:adoption
Although Britain was the first country in the world to start large-scale public transmissions, the public uptake was initially very slow. Television sets were very expensive at first, and prices did not drop to an affordable level until technology developed during the Second World War for radar was introduced. As well as making televisions cheaper, it also made them safer and much smaller. These smaller, cheaper sets were more acceptable to the public. It is considered that a major driver for television uptake in Britain was the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953; this event was viewed by over 20 million people, and was for many their first exposure to television. People gathered for Coronation parties, and many people bought television receivers specially in time for the event (this was fictionally represented in the 2006 Doctor Who episode entitled The Idiot's Lantern). The fact that the number of television licences on issue at 1 April 1954 was 52% higher than the same date the year before is often cited as evidence of a boost in television ownership. This overlooks the fact that the increase had been 48% for the previous year, and was 39% for the following year, part of a falling trend from +213% in 1947-48 to +2% for 1965-66. Within this trend, the increase for 1953-54 would be expected to be in the region of 43%, so the actual increase of 52% is not as significant as is usually presented in isolation.
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