Wireless savings licence savings tube
Left: wireless saving tube from the front. Right: the top of the tube
Name/Title
Wireless savings licence savings tubeEntry/Object ID
2025.1.162Description
Metal tube for saving up to a total of £1 in 6d pieces (40), to pay for the Wireless Licence fee.Context
An annual licence fee of 10 shillings was first introduced under the Wireless Telegraphy Act in November 1923, to cover radio sets. At the time, labourers in the south of England were earning around £2 12s a week. By the end of 1923, 200,000 licences had been issued and by 1928 this had risen to 2.5m. The first combined radio and TV licence, costing £2, was issued in June 1946. Initially the Post Office collected the payments and in return received a slice of the revenue. The Treasury also took a cut until October 1963, when excise duty on licences was abolished. Radio sets, including car radios, were exempted from the fee in 1971. (The Guardian)Category
Domestic