Show Notes
This is the BBC Midwinter Broadcast to Antarctica recorded on June 21, 2026 at 09:30 UTC in Foulden, Scotland, UK. The radio was an Elecraft KX2 connected to a 31-foot 9:1 random wire antenna in the back garden. The broadcast starts on 9460 kHz, but I then move to 12070 kHz because it had slightly less local noise.
BBC Midwinter Broadcast to Antarctica: June 21, 2026
Thomas Witherspoon
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Personal note The BBC Midwinter Broadcast remains one of my favorite SWLing events of the year. I simply love the idea that the BBC would broadcast from two different sites on three different frequencies via shortwave to a relatively small audience of British Antarctic Survey scientists wintering over in Antarctica.
It's always a joy to listen live, knowing that they're celebrating midwinter with parties at their stations and hearing the voices, messages, laughter, and well-wishes of loved ones carried to them over the air by shortwave radio. In an age of instant communications, there's still something magical about that.
More from The Shortwave Radio Audio Archive
Many thanks to SRAA contributor Tom Gavaras, who shares the following recording and notes: Broadcaster: Radio Havana Cuba Date of recording: May 21, 1985 Starting time: 0630 Frequency: 9.525 Reception location: Minnetonka, MN Receiver and antenna: ICOM R-70 with a longwire Notes: Broadcast the day after the launch of Radio Martí, with related commentary. Also featured are a look back at the historic Freedom Rides in the United States, From the Land of Music, and Panorama on the Second International Electroacoustic Music Festival in Cuba.
Many thanks to SRAA contributor Dan Greenall, who shares the following recording and notes: Broadcaster: Voice of Tigray Revolution, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 1999 Date of recording: February 21, 1999 Frequency: 5.550 MHz Reception location: Coe Hill, Ontario, Canada Receiver and antenna: Drake SW-8 with longwire antenna Notes: Interval signal and sign on as heard on a DXpedition to Coe Hill, near Bancroft, Ontario, Canada
Many thanks to SRAA contributor Tom Laskowski, who shares the following recording and notes: Broadcaster: All India Radio Starting time: 0100 Frequency: 10330 Reception location: South Bend, Indiana Receiver and antenna: Sony ICF-2001 Notes: One of the most enjoyable aspects of shortwave listening for me is the amazing variety of music that can be heard from all over the globe. I'm particularly interested in music from the Arab world and the Indian subcontinent. I recorded a large amount of music from All India Radio back in the early 2000s and compiled them into several recordings. AIR used to have a killer signal in our evenings on 10330 kHz and I recorded many hours of their programming. I've compiled nine (so far) music tapes from these recordings. I don't know the exact dates for these recordings.
Many thanks to SRAA contributor Tom Laskowski, who shares the following recording and notes: Broadcaster: BBC Date of recording: April 30, 1982 Starting time: 0000 Frequency: 15400 Reception location: South Bend, Indiana Receiver and antenna: Realistic DX-302 Notes: Here is a recording from 1982 of BBC's Calling the Falklands from April 30, 1982 made during the Falklands War. I believe this was recorded around 0000 UT on 15400 kHz and I believe this was from the transmitter location was Ascension Island. The audio isn't great and was likely recorded on my DX-302 which didn't have great audio.