PHOTO EXHIBITION · TALLINN SPEAKING! A CENTURY ON AIR

Treasures from the Finnish YLE TV Archives

While in Estonia the favourite television programme for children between 1982 and 1990 was “Kõige suurem sõber” with the beloved Leopold, Postikana, Äpu, uncle Raivo and many others, in Finland children had been waiting every evening on YLE TV 2 for “Pikku Kakkonen” since 1977, and it is still on air today, twice a day on weekdays, in the morning and in the evening.

Visit the exhibition

The exhibition can be visited with a TV Tower visitor ticket, there is no separate exhibition ticket.

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Watch the video

Curator Kertu Saks explains the background of the display and introduces the stories that await visitors.

01 — OVERVIEW

The exhibition in brief

The Finnish Institute and the YLE TV collection of children programmes have sent props from “Pikku Kakkonen” to the TV Tower exhibition, and even one of the main characters, the Finnish Leopold, that is Riku Karvakuono (Riku the Furry Snout).

Anyone who remembers “Pikku Kakkonen” will know that the logo of the programme was a number 2 made of jigsaw pieces. You can see that jigsaw at the exhibition too.

02 — THE HISTORY OF SOUND

The NAGRA IV-AL reporter tape recorder

The exhibition features the legendary reporter tape recorder NAGRA IV-AL, used at Finnish YLE radio in the 1970s and 1980s. It was brought here from a private collection by Hannele Valkeeniemi, director of the Finnish Institute.

She worked as a YLE journalist for 25 years and used a recorder like this in the early years of her radio career. From her own collection she also sent the exhibition a historic YLE tape box from 1983.

Aarded Soome YLE TV varakambrist (Foto Risto Štukert)

ESTONIA AND FINLAND · 100

With this exhibition we mark the 100th anniversary of both Estonian and Finnish broadcasting, as Finland too marks a hundred years this year since the first regular radio programmes went on air.

Watch the video

A short overview of the exhibition.

03 — EXHIBITION SERIES

Part of the series “Tallinn speaking! A Century on Air”

Treasures from the Finnish YLE TV Archives is part of the exhibition series “Tallinn speaking! A Century on Air”, created at Tallinn TV Tower for the 100th anniversary of Estonian broadcasting. Several more exhibitions and education programmes will open within the series this year. In 2026 the TV Tower operates under the banner of Estonian Broadcasting 100.

Partners: Finnish Institute, YLE and Hannele Valkeeniemi. The exhibition is curated by Kertu Saks.

Location: 21st floor of Tallinn TV Tower

MINI MAGAZINE