WIRELESS WAFFLE DIARY 2009 - LATEST ENTRY AT TOP

13th September 2009

Waffler

Terry Wogan has given us good notice of leaving his Breakfast Show, and it appears he does not want a rest and will carry on broadcasting.  I do not think Chris Evans is the best choice for the breakfast programme but will wait until he takes the air before forming an opinion.

For a while now I have noted UK's finest on 106.8 playing a loop tape of adverts or dj promotions during the weekday.  

I have just received a copy of the excellent Keith Skues Pop Went the Pirates II, and will eventually post a review of the book on site.  My initial reaction is that it is beautifully bound and is on shiny art paper, and in Keith's own words is a massive tome!   More to follow.............. It is set to be the "Asa Briggs" equivalent of a history of offshore radio in the UK!  His first edition already is of course.

Radio Jackie still puts out some extremely good music programmes, and never neglects oldies, these seem to be played alternatively with new music. Top marks, and I am glad we can received the station here.  It tends to be very close to a pirate on 108fm though which is a pity.

Steve Allen was interviewing his idol Alan Whicker this morning on his Sunday Show. It was pre-recorded and played back in 4 parts.  

The Boat that Rocked DVD has been released, I am looking out for a cheap copy.  There are some on ebay, but I think I will wait until the price really drops. From what I have seen of the film it is not very hot. Please let me know if you have a copy you want to sell for around £5 including postage, would be good to get a copy.

Saturday Live on BBC Radio 4 is a good programme to listen to, give it a try.

Brian Matthew's still does an excellent Sound of the Sixties, glad that he made a recovery from his illness.

I recently bid for a copy of a novelty song that I heard on Radio North Sea in the seventies.  It was by Edwina Miglet and the Biglets, and was called "Thing".   I sold the single in the 90s and have regretted it ever since.  I have also managed to locate another song "Don't stick stickers on my paper Knickers" by Katina, also played on RNI.  Sounds like it was influenced by the music of Judge Dread.

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News from other sources

Martin Collins has been appointed as the permanent host of the weekend breakfast show on Magic 105.4 in London.

Martin, who has been covering the show for the last few weeks, will be on-air every Saturday and Sunday from 6am till 10am. He will also be presenting shows across daytime output.

The ex-Chiltern Radio presenter was most recently covering the late show on the One Network and various programmes on Absolute Radio. His last full time show was drivetime at Smooth Radio in London, which he left in December 2008.

Fans of Terry Wogan are planning to record a farewell song for the broadcaster.

Wogan announced last week that he will leave his Radio 2 breakfast show next year.

His ardent followers are now planning to unite on Thursday at Longleat House in Wiltshire to record a charity single, The Mirror reports.

Their rendition of 'We All Stand Together' will appear on the album Bandaged TOG-ether, which is being produced to raise money for Children In Need.

Hellen Bach, who organised the event, said: "There is still time to register and feature on a historic recording. It is a one-off opportunity to say thanks to Terry for all the laughter and music down the years and look after the children in the process."

Wogan will send a video message to the crowd from his London studio.

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Former Radio Forth boss and Wave 102 owner Adam Findlay has bought Original 106, along with John Quinn and Murray Strachan.

It's the third time in as many years the station has changed hands, having originally launched in November 2007 by CanWest. Then Iain McKenna led management buy-out last year and remains at the station for a the next few months during this new change of ownership period.

Quinn is the chairman of Central FM and will take 40 per cent stake in the station, whilst local businessman Strachan takes 20 per cent. Findlay will own the rest.

Following speculation over the weekend, Sir Terry Wogan has confirmed Chris Evans is to replace him on the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show at the end of the year.

Sir Terry made the announcement just after the 8am news bulletin, saying it was the hardest thing he has ever done. "It touches me deeply that I've played a part in your lives for, it seems, like generations," Sir Terry said.

Terry has been presenting the show on Radio 2 since 1993, and with almost eight million listeners tuning in each week, it's the biggest programme on UK radio.

Chris Evans, currently hosting the afternoon drive show on the station, previously presented breakfast on BBC Radio 1, and returned to national BBC Radio in 2005 as a weekend presenter on Radio 2.

Chris comments: "This is very much Terry's story not mine, as well it should be.

"To step down from something you have done so well and for so long, and obviously still enjoy doing, must be a tough call even for such a stoic as Sir Tel.

"That said, although I will miss the drivetime show which I have loved for the last three-and-a-bit years, I couldn't be more excited at the prospect of hosting the flagship show on one of the BBC's national networks."

Bob Shennan, Controller, Radio 2 and 6 Music, comments: "Chris is a unique broadcasting talent with a huge passion for Radio 2 and its listeners, as we read every day on his blog.

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The networked weekday 11am till 3pm programme on Splash FM and Bright FM is to extend across Sussex and air on Sovereign Radio and Arrow FM too.

All four stations are owned by the same company, and in requesting Ofcom approval to make the changes, Programme Controller Paul Williams said: "Sovereign Radio and Arrow FM have made significant financial loses over many years.

"The acquisition of these two stations by Media Sound Holdings Ltd provides us with a unique opportunity to use the benefits of networking and shared resource to reverse years of losses."

Ofcom said: "Each of the four stations has an MCA of fewer than 250,000 adults, and all are located in Sussex and thus there is a degree of cultural affinity between them all."

Media regulator Ofcom has awarded five new community radio licences. The recipients are Marlow FM, Radio BGWS, Seahaven FM, The Park and Voice FM.

