With just over two months to go until the RSGB Convention 2026, tickets are on sale and the programme is taking shape — and if you hold a Foundation licence, this might be the best year to make your first trip to Milton Keynes. I know what you’re thinking. “Isn’t the RSGB Convention for the…

With just over two months to go until the RSGB Convention 2026, tickets are on sale and the programme is taking shape — and if you hold a Foundation licence, this might be the best year to make your first trip to Milton Keynes. I know what you’re thinking. “Isn’t the RSGB Convention for the…

If you’ve spent any time in UK amateur radio Facebook groups or forums lately, you’ve probably noticed a word appearing over and over again: Meshtastic. And more recently, MeshCore. These two pieces of open-source firmware are powering a quiet revolution in off-grid communications, and for Foundation licence holders, there’s a lot here worth understanding. Let…

This weekend, thousands of curious people descended on Eastnor Castle Deer Park in Herefordshire for EMF Camp 2026 — the Electromagnetic Field event that brings together geeks, makers, and technologists for four days of talks, workshops, and experimentation. And right in the middle of it all, flying the flag for amateur radio, were three brilliant…

Something rather special happened in the UK this week. Between 8 and 13 July 2026, the World Radiosport Team Championship — WRTC for short — touched down on British soil. If you have never heard of WRTC, you are not alone. But if you hold a Foundation licence and you are wondering what all the…

Something rather special happened in the UK this week. Between 8 and 13 July 2026, the World Radiosport Team Championship — WRTC for short — touched down on British soil. If you’ve never heard of WRTC, you’re not alone. But if you hold a Foundation licence and you’re wondering what all the fuss is about,…

There is a particular thrill in hearing a voice come back to you out of the static for the first time. Mine came as M7RJJ, on a Foundation licence I had spent months working up the courage to use. More than five years later, I sit in the same shack (it’s also my work-from-home office)…

If you have spent any time on the HF bands in recent years, you will know that digital modes have transformed amateur radio. FT8 and FT4 made it possible to work weak signals that would be lost in the noise on SSB or even CW. Now there is a new arrival on the scene, and…

The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) stands as one of the world’s oldest and most influential amateur radio organisations.

FT8 (Franke-Taylor design, 8-FSK) has revolutionized amateur radio digital communication since its introduction in 2017.