William Thomas Rouse (8 July 1877 – 22 December 1928), sometimes known as "Wireless Willie", was a British entertainer and pioneer radio broadcaster.
He was born in London. He worked as a music hall entertainer and pianist from the 1890s, and toured the country. Willie Rouse, "Secrets of Radio Humour", Radio Times, 10 December 1926, p.10 He also worked as an agent, and as a radio announcer. "Willie Rouse", Wireless World, January 1929, p.52 He was one of the first comic entertainers to broadcast in Britain, appearing regularly from 1924 on BBC radio performing comic songs and patter and billed as "Alleged Humour at the Piano".Andy Foster and Steve Furst, Radio Comedy 1938-1968: A Guide to 30 Years of Wonderful Wireless, Virgin, 1996, , p.4Denis Gifford, The Golden Age of Radio, B.T. Batsford Ltd, London, 1985, , p.315
As "Wireless Willie", he also compered early radio programmes of music hall acts, including Veterans of Variety which featured Gus Elen, Vesta Victoria, Charles Coborn, and Vesta Tilley, among others."Willie Rouse", Radio Times, BBC Genome. Retrieved 8 April 2021
Death He died, aged 51, in Whitstable, Kent, in 1928. "Rouse, William Thomas", DonaldFamily. Retrieved 8 April 2021
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