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WNYC Radio in the USA, the nation’s largest public radio station, has announced that 24-hour classical music station WQXR will launch at its new frequency at 105.9 FM on 8 October 8. The switchover will occur at 8pm, live from the stage of Carnegie Hall.

When Fearne Cotton received the news that she had been given one of the biggest breaks of her career, she did the natural thing and called her mother. It was July, and Cotton had just been told that she would be taking over the weekday mid-morning show on Radio 1 replacing the veteran DJ Jo Whiley in the station's biggest shake-up for five years.

"I remember calling my mum and saying: 'Mum, I've got some massive news for you! I'm taking over from Jo Whiley!' And she said: 'Oh that's nice. Well, me and Marian are just going to go to the garden centre.'" Cotton rolls her eyes. "My mum's more into Radio 4. My parents are really supportive, really proud, but in a nice way; they're not gushing."

Graham Knight, one of the original presenters at Radio Trent, has died from cancer at the age of 60.

Graham went on to host programmes on BBC Radio Derby and Radio 2, and was regarded as a "pioneer" of Nottingham broadcasting.

Dick Stone, current programme director at Trent FM, has paid tribute in the local newspaper: "Graham was one of the pioneers of broadcasting in Nottingham, as one of the original presenters on Trent FM he helped make us the success we are today. He will be sadly missed and was one of radio's gents – always considerate, thought-provoking and respectful.

"His energy, hard work and insight in the early days of Trent FM paved the way for a long and successful career in radio in the East Midlands.

"Our thoughts are with the family and friends of one of Nottingham's modern-day legends."

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23rd August 2009

Waffler

Hello again, sorry that there have not been many updates to this site for this month, I have not been on holiday, so no real excuses.  There have been some great programmes commemorating Radio Veronica's 50 years of broadcasting, and I have been listening to those and also concentrating on my photo and other interests.  Radio 4 continues to be a magnificent station to listen to, along with occasional phone in programmes on LBC. Hats off the the great Ern and Vern on BBC Three counties.

Thanks to Melvin in Ipswich for your kind comments about the site.

I will try to bring you some more regular updates on the diary to make up for a gap in time.

News from other sources

Radio Veronica
Same time, same frequency... just 35 years later...

On August 31st 2009, Spectrum Radio will be 
rebroadcasting the final hours of Radio Veronica on 
558kHz AM.

The Radio Veronica Ship
The Radio Veronica Ship

Where were you August 31st 1974?

Many people know where they were when J.F. Kennedy died. 
Some close their eyes and can still see the first man on 
the moon. Historic events that we can relive time after 
time thanks to DVD, video, MPeg4, I-pods and whatever. 
You see the same and still.... it's different. A lot of 
people in The Netherlands who were over twelve in 1974 
can remember where they were during the close down of 
Radio Veronica, the most populair radio station The 
Netherlands had ever known. Veronica was a ship based 
radio station, started broadcasting in 1960 from a 
former German light vessel anchored outside the 
terrotorial waters in the North Sea.

At that time radio in Holland consisted of Government 
controlled broadcasting companies radiating programs as 
exciting as watching grass grow. In 1959 a couple of 
entreponeurs decided to follow the Scandinavian example 
of broadcasting "free" radio from outside the 
jurisdiction of the authorities. Free of charge, free of 
Governmental interference and available at no costs. The 
content? Music! Radio Veronica, as the station was 
called, built up an audience beyond believe and forced 
the Government to launch a new National station (radio 
3) broadcasting pop music all day as a (non successful) 
attempt to take away the reason for Veronica's success 
(broadcasting what young Europe wanted, namely pop music 
only). It was that same success that made the 
authorities reticent to act as no political movement had 
the courage to jeopardize an election over the 
popularity of Radio Veronica. It took a shot in her own 
foot that eventually gave the authorities an excuse to 
stop Veronica. An explosion on board a competing radio 
ship pushed the Government into gear. After September 
1st 1974 any working for, supporting of and advertising 
on offshore stations would be illegal. Radio Veronica 
decided to cease broadcasting August 31st 1974 at 6pm 
(CET). From then the frequency of 538 meters, 558 kHz AM 
was silent until much later other stations started using 
it.

Do you remember the last hour? Did you hear it but 
forgot? Was it before your time and have you always 
regretted not to have been there? Now here is your 
chance. August 31st 2009, between 4 and 6 pm (CET) the 
sound of Radio Veronica will be back on 538 meters, 558 
kHz. By courtesy of Spectrum Radio in London and Radio 
Seagull in The Netherlands the final two hours of Radio 
Veronica are going to be re-broadcast. Not on I-pod or 
MP3 player, but on the same old Medium Wave frequency as 
35 years ago. So dig up your AM receiver and tune to 538 
meters, 558 kHz on Monday August 31st between 4 and 6 pm 
CET, 3-5 pm UK time and listen to this historic 
broadcast again. Same date, same time, same frequency, 
just a few years later...

Can't listen to AM? Use Spectrum Radio's Website to 
listen live via the web or to listen to the recording 
later. If you missed it in 1974, here is your chance. If 
you heard it then, relive the sentiment and listen 
again. All the others, ask the people who missed it last 
time and they'll tell you why you shouldn't...

 
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50 years of Radio Veronica!
Special programming in August and exhibition

It will be Radio Veronica's 50th anniversary in a few 
month's time.

Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began 
broadcasting in 1960, and has the distinction of having 
broadcast from offshore for the longest continuous 
period - more than fourteen years.

(Radio Caroline broadcast offshore over a longer period 
- more than twenty-six and a half years - but this 
included non-consecutive periods totalling around eight 
and a half years off the air.)

