David G3ZPF, President of the Radio Amateur Old Timers’ Association (RAOTA) sent the following: Most amateurs in the UK are already aware of the role played by Gerald Marcuse G2NM in the history of our hobby, and in the creation of what would become the BBC World Service. In addition to being a past-President of the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) and involved in founding the Radio Amateur Old Timers’ Association (RAOTA), he was also Vice-President at the founding of IARU. (PW’s March 2015 Valve & Vintage column had more on G2NM – ed.) In the village of Bosham, near Chichester, was a bench with a plaque but last year it was noticed that the bench had disappeared. On behalf of RAOTA I decided to investigate, and the Parish Council informed me it was removed because of concerns over its condition. It would be replaced by an exact replica after refurbishment of the churchyard wall and will incorporate the original Marcuse plaque. The new solid teak bench was duly installed in the Spring of 2019 and looks absolutely splendid. I was delighted to be invited to a gathering at the new bench in August by Joan Langhorne (the church archivist), especially as David Marcuse (Gerald’s son) was there with his XYL. Some of Gerald’s radio equipment, and a replica of the room he operated it from, are on display in the Amberley Museum. A more detailed account will appear in a forthcoming issue of the RAOTA magazine.

This article was featured in the November 2019 issue of Practical Wireless