Wireless of the Week - week 22

[Bruce Parker (RIP)]

The term ‘Tannoy’ is a brand name for a British speaker manufacturer, however it has become synonymous with the loudspeaker system used to communicate with the guns in artillery formations during WW2.

The famous ‘Tannoy’ was used throughout the war by all Commonwealth forces and extensively mentioned in books written about the era. The Canadian version is the Telephones, Loudspeaking, No.2 (Canadian). This particular set was made by Northern Electric Company Limited in 1944.

Telephones, Loudspeaking, No.2 was used by Artillery battery commanders to communicate with the guns in a battery, either together or individually. Communication back to the battery command was accomplished through the speaker located at the guns. It was, in essence, a five way field phone switchboard combination.

The equipment consisted of a Telephone, Loudspeaker, No.2 Control Unit (in this example a Mk.1) and two pairs of Telephone, Loudspeaker, No.2 Loudspeakers. The Control Unit came in a wooden box 10-1/4” wide by 1-1/2” deep by 8-1/2” tall and weighing 22 lbs. It had a control panel with four numbered lamps, one for each gun in the battery, sockets for the microphone and headset, a power cable to an external battery and posts for the line connections. The headset and microphone were stored in the lid when not in use. As usual, there was a metal plate printed with working instructions inside the lid.

The Loudspeakers were also in wooden boxes and came in pairs that clipped together into a single unit for transporting. When opened, they had the speaker and four posts for line connections; the lower two for connecting to a 19 set system. On the top was a button which allowed the gun crew to communicate back to the Control Unit by speaking directly…and loudly…into the speaker. It is not unusual to see these speaker units used in place of headset earphones for wireless sets such as the No.11 and No.19.