Radio Veronica was set up by independent radio, TV and 
household electrical retailers in the Netherlands. They 
hoped to stimulate the sales of radio receivers in the 
country by broadcasting more popular programmes than the 
established and state-licensed stations in Hilversum.

Broadcasts began on 21 April 1960. The station announced 
itself as VRON (Vrije Radio Omroep Nederland; Free Radio 
Station [of the] Netherlands) but changed to Radio 
Veronica, after the poem "Het Zwarte Schaap Veronica" - 
The Black Sheep Veronica - by the children's poet Annie 
M. G. Schmidt.

After the closure of the radio station some of its staff 
applied for a broadcasting licence and continued as a 
legal organisation with the same name.

The original Radio Veronica became the most popular 
station in the Netherlands, broadcasting from a former 
lightship Borkum Riff anchored off the Dutch coastline.

The ship was fitted with a horizontal antenna between
the fore and aft masts, fed by a one-kilowatt 
transmitter.

The majority of programmes were recorded in a studio on 
the Zeedijk in Hilversum. At the end of the 1960s the 
studios and offices moved to bigger premises on the 
Utrechseweg in Hilversum.

For a short time the station also ran an 
English-language service under the call letters CNBC 
(Commercial Neutral Broadcasting Company.)

Later the Borkum Riff was replaced by a former trawler, 
the MV Norderney.

For many years Veronica has been an independent 
broadcasting station in the Netherlands, its on various 
FM frequencies and the internet..

The above extract from Wikipedia 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_Vero
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Media Network
Andy Sennitt
August 12 2009

The famed REM island - a platform used in 1964 to 
broadcast commercial
pirate radio and TV programs to the Netherlands - will 
be towed to Amsterdam
where it will be outfitted as a restaurant in the 
harbour. The two-storey
structure was bought by De Principaal, the municipal 
project development
company of housing corporation De Key. It will be towed 
to Amsterdam
shortly, and the restaurant should be ready to welcome 
its first guests one
year from now. The rebuilt version, which will take 
eight months and create
30 jobs, will have an extra storey compared to the 
original.

REM Island was located just outside territorial waters, 
6 miles off the
Dutch coast. The stations - Radio and TV Noordzee - were 
operated by REM,
which stands for Reclame Explotatie Maatschappij 
(Advertising Exploitation
Company). Broadcasting commenced 15 August 1964, and 
countless people in the
West of Holland bought and installed the special 
antennas necessary to
receive its TV transmissions.

But on 17 December, 1964, the Royal Dutch Navy raided 
the station and the
island was confiscated. The Dutch government later used 
the island as a
measuring post. On 8 June, 2006, the structure was 
dismantled and the
substructure was demolished.

(Source: DutchAmsterdam.nl/RTV Noord)




Premier Radio to launch nationwide Christian DAB station

LONDON - Christian media charity Premier Radio is set to 
launch a national
Christian DAB station on 21 September
The station is currently available on DAB in London, 
Sky, Freeview
and through the internet, and its backers are believed 
to be in
advanced talks with Digital One to secure a national DAB 
licence. It
is understood that Ofcom knows a licence application is 
on its way,
which will be considered at the next Radio Licensing 
Committee meeting
on 7 September. Premier Media is owned by charity, 
Premier
Christian Media Trust, and the radio station is funded 
by a mixture of
traditional radio ads, paid-for on-air ministries and 
donations. Peter
Kerridge, chief executive of Premier Media Group, said 
while the
licence had not been formalised, "it was still going 
through" and the
station was "on track to launch for 21 September". This 
morning
(19 August), Kerridge e-mailed Premier's friends to ask 
them to "give
a generous online gift" to fund the £650,000 a year it 
will cost to
transmit the station nationally. Kerridge said he was
"unapologetic" about contacting supporters in this way, 
because the
station had always been "donor-funded, not commercially 
funded". Kerridge
said Premier Media's funding meant it was in a better 
position than
other media organisations, as the "ad-funded model is 
smashed
Source:
http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/news/rss/928163/Premier-Radio
-launch-nationwide-Chris
tian-DAB-station/



Radio Today
11 August 2009

London radio station Club Asia, which broadcasts on 963 
and 972 AM in the
capital, and nationally on the Sky Digital platform, has 
gone into
administration.

BizAsia.co.uk says Ofcom has confirmed the status of the 
station, saying:
"We have been notified that Club Asia have gone into 
administration."

The station launched in 2003 on the frequencies 
previously used by Liberty
and Viva. It is owned and operated by sisters Humerah 
Ahmad and Sumerah
Srivastava. The station is still currently broadcasting 
as normal.

Media Network
Andy Sennitt
August 12 2009

The famed REM island - a platform used in 1964 to 
broadcast commercial
pirate radio and TV programs to the Netherlands - will 
be towed to Amsterdam
where it will be outfitted as a restaurant in the 
harbour. The two-storey
structure was bought by De Principaal, the municipal 
project development
company of housing corporation De Key. It will be towed 
to Amsterdam
shortly, and the restaurant should be ready to welcome 
its first guests one
year from now. The rebuilt version, which will take 
eight months and create
30 jobs, will have an extra storey compared to the 
original.

REM Island was located just outside territorial waters, 
6 miles off the
Dutch coast. The stations - Radio and TV Noordzee - were 
operated by REM,
which stands for Reclame Explotatie Maatschappij 
(Advertising Exploitation
Company). Broadcasting commenced 15 August 1964, and 
countless people in the
West of Holland bought and installed the special 
antennas necessary to
receive its TV transmissions.

