3 | title=Harry Roy's World Broadcast (report) | url=https://nationaljazzarchive.org.uk/explore/journals/band-wagon/vol1-no1-14-october-1939/1259789?q=adelaide%20hall | via=National Jazz Archive | access-date=9 August 2021 }}</ref>