Major Broadcasting Network

Last updated

The Major Broadcasting Network was an important part of the Australian broadcasting scene from 1938 until the 1970s.

Contents

History and background

In 1938, David Worrall, [1] manager of 3DB Melbourne, launched the Major Broadcasting Network. Up until its closure in the 1970s, MBS was Australia's second most important radio network, after the Macquarie Radio Network. At inception, the Major Network was made up of stations in all mainland state capital cities, i.e. 2UE, 3DB, 4BK, 5AD, 6PR. They were soon to be joined by 7HT. [2]

The Sydney outlet was later changed to 2CH and then 2UW before 2UE yet again became the Sydney outlet in September 1950. [3] [4] In 1973, an important date because it was the 50th anniversary of broadcasting in Australia, the network then consisted of the following stations: 2UE, 2KO, 3DB, 3LK, 4BK, 4AK, [5] 5AD, 5PI, 5MU, 5SE, 6PR, 6CI, 6TZ, 7HT and 7EX. [3]

From formation and until the introduction of television in Australia, Major stations broadcast a popular range of live variety programs particularly quizzes and dramas including soap operas, mainly produced in studios at either 3DB Melbourne or the various Sydney outlets. Because of the high quality of these programs, most Major stations continually had high ratings in the various surveys. [6]

As discussed, the main person behind the formation of the Major Network was David Worrall, manager of 3DB, a most important figure in broadcasting history. [1] [3] The establishment of the Major Network actually occurred after two earlier attempts by David Worrall to form a network both with 3DB as the key station and with 2UE as the Sydney station. Early in 1933, a loose grouping, but the first Australian attempt to form a commercial network, was attempted - it was known as the Federal Network. Then, later in 1933 the Associated Broadcasters of Australia was formed but, again, did not last long. [3]

From 1941 and well into the 1950s, the main producer of live radio programs in Australia was the Colgate-Palmolive Radio Unit [7] which achieved its prestigious status by luring big name stars away from the various stations and the main radio networks. Initially, the many dozens of programs produced by Colgate-Palmolive were heard on the Macquarie Radio Network but, after some years, David Worrall was able to lure Colgate-Palmolive over to the Major Network. Of course, this saw a great increase in listener numbers for the network.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KIIS 101.1</span> Radio station in Melbourne, Australia

KIIS 1011 is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, on a frequency of 101.1 MHz and is the Melbourne affiliate of ARN's KIIS Network. The station was formerly known as 3DB and 3TT, broadcasting on 1026 kHz AM, before converting to FM in 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magic 1278</span> Radio station in Melbourne, Australia

Magic 1278 is a commercial radio station in Melbourne, Australia owned by Nine Entertainment, and run under a lease agreement by Ace Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">3AW</span> Radio station in Melbourne, Australia

3AW is a talkback radio station based in Melbourne, Australia, owned by parent company Nine Radio, a division of Nine Entertainment Co. It broadcasts on 693 kHz AM. It began transmission on 22 February 1932 as Melbourne's fifth commercial radio station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2UE</span> Commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia

2UE is an all-music radio station in Sydney owned by Nine Entertainment Co and run under a lease agreement by Ace Radio. It currently broadcasts from its studios in Pyrmont, New South Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2GB</span> Radio station in Sydney, Australia

2GB is a commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia, owned by parent company Nine Radio, a division of Nine Entertainment Co., who also own sister station 2UE.

Nine Radio is an Australian media company, owned by parent company Nine Entertainment Co. and headquartered in North Sydney, New South Wales. The company operates radio stations nationally in the capital cities of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth, as well as regional Queensland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2HD</span> Radio station in Newcastle, Australia

2HD is an Australian radio station in New South Wales. Owned and operated as part of the Super Radio Network of stations, it currently broadcasts a news talk and classic hits format to Newcastle, New South Wales and the Hunter Valley. First broadcast on 27 January 1925, it was established by founder Harry Douglas – from which the station derives its name – and is based in studios in Sandgate alongside sister station New FM.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cruise 1323</span> Radio station in Adelaide, South Australia

Cruise 1323 is one of Adelaide's longest running radio stations. In its 80+ years it has changed considerably. It was the first commercial station to begin broadcasting in South Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">6PR</span> Radio station in Perth, Western Australia

6PR, known as 6PR Perth, is a commercial radio station based in Perth, Western Australia. Owned by Nine Entertainment, its focus is on news, talk and sport, and is Perth's only commercial talkback radio station. It commenced broadcasting on 14 October 1931.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mix 102.3</span> Radio station in Adelaide, Australia

Mix 102.3 is a commercial FM radio station in Adelaide, Australia, owned by ARN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Davey</span> New Zealand-born Australian radio personality

John Andrew Davey, known as Jack Davey, was a New Zealand-born singer and pioneering star of Australian radio as a performer, producer, writer and host from the early 1930s into the late 1950s. Later in his career he also worked briefly in television, primarily as a presenter.

Nine News is a radio news service providing the half-hourly radio news bulletins to radio stations across Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4BH</span> Radio station in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

4BH 1116 is the on-air identifier of a radio station in Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. It broadcasts on a frequency is 1116 kHz in the AM radio band and is simulcasted in DAB+ on channel 9B. It is owned by Nine Entertainment Co and run under a lease agreement by Ace Radio.

Stuart Lyndon Bocking, is a former Australian radio presenter. He has worked primarily for regional and Mt druitt stations, and was a presenter on 2UE, Sydney.

David Thomas Worrall was an Australian journalist, radio station manager and soldier. Worrall was born in Castle Hill, New South Wales and died in St Kilda, Victoria.

3DB was a Melbourne-based radio station that opened in 1927, changed its name to 3TT in 1988, and now operates on the FM band as KIIS 101.1.

Garrett Seaton "Garry" Meadows was an Australian television presenter, radio announcer, and actor.

Macquarie Sports Radio was a short-lived Australian commercial radio network broadcasting to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. Owned and operated by Macquarie Media, the network launched on 4 April 2018, replacing Talking Lifestyle. Following the acquisition of Macquarie Media by Nine Entertainment Co., programs outside of live sports commentary were suspended in October 2019, and on 1 February 2020 the network ultimately ceased broadcasting.

Martha Gardener is the nom de plume used by Kathleen Zoe Worrall , during nearly all of her career of well over 50 years, at Melbourne broadcasting stations 3DB, 3AW, Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio and 3UZ, and nationally for The Nine television Network.

References

  1. 1 2 "Worrall, David Thomas (1894–1968)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
  2. ↑ Griffen-Foley, Bridget, Changing Stations: The Story of Australian Commercial Radio, UNSW Press, Sydney 2009
  3. 1 2 3 4 Walker, R.R., The Magic Spark: 50 Years of Radio in Australia, 1973, The Hawthorn Press, Melbourne
  4. ↑ "Drug addict's struggle back to happiness". The Sun (Sydney) . No. 12, 681. New South Wales, Australia. 19 September 1950. p. 23. Retrieved 6 January 2018– via National Library of Australia.
  5. ↑ "Home". 4ak.com.au.
  6. ↑ Jones, Colin, Something in the Air: A History of Radio in Australia, Kangaroo Press, 1995.
  7. ↑ "2AD Celebrating 75 Years, Armidale, Radio, Local Radio, Celebration". Archived from the original on 22 March 2018. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.