But on 17 December, 1964, the Royal Dutch Navy raided 
the station and the
island was confiscated. The Dutch government later used 
the island as a
measuring post. On 8 June, 2006, the structure was 
dismantled and the
substructure was demolished.


August 12 2009
this is cornwall.co.uk

A new radio station in the Truro area begins 
broadcasting on Monday, but
there has been sadness behind the launch.

CHBN Radio (the new name for Truro Hospital Radio) hits 
the airwaves on
107.5FM, but the station's much loved and respected 
manager, Elizabeth
Sanders, from Penryn, will not be there to see it.

She died suddenly at home at the age of 55 while talking 
to her husband
Geoff just a week after the station had been granted its 
licence for a trial
three-week broadcast on the FM band.


The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) has written a 
formal letter of
complaint to the UK regulator OFCOM regarding Power Line 
Adaptors (PLA)

Read the RSGB letter here (pdf file)
http://www.southgatearc.org/news/august2009/images/09%20
07%2031%20Letter%20to%20\
RTB.pdf

August 17th, 2009 - 12:39 UTC by Andy Sennitt, Media 
Network

UK-based Radio Caroline will be broadcasting live from 
the radio ship Ross
Revenge over the Bank Holiday weekend 28-31 August. This 
time, the station
will also be broadcasting with low power on mediumwave 
531 kHz, which should
be audible in Tilbury and the surrounding areas of south 
Essex and north
Kent.

This test broadcast is on the closest available 
frequency to the last one
[558 kHz] used by the station to broadcast from 
international waters. The
usual outlets via the Internet and Sky channel 0199 will 
also be carrying
programmes from the Ross Revenge

http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/radio-caroline-to-broad
cast-on-531-khz-from-28-\
31-august

From Radio Today in brief only see their site for full 
details


Kick sold to Andover Sound
Kick FM has been bought by neighbouring Andover Sound 
Limited, a company controlled by Ian Axton, and in which 
Tindle Radio has a 20 per cent holding.

Hallam FM’s sexual healing
Hallam FM helps launch Rotherham’s NHS Sexual Health 
campaign aimed at young people in the area. The station 
helped create brand new imaging for ‘The S-Word: We Need 
to Talk about Sex’ campaign.

Reunion for 20 years of 252
A reunion to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Atlantic 
252 is to be held in Trim this September, and anyone who 
had any involvement in the longwave giant is invited.

New Ed for BBC Radio Devon
The BBC has appointed Mark Grinnell as the new Managing 
Editor of BBC Radio Devon. He’ll take up his new post on 
17 August.

Bacon plays it for laughs
BBC Radio 5 Live's Richard Bacon will be testing his 
mettle as a stand-up comedian during the Edinburgh 
Festival. It will be the first time he has attempted 
live comedy.

Galaxy South Coast lives!
Global Radio’s Galaxy South Coast is hosting its first 
live music event – Love Music Live - later this month, 
as well as celebrating its first major television 
campaign.

Tony Cowell decides to get Real
Real Radio has signed Tony Cowell – brother of Simon – 
as its official X-Factor correspondent. From 21st 
August, Cowell will report into Real Radio’s breakfast 
shows in Wales, Yorkshire, the North West, North East 
and Scotland.

Nottingham presenter in hospital
BBC Radio Nottingham's mid-morning presenter Frances 
Finn is in hospital after a motorbike crash.

Justin's back in Toon for Real
Former Metro Radio commentator Justin Lockwood has 
joined Real Radio to cover Newcastle United games this 
season.

Bauer jock checks into rehab?
Lucy Horobin, co-host of Bauer Media's network evening 
show IN:DEMAND has NOT been checked into rehab despite 
reports on station websites.

Tim Vincent is Magic (105.4)
Tim Vincent is to become the guest host of Kim Wilde’s 
Secret Songs from August 16th for three weeks on Magic. 
The show invites listeners to share their songs that 
hold a special place in their life.

Time for change at Radio Ulster
BBC Radio Ulster in Northern Ireland is making a few 
presenter changes to its news and current affairs 
programmes.

Club Asia enters administration
London radio station Club Asia, which broadcasts on 963 
and 972 AM in the capital, and nationally on the Sky 
Digital platform, has gone into administration.

Johnny Borrell to join XFM
Razorlight’s Johnny Borrell is set to present a weekly 
evening show on Xfm’s ‘The Sunday Service: Songs They 
Don’t Play on the Radio’ for nine weeks, from 6th 
September 2009.

talkSPORT - new season, new team
talkSPORT has unveiled its new presentation team for 
Saturday afternoons ahead of the new football season. 
Ian Wright and Adrian Durham will now be presenting the 
flagship Matchday Live show.

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RTE 2 FM upsets regulator
Ireland's broadcasting regulator has censured RTE 2 FM 
over an 'offensive' sketch about the band Boyzone. Two 
actors posing as Ronan Keating and Stephen Gately 
debated the problem of an itchy groin after waxing.

Galaxy takes the high road
Global Radio’s Galaxy network will be broadcasting live 
from this year’s Edinburgh Festival Fringe from Monday 
17th to Friday 21st August. This is the first time 
Galaxy has broadcast from the world’s largest arts 
festival.

Listener Driven software launches
A new tool which allows radio listeners to choose the 
next song to be played on-air has launched in the UK and 
Europe.

Xfm goes in search of the best
Xfm is launching a new worldwide listener poll to find 
the "World’s Best Song of All Time", and countdown them 
down from 100 to 1 on the upcoming Bank Holiday Monday.

