The Transcription Centre opened in January 1962 with the primary object of designing and making cultural programmes on tape for African radio stations. It was started by Dennis Duerden because he felt that there was room for a new kind of radio service in which there would be greater opportunity for the contact and interchange of ideas between artists, writers, musicians, actors, and critics than is usually afforded by the large broadcasting organisations. It set out to be a cultural centre with a reading room and an informal atmosphere for discussion, to which recording studios were subordinate. From the beginning it worked closely with the Institute of Contemporary Arts (I.C.A.), cultural bodies, and art galleries in Britain and Africa, and was stimulated by constant visitors bringing new ideas and information from many parts of the world. It is a non-profit-making organisation supported by a direct grant from the Farfield Foundation.