Memories of Lozère: “biscuit” radios to listen to Radio London

Une radio biscuit dans son emballage d’origine. – Jérôme Mouquet

This weekly column is written by Jean-Marie Gazagne.

From July 10, 1940, General de Gaulle quickly understood the major role that radios could play in receiving coded messages. While listening to Radio London was possible, while remaining dangerous and closely monitored in towns and villages, it was quite different for the maquis who were often isolated in the countryside.

This inconvenience was resolved by the parachuting of MCR 1 (Miniature Communication Reveiver) radios. The parachuting took place from Norway to the former Yugoslavia.

This is a receiving station equipped with three dry batteries ensuring approximately 90 hours of listening time. Each battery weighs 1 kg. This type of post is called “biscuit” because of its shape which recalls the metal boxes in which biscuits were packaged at that time (box to protect them from humidity).

To ensure camouflage, the whole thing was then installed in a box of Huntlet biscuits & Palmers. As soon as the first posts were seized, the German authorities quickly understood the stratagem and this explains the difficulty of finding the post and its original packaging.

If only 10,000 posts were manufactured, the allies, to deceive the enemy, started the numbering at 10,000 and for the occupant 20,000 positions were in the wild

Thanks to Jérôme Mouquet who provided me with information and photos. I subscribe to read more