Tim Westwood gets 1Xtra drive
Tim Westood is taking over the drivetime show on BBC 
1Xtra, whilst Ace and Vis are relegated to weekends.

Lamacq leaves 1 after 16 years
In an evening schedule reshuffle at BBC Radio 1, Steve 
Lamacq's show is to be replaced by a series of music 
documentaries exploring artists, eras, genres and 
scenes.

Bauer Radio's U2 exclusive
The Bauer Big City Network has secured exclusive live 
broadcast rights to one of 2009’s biggest music events: 
U2’s 360° Tour. On 20th August the network will devote 
over five hours of airtime to the band.

Central signs Preston deal
Central Radio is to broadcast full match commentary of 
all Preston North End home and away games next season.

Commentary deal for Bristol
BBC Bristol is to cover away games for Bristol City and 
Bristol Rovers on FM while the main schedule continues 
on AM.

Grimsby Town games go Digital
BBC Radio Humberside is to broadcast football commentary 
on Grimsby Town games next season, but some will be 
exclusive to DAB.

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31st July 2009

Waffler

Red Sands Radio had its last programme today.  Bob Le Roi organised a good RSL as usual, this time for me it seemed to miss it's nautical feel, possibly due the fact that I did not receive it on am (medium wave to us oldies!)  Gillham Gold seems to spoil the station format to my mind, as it is readily identifiable as a programme available on a BBC station.  

Radio Veronica is 50 year this August, details of special commemorative programmes appear in the news below.   I remember hearing Radio Veronica for the first time when tuning around for Radio Caroline on 199.  When we visited my grandparents at Holland on Sea, the signal from the station became very strong and almost FM in quality (it was on am of course)   I used to be allowed to have the radio on in the back of my Father's Car, Veronica used to have a Jim Reeves show on which went down well with my Parents.  They were quite tolerant actually, and I normally also managed a blast of Big L and Caroline.

Sad to learn that Chill is coming off many DAB networks, it is one of my wife's favourite stations, thankfully we will still get it in London.   They will be on the net so many will have to consider buying a wi fi radio.  There is of course still the problem with bandwidth when listening to radio via wi fi or off the computer, but thankfully Virgin Media are quite reasonable about this.

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News from other sources

Chill is to cease broadcasting on DAB in a number of 
areas from next week. The decision comes after Arqiva 
recently took ownership of a number of DAB multiplexes 
from Chill’s parent company, Global Radio.

The areas affected by the removal of the station from 
the multiplex are Bristol, Bournemouth, Cambridge, 
Cardiff, Exeter and Torbay, Kent, Norwich, Peterborough, 
Plymouth and Cornwall, Reading and Basingstoke, Southend 
and Chelmsford, Sussex Coast, Swindon and Severn 
Estuary.

Chill will continue to broadcast on DAB in London, parts 
of the West Midlands and Scotland and online as well as 
providing a series of new podcasts via their new 
community site at helpyouchill.com.

In a statement, a Chill spokesman said: “I am sorry that 
the DAB change couldn't be avoided. Our parent company 
and Arqiva have been great to us for years. They are 
facing the same credit crunch as the rest of us, and 
their business choices mean jobs and food for a lot of 
people. So please don't snow them under with letters!”

A Global Radio spokesperson added: "Chill will continue 
to broadcast on digital radio in London, Birmingham, 
Glasgow and Edinburgh and will also be available online. 
As a result of a recent review of our digital services 
we're pleased to expand our popular Galaxy brand to many 
other areas via digital radio."
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Following news that Chill is cease transmission on 
various local DAB multiplexes, Radio Today can reveal 
the vacent slots will be filled by Galaxy.

From next week, listeners in Bristol, Bournemouth, 
Cambridge, Cardiff, Exeter and Torbay, Kent, Norwich, 
Peterborough, Plymouth and Cornwall, Reading and 
Basingstoke, Southend and Chelmsford, Sussex Coast, 
Swindon and Severn Estuary will wake up to dance music 
instead of chilled out tunes.

Significantly, Galaxy returns to Bristol where the 
station started life in 1991 before being bought 
(several times) and eventually renamed Kiss 101 in 2006.

A Global Radio spokesperson told RadioToday.co.uk: "As a 
result of a recent review of our digital services we're 
pleased to expand our popular Galaxy brand to many other 
areas via digital radio."

Galaxy broadcasts to Birmingham, Manchester, the North 
East, Scotland, the South Coast and Yorkshire on FM, and 
nationally on various digital platforms.

XFM will also make an appearance on local multiplexes in 
the East of England.
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CN Radio Managing Director Julie Fair and Group 
Programme Director Don Douglas are to leave the company.

CN has also announced that Richard Collett, Station 
Director of Citybeat, Belfast will leave at the end of 
July. The present Commercial Director for Citybeat, 
Dorothy Nixon, will take overall control of the station 
after Collett’s departure.

Don Douglas said “We have enjoyed working with CN, and 
remain on very good terms with the company. This gives 
an opportunity to use our skills and experience to 
develop new ideas.”

CN recently sold its Midlands stations (Touch Radio and 
Rugby FM) to Quidem Ltd. Its remaining three stations, 
Citybeat, The Bay and Lakeland Radio will report 
directly to CN Group Chief Executive Robin Burgess.


Ofcom has made available extra FM frequencies in the 
capital for Community Radio stations, following the 
closure of several commercial stations.

