Behind the Wireless: A History of Early Women at the BBC [Paperback]

Behind the Wireless tells the story of women at the BBC in the 1920s and 30s. Broadcasting was brand new in Britain and the BBC developed without many of the overt discriminatory practices commonplace at the time. Women were employed at all levels, except the very top, for instance as secretaries, documentary makers, advertising representatives, and librarians. Three women held Director level posts, Hilda Matheson (Director of Talks), Mary Somerville (Director of School Broadcasting), and Isa Benzie (Foreign Director). Women also produced the programmes aimed at female listeners and brought women broadcasters to the microphone. There was an ethos of equality and the chance to rise through the ranks from accounts clerk to accompanist. But lurking behind the fa?ade of modernity were hidden inequalities in recruitment, pay, and promotion and in 1932 a marriage bar was introduced. Kate Murphy examines how and why the interwar BBC created new opportunities for women.?

Introduction.- 1. Growing Like a Young Giant: The BBC as a Place to Work.- 2. Women Who Oil the Wheels: Waged Women at the BBC.- 3. Only an Exceptional Woman: Married Women at the BBC.- 4. New And Important Careers: Salaried Women at the BBC.- 5. Women Who Rule at the BBC: Four Elite Women.- 6. When They Have Their Cup of Tea: Making Programmes for Women.- 7. You Feel Their Personal Touch: Women Broadcasters.- 8. Conclusion.- Epilogue: A Brief Encounter with 90 Further Years.-?

The book will complement the scholarship about the BBC but also add to the current exploration of the participation of women in the workforce in the interwar period. I expect that the book will be of great interest for scholars of media, gender, modern Britain and labor relations. It is a wonderful example of how to bring all these concerns into conversation. (Tal Zalmanovich, New Books network, newbooksnetwork.com, March, 2017)

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