Tony Rogers
My introduction to the world of DXing came as a 14 year old in early 1976. As a sports fan, particularly football (soccer) and cricket, a friend told me about a local radio station that had regular commentaries and live reports from football matches whenever they were being played. Not really having been a radio listener before, I found a rarely used transistor radio in a cupboard at home and one evening started looking for BRMB radio in Birmingham. During that tune-around on the MW band I didn't initially find BRMB, my attention was drawn to another radio station I heard, Radio Prague in Czechoslovakia. Over the evenings that followed I heard other stations on MW such as Radio Moscow, Deutschlandfunk and Radio Tirana, and I was hooked! My parents bought me a shortwave radio a few months later and the journey continued!
The politics that international broadcasters spouted didn't interest me much, but the cultural, entertainment and sports programmes certainly did. Ever since my grandmother had bought me a "Children's Picture Atlas of the World" back in 1967, I had always been fascinated by the way of life in other countries, and the discovery of international broadcasting increased my interest even more.
In the years that have followed, my interest has never waned. I have thoroughly enjoyed DXing and listening in general, and now in my retirement I have created DX Guides so that I can channel my enthusiasm into that. I am not out to prove anything or rival anyone, I simply want a project where I can do what I want and how I want, all in my own good time. And of course share the experiences that this wonderful hobby creates with the friends I have made over the years, many of whom I have never met face-to-face but know so well thanks to email and other forms of modern communication!
As well as radio, I also have other interests, including
· Long distance walking, particularly along the vast network of canals in Birmingham and the West Midlands
· Local History, particularly Birmingham and the West Midlands
· Railways, particularly current and past lines in Birmingham and the West Midlands
· Football (soccer): I support Birmingham City Football Club
· Cricket: I support Warwickshire County Cricket Club (who are based in Birmingham)
· Music
My music interests include Birmingham and West Midlands pop/rock artists since the 1960's, such as Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne (particularly their involvement with The Move, ELO, Wizzard, etc), Steve Gibbons, Moody Blues, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Slade, UB40, Duran Duran, etc. I also have a huge interest in artists like Bob Dylan, Beach Boys (including Brian Wilson's solo work), Fleetwood Mac (including Lyndsey Buckingham's solo work), Led Zeppelin (and anything involving Robert Plant and Jimmy Page), Kinks (including Ray Davies' solo work), Runrig, Beatles, and many many others.
