Roberts Radio : Company history page 6

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Nineteen forty-six saw the Company back in civilian production, consolidating the preeminence in its field that it had established before the war. Leslie Bidmead s designers at this time were Pat Murphy, who was later to emigrate to Canada, and the present Chief Development Engineer, John Hance, who had joined the Company in 1938. In May, Harrods congratulated Harry Roberts on the excellence of his new P4D receiver ("It undoubtedly beats anything of the transportable type which has yet been placed on the market") and pleaded for a larger allocation ("We are right up against it for stocks").

A more public commendation came in the autumn, when the P4D was one of the twenty radio receivers selected by the Council of Industrial Design for its prestigious exhibition "Britain Can Make It", at the Victoria & Albert Museum.

The Company's stand at Radiolympia in October 1947 showed evidence of post-war austerity. Roberts Radio made its Radiolympia debut at the first post-war show, in October 1947, when it showed an all-wave model in both battery and mains versions, weighing in at 19'/2lb and I7'/2lb respectively. However, the "Junior" model, introduced in 1948, weighed only l0lb. Its designers exploited miniature valves, developed during the war, to reduce size without sacrificing performance, and maintained adequate battery life by using a layer-built H.T. battery, rather more expensive than the normal type but with greater capacity for a given size. Here at last was a quality portable that people could realistically be expected to carry about with them. To encourage them to do so, the set was sold complete with a weatherproof carrying bag, which soon began to be noticed among the hand luggage of affluent travelers.

By the autumn of 1947 Harry Roberts knew that at least half a dozen of his sets had been supplied to the Royal Household, and decided to apply for that most prized of endorsements, a Royal Warrant. He duly submitted a letter listing the sets supplied, and pointing out that a Warrant would make a considerable difference to the firm's export business, particularly to the United States and other hard-currency areas. Notwithstanding this potent argument, his application was refused, though it was stated that there was no reason why a renewed request should not be made in the future.

Receivers supplied over the next few years included children's models hand-painted with nursery-rhyme characters by the well-known artist W. E. Narraway. Since these were gifts they were ineligible for consideration, but no doubt contributed to the Household's awareness of the Company's products, and Roberts was able, in a letter dated 31 December 1951, to list no fewer than thirteen sets actually purchased since his previous application. He had intended to send the letter some months previously, but had held it back until there was news of some improvement in the King's health following his serious illness. The delay caused by this courteous gesture was particularly unfortunate, as the letter missed the annual meeting at which applications were considered, and when the King died, in February 1952, all pending applications became void. Roberts had to be content with the assurance that if orders in sufficient quantities continued to be placed during the three years following the accession of the Queen, he would be eligible to apply again.

In February 1955 a third letter was sent, referring to a specially adapted model provided for the Royal Tour of 1953/4 and listing receivers supplied over a period of more than fifteen years. This time the application was successful, and in the London Gazette of 15 July 1955 Messrs Roberts Radio Co. Ltd. were listed as "Radio Manufacturers to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II". A pleasant reminder that the Warrant was no mere formality came in January 1957, when young Richard Roberts was requested to take to Buckingham Palace samples of the current range of portables in the various colour options for demonstration to Prince Charles and Princess Anne. It transpired that these were required to mark a special occasion. He was shown into the nursery and subsequently joined by the Prince and Princess, who had apparently interrupted their studies to make their selection.