How I Bought My First Radio (and Became a DJ)

My very first piece of audio gear was the mighty Decca Sound Portable Radio Cassette Recorder Vintage Model DMC 1301.

Now, in an era where you can stream virtually any song ever written to a glass rectangle in your pocket, a bulky, plastic cassette player doesn't sound very "wow." But in 1975? To a 10-year-old me? It was pure magic.

It was also £35, which might as well have been £35,000. My parents offered a deal: save half, and they’d fund the rest. The snag? My income stream consisted of 15p weekly pocket money and a generous 50p cash injection whenever I visited my Grandparents. Saving £17.50 wasn't just a goal, it was an absolute financial odyssey.

Compact cassettes had been around since Philips introduced them in 1966, but by 1975, owning one still felt like holding the future. Plus, it had Medium Wave and VHF radio. Back then, BBC Radio 1, the absolute holy grail of pop music, was broadcast on 247 metres. When the government forced it to migrate to 275 and 285 metres in November 1978, they actually issued official re-tuning stickers. Naturally, I plastered those bad boys straight onto the radio like badges of honor.

The real turning point came when I proudly lugged my new prize into school in Upton Snodsbury. We used it to launch our very own radio station, recording "shows" where fellow pupils read out recipes and local gossip.

It was right around that moment, listening to a tinny cassette recording of an 8-year-old reciting a Victoria sponge recipe, that the realization hit me: I was never going to be a professional footballer. I was going to be a DJ.

Image from ebay