In an official document published by Ofcom today, the 
radio regulator has replaced a previous invite for 
groups to apply for either FM or AM licences in London 
and other areas within the M25.

The extra four frequencies have been made available 
because of the closures of services in Lewisham (South 
107.3), Thamesmead (Time 106.8), High Wycombe and 
Amersham (both Mix 107).
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The re-publication of the invite suggests more than four 
new stations may be licensed, with a second station 
using the same clear frequency outside of the M25.

Ofcom has given TLRC permission to re-name Durham FM and 
Minster Northallerton to include the Alpha brand, whilst 
approving Format changes to network the three stations 
20 hours a day.

TLRC, which is now controlled by UKRD, has approval to 
change Durham FM to Alpha Durham, and Minster 
Northallerton to Alpha Northallerton.

All programmes on Alpha Radio and Alpha Durham will be 
shared, except for a local breakfast show and four hour 
show on Saturday and Sunday, each made locally.

Alpha Northallerton already originates 24 hours a day 
from Alpha Radio, but will retain a local show for four 
hours per day, albeit from Darlington. Each station will 
continue to broadcast locally relevant news and 
commercials, at least until the DAB upgrade, when the 
three services are intended to become one.

Previously, TLRC asked for Ofcom approval to move Durham 
FM further north to Sunderland to share to Sun FM, but a 
decision has been delayed by the regulator.

On approving the changes, Ofcom said: "This is not seen 
a major change to the stations’ output, and the request 
is granted"
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BBC Radio 5 Live has revealed a slew of new shows and 
presenters for the forthcoming season. Robbie Savage 
joins the 5 Live pundit team as Danny Baker takes over 
Saturday mornings.

Colin Murray hosts the new look 5 Live Sport on Friday 
14 August on eve of the new Premier League season with 
the Weekend Preview Show. Colin will also host 5 Live 
Sport on Sunday afternoons, as well Fighting Talk which 
returns on Saturday 5th September (11am-12pm).

Arlo White will present 5 live Sport from 7pm on Monday 
evenings, including The Monday Night Club, with regular 
guest John Motson, and Mark Clemmit’s Football League 
round-up; Mark Pougatch will host the show on Tuesday, 
Wednesday and Saturdays and Eleanor Oldroyd completes 
the line-up on Thursday.

Mike Ingham and Alan Green lead the 5 Live commentary 
team alongside John Murray and Ian Dennis with expert 
punditry from new signing Robbie Savage, Pat Nevin, 
Steve Claridge, Graham Taylor, and Chris Waddle. Plus 
Mark Lawrenson, Lee Dixon, David Pleat, Jimmy Armfield, 
Gary Speed and Ian Holloway.

5 Live’s flagship football phone-in 606 also returns for 
the new season with Alan Green on Saturday evenings and 
Spoony is joined by respected journalist Gabrielle 
Marcotti on Sunday’s show.

There’s also a new look to Saturday mornings this 
season, kicking off with £100 Million or Bust from 
Saturday 15 August, a three part panel show based on the 
football transfer window hosted by comedian Mark Watson.

Finally, from Saturday 5 September The Danny Baker Show 
will mull over the big (but mostly the little) issues 
that occupy supporters’ minds ahead of the weekend 
action.

Radio Veronica's 50 years celebrating progamming will be 
on the net and am in Holland - full programme details at 
http://norderney.nl/EE/index.php/site/norderney_v192_pro
grammering/

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GlobeCast and Eutelsat Communications have signed of a 
new contract at Eutelsat’s specialist video 
neighbourhood for central European digital TV markets at 
16 degrees East. 
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The bugle which sounded the original Charge of the Light 
Brigade in 1854 will be played at a special event in 
Lincolnshire next week to mark the 200th anniversary of 
the birth of Alfred, Lord Tennyson, in an event 
organised by BBC Radio Lincolnshire.

Members of the public along with drummers, musicians, 
and soldiers from the Light Dragoons – one of the 
regiments descended from the Light Brigade – will take 
part in a mass reading of Tennyson's famous poem The 
Charge Of The Light Brigade, at 6.30pm on Thursday 6 
August, by the Tennyson statue in the grounds of Lincoln 
Cathedral.

The event will be broadcast on BBC Radio Lincolnshire 
and is part of a week of events celebrating the 200th 
anniversary of the birth of Lord Tennyson, one of 
Lincolnshire's most famous sons. It will also be 
featured on BBC Look North and on the BBC Lincolnshire 
website. 

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BBC Radio 2 is set to broadcast a series of live shows 
from Blackpool to celebrate the switching on of the 
world famous Illuminations on Friday 4 and Saturday 5 
September 2009.

Watchdog launches consultation on plans to allow 
commercial radio stations in one area to be owned by one 
companyOfcom is proposing to liberalise local radio and 
cross-media ownership rules, in a move that will be 
welcomed by the industry.The communications regulator 
has launched a consultation on its plans to relax media 
regulation by allowing commercial local radio stations 
in one area to be owned by one company. Ofcom is also 
proposing to allow media companies more freedom to own 
combinations of TV, radio and newspaper assets in 
particular regions of the country.Ofcom has also 
launched a second consultation on allowing commercial 
radio companies to cut costs by sharing programming 
between local stations and co-locating them, in return 
for agreeing to make the services available to digital 
listeners.The regulator's consultations follow the 
publication last month of Lord Carter's Digital Britain 
report, which recommended that local media ownership 
rules be reviewed in light of the increasingly 
challenging commercial landscape.Ofcom's three-yearly 
review of media ownership rules recommends removing 
regulations governing commercial local radio to allow 
one company to own all the stations in one area.

