100 Years of HRT: From Radio Broadcasting in 1926 to ''Forever First'' in 2026

On Friday, May 15, Croatian Radio and Television (HRT) is celebrating 100 years of Croatian Radio and 70 years of Croatian Television, and is announcing the continuation of the anniversary celebration with the ''Forever First'' campaign, with a series of programming, production and public events throughout the year.

The celebration of the 100th anniversary of HRT is linked to the first radio broadcast from Zagreb on May 15, 1926, when Croatian actress, writer and first radio announcer Božena Begović said ''Hello, hello, this is Radio Zagreb'', and HRT emphasizes that the intention of marking this great anniversary, through the ''Forever First'' campaign, is to highlight the continuity of the public service, but also its lasting role.

“The central day of the celebration is May 15, Croatian Radio and Television Day, when radio and television content and live reporting from city locations will be connected through a full-day program,” HRT announced.

In addition to the traditional presentation of HRT's annual awards, including the "Ivan Šibl" Lifetime Achievement Award, and the commemoration of HRT employees who died in the Homeland War, the public media service has also announced a large ceremony with numerous guests in the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall.

However, HRT specifically emphasizes that they are marking this jubilee anniversary with special radio, television and online program content that aims to mark the social context in which this public media service has operated so far and left its mark on Croatian society.

''100 Moments to Remember''

At the heart of the centennial celebrations is the ''100 Moments to Remember'' project, through which HRT brings a selection of events, shows and recordings throughout the year that have marked its activities, as well as the society in which they were created. This is content that has remained recorded in the program, but also in the memory of the audience, since the very beginning of broadcasting, HRT points out. This program selection also includes the first voices on Croatian airwaves, broadcasts that were watched by millions of viewers and listeners, and shows and formats that, as they point out, have become part of Croatian everyday life over time.

The project is being implemented as a continuous series of announcements and features on all HRT platforms, with archive recordings and context that allow content from different periods to be watched and listened to again. In this way, these moments are brought not only as a reminder, but also as an insight into the time in which they were created and the role they played at the time, HRT says.

They also announce that, as part of the campaign, the "100 moments to remember" project will be implemented until the end of the year.

They also add that the "reruns" of materials already published have shown the breadth of this approach, proving the engaged approach of public radio and television from the very beginnings of broadcasting and historical events to content that has marked popular culture. They also note that the previously broadcast program "100 Moments to Remember" shows the role of HRT as a media that not only records events, but also transmits them and shapes them as part of the public space.

The cry "People, is this possible?" has the greatest resonance

They have particularly highlighted the shows dedicated to events related to the first radio broadcast from Zagreb, the "forbidden" concert of Prljavo kazalište in 1989, or the welcome of Croatian Football team in 2018. They also note that these recordings feature recognizable voices and sentences that have outlived the moment in which they were spoken, such as the cry of the legendary sports commentator Mladen Delić "People, is this possible?" from 1983, which by the beginning of May had the greatest resonance among the audience and on social networks, with almost 700,000 views on Facebook to date and more than a million in total on all platforms.

They also do not omit the major public radio and television projects realized in recent decades, citing a series of shows that people grew up with, from "Gruntovčani and "Smogovaci" to "Naše malo misto."

However, the very showing of reruns and the failure to implement any of the major drama or film capital projects in the year of HRT's 100th anniversary has been the subject of numerous criticisms, including those recently directed at the HRT leadership by members of the Programming Council.

Namely, the HRT leadership has been criticized for not being able to implement, exclusively through its own production, capital projects significant for Croatian culture and society, such as former series and films such as ''Prosjaci i sinovi'', ''Glembajevi'' or ''Kuda idu divlje svinje''. HRT has not yet responded to the criticism, but they offered an explanation in the announcement of the 100th anniversary.

“Over the century of its operation, Croatian Radio and Television has developed from a radio station into a modern multimedia institution that unites radio, television and digital platforms. Its fundamental role remains the same: to inform and connect, with responsibility and action in the public interest. Celebrating 100 years of HRT is therefore not only focused on reviewing the past, but also on content that continues that role in the future, through programming that remains accessible, relevant and audience-oriented,” concluded HRT.

Source: HRT