Bawdsey Radar Trust were delighted to welcome a special visitor at the Suffolk Show on May 29th. The 2 Para mascot – a pony named Bruneval – is pictured at our stand. Bruneval is named after a famous paratrooper raid in 1942 when the paras captured German radar equipment from Bruneval on the coast of France.
Bruneval with Bawdsey Radar Museum volunteers at the Suffolk Show
On this day in 1935, the Treasury released £12,300 for a secret programme to develop radar, then known as Radio Direction Finding (RDF), a significant sum for the time. Robert Watson Watt decided that Orford Ness would be the ideal location for this, due to the isolated nature of the site. Although they had some early successes on the Island, there was limited space and a site with more room for constructing the radar towers was sought. Bawdsey Manor provided the ideal location for this, and it was here that the vital radar technology was developed in secrecy behind the grand façade of the manor from early 1936. RAF Bawdsey, as it was later known, would go on to become the world’s first operational radar station, the Transmitter Block of which now houses Bawdsey Radar museum.
On this day in 1892, Robert Watson Watt was born. In response to growing concern about the defence of British cities from aerial attack, Watson Watt, along with his assistant Arnold Wilkins, developed the world’s first operational radar station at Bawdsey, the Transmitter Block of which now houses Bawdsey Radar Museum.
This technology proved vital in the Second World War, allowing the outnumbered RAF to quickly and efficiently find and attack incoming Luftwaffe aircraft. The radar technology developed by Watson Watt and his team continues to impact many aspects of our lives today, from weather forecasting to astronomy and archaeology.
Squadron Leader Derek Rothery who was for six years the twenty ninth and last Station Commander of RAF Bawdsey died on the 28th March 2025. His death marks the end of an era. On 25th March 1991 the RAF Ensign was lowered for the last time and the Station closed.
RAF Bawdsey had a distinguished history and was in the forefront of the development of RADAR from 1936 It remained a RADAR station until 1974. In 1979 RAF Bawdsey was an operational Bloodhound Mk II Surface to Air Missille site. At the time of its closure in 1991 RAF Bawdsey was part of 11 Group, the old RAF Fighter Command in World War II.
After his retirement Derek and his wife Barbara lived in Woodbridge. For many years Derek was President of the RAF Bawdsey Reunion Association. The Association’s annual lunches held in Bawdsey Manor were always popular and well attended and members of the Bawdsey Radar Trust were frequent guests. Derek was also President of the 85th Squadron Association. He was a keen ornithologist and was an active and enthusiastic member of the Bawdsey Bird Club, a club originally formed by former members of the RAF who had been based at RAF Bawdsey.
Our thoughts and sympathies are with Barbara.
On this day in 1935, Robert Watson Watt was granted a patent on the experimental radar technology that he and Arnold Wilkins were developing. While the work to develop this technology was begun at Orfordness in May 1935, the team moved to Bawdsey in 1936 where much of the development of radar took place. This technology later proved vital in the Battle of Britain, allowing the outnumbered RAF to quickly find and attack incoming German aircraft.
Bawdsey Radar Museum reopens on Thursday 3rd April for the 2025 season. We will be open on Thursdays, Sundays and Bank Holiday Mondays until the 2nd November, 11am – 4pm (last admission 3pm). Children under 18 go free. See our What’s On page for events taking place during the year. Easter weekend and VE Celebration open days why not visit and enjoy a traditional cup of tea and cake in the NAAFI tent?
On 26 February 2025, the 90th anniversary of the Daventry Experiment will be commemorated, marking a pivotal moment in the development of British radar technology. In 1935, scientists Robert Watson-Watt and Arnold Wilkins conducted a ground-breaking test near Daventry, demonstrating that radio waves could detect aircraft, laying the foundation for radar systems that would later prove crucial during World War II, in particular the Chain Home network that was in use during the Battle of Britain.
To honour this milestone, the Bawdsey Radar Museum in Suffolk will be hosting a special amateur radio station, GB2BRS (Bawdsey Radar Station), in the hope of linking up with similar radar related establishments around the UK. It is hoped to contact GB9ORE (Radar Experiment) near Daventry and GB9OCH (Chain Home) operated by Chelmsford ARS at Great Baddow in Essex, where one of the original Chain Home masts is still standing.
The 90th anniversary celebrations underscore the enduring legacy of the Daventry Experiment, highlighting its critical role in the evolution of radar technology and its lasting impact on both military strategy and civilian applications.
Unfortunately, the museum will not be open to the public for this event.
Rod was a valued and much-respected volunteer for Bawdsey Radar Trust since the museum opened in 2018. The Trustees and volunteers are very grateful for Rod’s commitment, interest and dedication. We send our heartfelt condolences to Jenny, Robin and John and their partners, Anja and Emily.
Rod’s immense engineering and scientific knowledge was warmly appreciated by fellow volunteers and by the many visitors who enjoyed Rod’s help and guidance on their visit.
His gentleness, warmth and kindness meant everyone warmed to Rod instantly. He had that rare ability of explaining tricky concepts easily and accessibly with great humour and enthusiasm.
Rod was the very definition of a polymath. Sailor, pilot, engineer, research scientist, photographer, mountain climber, chess player, intrepid cyclist. The list goes on.
Poetry was beautifully woven through Rod’s funeral service including this poem ‘High Flight’ by John Gillespie Magee, a young WW2 Spitfire pilot. The poem bears reproducing, chosen as it was, in honour of Rod, who celebrated his 70th birthday with a ride in a Spitfire.
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds,—and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of—wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air….
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew—
And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.
Fair winds and following seas Rod.
On this day in 1935, Robert Watson Watt delivered a secret memo to the Air Ministry titled ‘Detection and Location of Aircraft by Radio Methods’. In this paper, Watson Watt suggested that it was indeed possible to detect the location of aircraft using radio waves. This led to the Air Ministry investing further in the development of radar technology which was tested later in the month at Daventry. Much of the work to develop this radar technology took place at Bawdsey.
We’re delighted to have been included on The Suffolk Coast’s latest blog post, celebrating podcasts that share the rich story of the Suffolk Coast. Our 2021 podcast with Dr Phil Judkins, exploring the role of WAAFs at Bawdsey during the Second World War was featured, part of our series of thirteen podcasts sharing the story of radar and RAF Bawdsey. Visit The Suffolk Coast here to listen to hear some of the wonderful podcasts sharing some of the wonderful stories from around Suffolk: https://www.thesuffolkcoast.
