Since the 1920s the radio set has been an important part of most people's lives. In the thirties and forties the wireless was an important piece of furniture and a potent symbol of status; beautifully made floor-standing and table-top sets in veneered wood and trendy bakelite became the focal points of living rooms up and down the land. After the war the emphasis began to change towards portability, and the change from valves to transistors in the 1960s changed the radio into a more useful but far less interesting object.