Watson's Radio Club

1949-50 - G3XPQ George Black's Memories

(From e-mails to the Lothians Radio Society in 2009)

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When I was at school I was a founder member of the George Watson's College Radio Club. I used to go into the school early in the morning to listen on an R-1155 receiver that was in John Hughes' physics preparation room.

I left Watson's in 1950 and at that time we did not have a properly-organised Radio Club. It was rather unofficial and there were probably only about three of us pupils who were interested and would go along at lunch time and do a bit of listening. In my time at Watson's there were still a number of old teachers brought back from retirement and I did not have much regard for them. The only teachers that I held in very high regard were John Hughes, who made Physics interesting, and an English teacher, Robin Winchester, who made English studies enjoyable, two first-class teachers in my opinion. The head at that time was Graham Andrew and I remember when in Shetland having a nice QSO with his nephew Robin Andrew. I think his callsign was GM3WFJ. (Correct - ajm).  Perhaps he was another Watsonian? I also met, through my work in the R&D department at Nuclear Enterprises, another Watsonian who worked at Dounreay called Sandy Oliphant (GM3SFH). He and I were both in the CCF Air Section at Watson's. In my time there were several places in Edinburgh to get radio gear - Browns and Clydesdale in George Fourth Bridge and a yard down about Portobello or Leith called Wingy Robertson's. Wingy's price usually depended on how many valves the piece of ex-WD electronic gear had in it.

 

I started a 5-year apprenticeship with Ferranti Ltd. at Crewe Toll in 1950 and stayed with them in the Radar Lab until going into the RAF in 1959. There were quite a number of radio amateurs in Ferranti Ltd at that time. 

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I was also the first Junior Member of the Edinburgh Amateur Radio Club in 1948. Initially it met in the bedroom of Dave Sampson GM3EQY and members I remember were Brian Henniker GM3FUU, George Luke GM5YW etc. We later moved to the railway union premises along a crescent off London Road. At one time as well, the club met above a garage but I can't remember where. I well remember  the jubilation when we were granted GM3HAM as our club call sign. (Later adopted by the Lothians Radio Society - ajm).