It can be safely stated that broadcasting in Malta started after World War II. The cable radio Rediffusion had set up temporary studios in what is now the Mediterranean Conference Centre and later moved to proper premises in Britannia Street (now Melita Street), Valletta.

As far as I am aware I was one of the first outside contributors on the Maltese Channel. Rediffusion had two options, namely switch A, which relayed exclusively the BBC World Service, and switch B that introduced local material. The locally produced programmes were well received by listeners and, within a few years, many experienced actors started to participate in one form or another.

We were the pioneers, testing our capabilities without having any idea or means to learn from and emulate other stations. It is not the scope of this letter to mention any of the pioneers in particular. My aim is to encourage whoever is responsible to set up a “monument”, even if just a commemorative marble plaque to honour and list those early broadcasters.

I am at a loss up to which year such a monument should cover. It could be up to the time Rediffusion was still operating in Valletta or perhaps even up to the period when Rediffusion was taken over by Xandir Malta. The period is irrelevant. Even the place for such a plaque has to be studied. I am not sure PBS is the right location. Others can come up with ideas and suggestions.

Broadcasting in Malta has reached many heights, a number of persons have become very efficient but we must not forget how broadcasting in Malta came to be when a few of us had to start from scratch and lay the foundations on which modern radio and television stations have built the present achievements.