Tin | Dobbelmanns Ibis Pipe Tobacco with radio

During the war the radio played a very important part; this medium enabled people to tune in to the broadcasts from Hilversum and listen to the news. After the German invasion the news that reached the people’s homes became less reliable. Soon after the invasion on 10 May 1940 the Germans also occupied the radio transmitters in Hilversum. From then on the radio companies were not aloud to transmit certain broadcasts anymore and the news on the radio was now compiled by the Germans and therefore often false or unreliable.

Soon after the German invasion both the Dutch government and the Royal family took refuge in England. From there they commenced transmissions for the citizens in occupied Holland in the Dutch language. Radio Orange, `the voice of battling Holland`, was a broadcast from the Dutch government in banishment in London. This broadcast lasted about 15 minutes and was transmitted at 9 p.m. by the European service from the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation).

Listening to the BBC and radio Orange was forbidden but, to tell the truth, no one cared. That’s why the occupants tried to interfere with these broadcasts, nevertheless even for this a solution invented. In April 1943 the Germans decide that everyone had to hand in his radio. Anyone who didn’t obey faced heavy punishment, that is why people developed creative ways to hide their radio’s. Behind the cupboard or underneath the floor, but also in this tin for pipe tobacco from the trademark Dobbelmann a radio is installed.

This hidden radio is manufactured by mr. C. Addink, who worked at the Physical laboratory from Philips. He actually listened with this “illegal radio” to Radio Orange himself during the years of occupation. Donated to the museum by his foster son, mr. A. Linzel.