London Broadcasting Company / Independent Radio News (LBC/IRN) Audio Archive

Commercial radio began in Britain when the London Broadcasting Company (LBC) and Independent Radio News (IRN) received their licenses in 1973. This digital archive features 4000 hours of news bulletins, vox pops, phone-ins, documentaries and current affairs programmes dating from 1973 until the mid-1990s.

The archive makes an important contribution to charting the history of radio broadcasting, offering an alternative view to the BBC’s archive collection and featuring a variety of content that delineates the listening tastes and social mores of the period.

How can this collection be used in teaching, studying and research?

The collection can be searched by keyword, time and genre, allowing students, teachers and researchers access to eyewitness reports of moments in history as well as a broader analysis of news events in discussion programmes and public information broadcasts. This archive is of use to anyone studying, teaching or researching media-related subject areas, as well as those looking for a broader picture and access to a range of primary and secondary audio sources on a range of subjects that fall within the time period.