Pip pip - Time's up for much-loved institution of airwaves

A series of crackly pips and beeps broadcast to radios across Canada outlasted two monarchs, 13 prime ministers, 27 sessions of parliament and various fractures to national unity. They provided a comfort to citizens abroad, and inspired music and art.

- Leyland Cecco

But last week, after 84 years, Canada's public broadcaster, CBC, announced the termination of its official time signal, abruptly ending the longest running radio programme in the country's history. The news broke in a manner similar to the time signal: overlooked amid a frenzy of larger, more globally relevant stories.

"The way it disappeared so unceremoniously really took people by surprise," said Craig Baird, host of the podcast Canadian History Ehx. "They missed the chance to say goodbye. It was like missing the series finale of a show that you've watched for years."

Since 5 November 1939, CBC Radio One has broadcast the National Research Council time signal once a day, advising listeners "the beginning of the long dash" would mark the beginning of the hour: 1pm in Ontario, 10am in British Columbia.

Canadians set their watches and oven clocks to it. Trains were more punctual. Sailors could navigate more precisely. And as the time signal persisted over generations, it transformed into a cultural bedrock of the country.