THE GREAT MULLARD MAGIC BLOG — EKCO

     Has there ever been a more iconic radio than the 'Round Ekco' so called. because of its shape, sure Telefunken Barcelona did a round radio in limited numbers for the indigenous market but we can excuse that.  Below, I list a few technical specifications for the five round Ekco models: - EKCO REFERENCE SPECIFICATION   AD36 A LW/MW tuned radio frequency, TRF with 4 valves, introduced 1935 AD65 A LW/MW superhet with 4 valves, introduced 1934 AD75 A LW/MW superhet with 5 valves, introduced 1940 AC76 An AC mains  LW/MW superhet with 5 valves, introduced 1935 A22 An AC mains  LW/MW/SW superhet with 5 valves, introduced...

 EKCO was founded by  Eric Kirkham Cole in 1922 and with his wife, Muriel Cole nee Bradshaw started out making radio sets in 1924. William Streatfield Verrells, a schoolmaster and freelance journalist from Southend-on-Sea, wrote an article in a local newspaper asking if it was possible to power a radio set from the mains electricity supply rather than batteries. Cole saw a possible business opportunity and set about building his battery eliminator, which he later demonstrated to Verrells. Suitably impressed, Verrells joined Cole in a business venture, with Cole manufacturing the battery eliminators, and Verrells marketing them. In 1926 a private...

I used to marvel at the postings on a vintage radio forum where the inmates would comment with a frenzied, self satisfied, superior scoffing towards anyone who incorrectly spelled  the trade name Bakelite.    If you had difficulty in spelling Bakelite then if you were tempted to move away from its trivial name, you would have even more trouble with its chemical name,  - Polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride, Bakelite was developed by Belgian chemist Leo Baekeland in 1907 and  patented on December 7, 1909.  We know it as the material from which many radio cabinets were made, cue Ekco, however, it had many more uses as you can see...

Greetings fellow radio and thermionic people!   Here I am finding myself sated with turkey and Christmas pud in a state of mellifluous fugue after hitting the seasonal sweet sherry so I thought I would write a blog entry. Talking of seasonal fugue, my Mother in Law, the Honourable Dowager Duchess June, even after mine & Mrs Mullard Magic's 30 years of marriage STILL hasn't learnt the error of her ways in forcing me to eat a plateful of sprouts every year on this very day.   As if these things aren't terrible enough, they certainly are after being boiled...