Bulgaria’s Council for Electronic Media decided to slap 
Darik Radio with a hefty fine for airing a recorded 
Madonna invitation to her fans in Bulgaria,

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8th July 2009

Waffler

Great to hear Red Sands Radio back on air.  I missed todays transmission, which I could only have received on my wi fi radio or online.  87.7 will be a difficult catch here, but I will give it a try on and off, they are on until the end of the month.  Tonight at 9pm they are playing good back to back oldies with occasional ids and jingles. Top marks again to Bob Le Roi for mounting this excellent station.   I cut and pasted the winamp address on their website into my favourite streams on the receiva site, and now have it as a favourite on my wi fi set up.  At 20:55 today they are playing Gloria by Them - great classic!

Radio wise the short waves have been rather disappointing recently, not on the interference front, but on the lack of programmes heard when I tune in.  I do not look forward to the winter, but that traditionally is when things pick up.

Big L still continues on the internet, I wonder how much longer they will keep going.

News from other sources

Red Sands Radio

Red Sands Radio launched at Whitstable
Tuesday, July 07, 2009, 13:22

RED Sands Radio is now transmitting from Whitstable 
Harbour until the end of
the month.

Programmes start at 7am with the Hot Breakfast presented 
by station boss and
former pop pirate Bob Le-Roi.

This is the third year Red Sands Radio has broadcast 
across Whitstable and
Herne Bay. The previous two years were from the Second 
World War Red Sands
sea forts which were once home to pop pirate Screaming 
Lord Sutch.

This year winter damage on the forts has forced the 
station to transmit from
dry land at the Angling Club in Whitstable Harbour.

It has upgraded from medium wave and is on 87.7 FM.**

It is self-financing with advertising and sponsorship. 
Presenters are giving
their time free but the licence to broadcast until the 
end of July cost
�3.500.
To have a dedication played, write to PO Box 299, 
Whitstable, CT5 2YA, 07961
601 893 or email studio@....

Weekdays
7am Hot Breakfast with Bob Le-Roi
10am Flashback with Doug Wood
11am Live Lunch with James Day, Paul Dennis or John 
Kenning featuring guests
and live music
2pm Gold with Tony Gillham
4pm Home Run with Kevin Turner or Dan Bransby
7pm Close

Saturday
7am - 10am Saturday Brunch with Glyn Richards's
10am - 1 Chris West
1pm - KGB and James
4pm - Stephen Wright
7pm Close

Sunday
7am - Sixties Sunday with Glyn Richards
9am - Seventies Magic with Martin Smith
Noon - 80s Power Hits with Bill Rollins
2pm - Red Sands Country with Bob Preedy
4pm - Singer Nick Barnes
7pm Close

(www.thisiskent.co.uk)



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The BBC will be forced to cut millions of pounds from 
its programme budgets to plug an estimated £2 billion 
black hole in its pensions scheme.

The public broadcaster has warned its pension scheme 
members that in April last year the fund was £470 
million in the red. Industry experts said that the 
plunging stock markets around the world since then would 
have increased the deficit by a further £1.6 billion.

Jeremy Peat, the chairman of the trustees, admitted that 
the corporation had set aside “additional funds” from 
its £3.6 billion licence fee income to reduce the 
liability.

When the BBC announced that it had a £150 million 
deficit in 2007 it agreed to pay £23 million a year 
extra. Paying double to help to shore up the larger hole 
would be roughly equal to the entire budget of Radio 1 
or Radio 3, or 18 months worth of peak-time drama on BBC 
One.
Related Links

* Licence payers fund BBC chief's £8m pension

* BBC caught in expenses detail cover-up

The disclosure of the deficit follows the revelations 
about the pension pots accumulated by senior BBC 
executives.

Mark Byford, the deputy director general, and Alan 
Yentob, the arts presenter and creative director, have 
the two biggest pensions in the public sector. Mr Byford 
is due to receive at least £229,500 a year from a 
pension pot of £8 million and Mr Yentob £216,667 from a 
£6.3 million pot.

Pension payments cost the BBC £184 million in the year 
to April 2008, roughly equivalent to the £1.3 million 
licence fees paid by the population of Birmingham and 
Cardiff.

The corporation’s finances have been under closer 
scrutiny in the past few weeks after the release of the 
expenses paid out to its senior executives. After a 
series of freedom of information requests the BBC 
revealed that its top executives had spent at least 
£363,000 on expenses over the past five years ranging 
from a £1,277 trip on a private jet used by Mark 
Thompson, the Director-General, to a £99.99 bottle of 
champagne given to Bruce Forsyth on his 80th birthday.

Other public corporations, including the Royal Mail, 
which has a £7 billion deficit, have also been 
attempting to deal with shortfalls in their pension 
schemes brought on by the turbulence of the financial 
markets.

So serious is BBC’s shortfall that it is considering 
pledging some of its assets, including its White City 
headquarters in West London, as a guarantee for its 
pension fund.

John Whittingdale, the Conservative chairman of the 
Commons Culture Select Committee, said he would question 
Mr Thompson on the deficit next week, adding: “The BBC 
is not the only public sector organisation in this 
position, but I think the public will find it hard to 
accept cuts to programming budgets to pay for generous 
public sector pensions.”

The eight-page letter from Mr Peat to BBC pension scheme 
members does not calculate the deficit for April 2009, 
but does say that the value of the assets in the pension 
scheme plunged by £1.67 billion to £8.1 billion.

He revealed that the BBC “has agreed to meet increased 
contributions” for the scheme, which has 58,744 members.

