The Pumamouse Website: LM Radio: Brief History By Hans Bac

A BRIEF HISTORY OF LM RADIO
By Hans Bac 2002

LM Radio was mainly a music request programme. I am now talking of the very early years of 1947/1948 right through to when the SABC took over, when the format changed completely.

The main programme was called "LM Radio Lucky Dip Show". This programme used to operate on the basis of a listener sending a list of request records that he/she wished to have played. When your request came up, you were given a number and the time that your record was played. This of course had to be remembered by the yourself, because
at the end of the programme, (which normally lasted anything from one hour or two hours), there was a roulette wheel which was spun, and I
think it used to be two lucky winners that were selected by spinning the wheel. Should you be so lucky, you had to write to the Radio Club Of Mozambique at P.O. Box 594, Lourenco Marques, stating the time and date and lucky number your record was played, and you in turn were
sent a voucher for two standard 78 rpm records.

Each Lucky Dip Show was sponsored by various record companies,
hence the vast amount of request programmes of this nature. During
the week, it started in the morning at 9AM with "Housewives Choice", followed by "Hospital Time", followed by "Midday Luck Dip Show", followed by "Lunchtime Lucky Dip". In the afternoons at 4PM we had "Children's Birthday Greetings", followed by "Children's Lucky Dip". Needless to say, the "Children's Lucky Dip Show" was mainly requests sent by mothers, for mothers, but this is where all the latest hits were played. Very little talking was done, other than commercials which
were played during the shows.

After 5PM there was another "Lucky Dip Programme" till 6PM, followed often by Gramophone Record Co and the likes of others like Gallo Africa, EMI, etc. playing their latest releases. Between 6PM and 9PM in the evening were mainly promotional and new recording programmes, with an odd serial, but because of the poor reception, the serials were not well supported, as it was sometimes difficult to follow a story with waning short-wave radio reception. At 9PM we used to have "Special Occasions". This was a greeting programme with birthday and
anniversary greetings from families, etc.

When the SABC took over the station, the format changed entirely and it lost its sparkle, if you can understand what I mean. It then fell under the same banner as Springbok Radio, and so it was made Little Orphan Annie.

The Pumamouse Website Presents...

LM RADIO
(Introduction)