Name/Title
British Communications Corporation L46U portable VHS radio c1953Entry/Object ID
1221Description
British Communications Corporation L46U portable VHS radio, constructed from two large grey painted steel boxes fixed together, with harness hooks attached, with separate microphone and earpiece cables, and missing an aerial. Makers marks on plate "Portable Transceiver Designed and manufactured by British Communications Corp. Ltd 99.9 Mc/s Type L46U Serial No. 5686". The aerial is missing/broken.Use
For a police officer to receive and transmit messages from and to a similar unit.Context
From the late 1920's police forces had been using various forms of radio communications. However due to the size of the equipment required most police radios was confined to vehicles.
A few forces, Brighton being the first in 1933, developed workable pocket radios but these were only capable of receiving messages. Brighton stopped using their system in 1939 when its frequency was re-allocated due to preparations for war.
Experiments continued nationally after the Second World War but the challenge was to develop a transmitter unit that was small enough for an officer on foot to carry.
So until the 1960s officers on the 'beat" had to rely on telephone communications, at police boxes or police pillars.
The British Communications Corporation Ltd was established in 1946. Their L46U was a portable radio transceiver specifically aimed at the police and fire services. It was one of the first available to the police that could be carried on foot and was introduced in the early 1950s.
However it was still far too large and heavy to be used by an officer on foot patrol. Instead such units were used to communicate with similar units by specialist officers engaged in supporting specific operations, such as searches or large scale events.
These radios were designed to be carried like a rucksack on harness straps attached to fixings at the rear and side of the unit. Whilst still not suitable for a "beat" officer these radios still allowed more portable use of radio communications for the police until the development of smaller units.
This particular radio came from Sussex Police and is thought to have been used in one of the Sussex Forces in the 1950s. It was one of four contemporary radios that formed part of a small collection and which appeared to have been part of a display at some time, within Sussex Constabulary/Police as they came complete with display cards. The card with this radio suggested it was used from 1953.