[1] While watching the BBC documentary Tomorrow's World in April 1994, corporate accountant Christopher Staines realized the potential of an innovative idea from British inventor Trevor Baylis.

[2] The Clockwork Radio, as the device was first known, was proposed as a means of providing better communication and education in undeveloped areas of Africa, which could lead to an effective measure in stopping the rampant spread of AIDS.

[3] Starting with a grant from the British Government to develop the Clockwork Radio idea, subsequent investors have included Liberty Life,[4] Gordon and Anita Roddick (of The Body Shop International PLC),[5] The General Electric Pension Trust,[6] South African Capital Growth Fund, and Worldspace Inc.[7] In 2013, inventor Trevor Baylis admitted he was facing having to sell his home because despite his invention, the wind-up radio, being sold around the world, he was almost bankrupt.

In present Freeplay radios and other products, clockwork mechanisms storing energy in a mainspring have now been replaced by small batteries charged by cheaper hand-crank generators.

[9] Freeplay Energy produces a variety of consumer devices in addition to radios, including flashlights, lanterns, mobile phone chargers, and foot-powered generators.