Only 17,774 staff are currently paying into the fund, 
with more than 21,000 former workers already drawing a 
pension.

From April this year the BBC increased its contributions 
to the pension scheme by 0.75 per cent of an employee’s 
salary. From next April that will go up by a further 
0.75 per cent.

Mr Peat wrote that the deficit “will undoubtedly have 
deteroriated” by the time the shortfall as of April 1 
2009 is calculated, because the value of shares in the 
pension fund’s portfolio is considerably lower.

In a statement, the BBC said: “The BBC pension scheme, 
like many other schemes, has not been immune from the 
turbulence that has affected markets around the world. 
The scheme’s investment strategy has been reviewed 
during the year and the trustees are confident that 
their approach to funding remains the best option to 
ensure the scheme’s continued stability.

“The scheme has a positive cash flow and its investments 
are long term in nature so it does not need to sell 
equities at depressed prices to fund payment of 
pensions. The BBC’s covenant and support for the scheme 
remains strong. The BBC pension scheme has contingency 
plans in place to ensure it can respond to developments 
promptly and the trustees continue to monitor the 
position closely.”




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HIGH Wycombe based radio station Mix 107 is to close on 
July 1, it has been announced.

The Local Radio Company, which owns the station based in 
Duke Street, has decided to hand back the broadcasting 
licence to Ofcom, after the station made losses of more 
than £90,000 last year.

It had been intended to co-locate the station with Mix 
96, which broadcasts to the Aylesbury area.

It is understood most of the nine staff employed at the 
station will be redeployed around stations with new 
owner UKRD which took over The Local Radio Company 
earlier this year.

A statement from the Local Radio Company said: "The 
Local Radio Company Plc announces that it has been 
decided to close Mix 107 at High Wycombe and return the 
licence to broadcast to Ofcom. The station will cease 
broadcasting on 1st July.

"Mix 107 FM is the Radio Licensee serving High Wycombe 
and Amersham.

"It has an audience of 15,000 listeners listening for 
71,000 hours per week (Source: Rajar Q1 2009).

"In the eight months ended 31st May 2009 the station had 
a turnover of £284,839 and an operating loss of £92,762 
after central costs.

"At 31st May 2009 the station had net liabilities of 
£1,168,372." 

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17th June 2009

Waffler

Quite a gap in between entries and some quite substantial news to cover.

I hope that you have all been enjoying the sunny weather for the past few days, and let's hope it returns soon.

I was on the LBC site recently and downloaded a few of their free podcasts.  I recommend their weekly podcast of the best of LBC, it is a good listen. Steve Allen, that wonderful cheeky broadcaster has a keep fit download there as well.  Naturally the best way to listen to LBC is on your radio, or if out of the area on wi fi radio, or on the internet.  I would like to thank my ISP Virgin Media for providing me with a good connection to the web, which enables me to listen to internet radio etc with no worries about reasonable use.

Wi Fi and internet streaming wise I have noticed for a week or so that Radio Hauraki, and The Flea, two stations in New Zealand, were not streaming.  Happily this situation has changed with Hauraki on air but the Flea only putting on a announcement loop.  

BBC Radio 4 and 3 counties Radio continue to keep the Waffler entertained of late.  The short-wave bands have become rather boring of late, but I am persevering in case something interesting and new comes up.  I quite like Radio Farda, for the music programmes, I do realise however it is a US propaganda station, well something like that anyway.

I have lots of ideas for new things on the site and hope that one day I will make the time to produce these articles.  Thanks as ever for your support.

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News from other sources 

Radio to go digital by 2015

Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw has announced the government’s intention to upgrade all national stations from analogue to digital by 2015. The statement preceded the hotly anticipated Digital Britain report. 

The report also includes a recommendation that all new car radios sold in the UK by the end of 2013 should be digital, similar to legislation already introduced in France. Leading car manufacturers in the UK have expressed support for such a recommendation that sets out a timetable for the industry to move from analogue to digital. 

Vauxhall’s Group Product Manager, Stuart Harris, says: “The certainty of digital switchover provided by the Digital Britain report will enable us to develop our support for DAB still further and we believe we are in a good position to comply with the recommendations for the car industry contained within it.” 

Another key development for radio will see the development of what the Report calls ultra-local radio a new tier of radio which will occupy the FM spectrum vacated by the services migrating to DAB. Aiming to give the platform a key role in what the Rport calls, ‘radio’s continued contribution to the UK’s cultural life and local democratic debate’. Radio stations currently broadcasting on medium wave will upgrade to DAB.  

The switchover will be announced two years in advance and not until digital accounts for 50 percent of all radio listening, said the report. 

RadioCentre, the industry body for Commercial Radio welcomed the report’s findings. 

Andrew Harrison, chief executive for RadioCentre said: “For radio to flourish in the digital age we require a digital strategy and, on first inspection, we are encouraged that Digital Britain sets out a clear roadmap for our industry’s future. 

“We think that Digital Britain is right to identify a target date of 2015 to upgrade our sector to digital radio whilst also recognising the importance of meeting key criteria to trigger switchover and the need for intervention to drive the behaviour of manufacturers, the motor industry and other stakeholders. This will enable our members to plan and invest for their future; we now have a firm consensus that digital is the route forward for radio’s future.” 

Report author and communications minister Lord Carter is due to quit his post for a role with ITV during the summer recess. 

The report was a joint effort between the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, formerly the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.

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Levy will help to fund the rollout of superfast broadband across the country, says Lord CarterLandline owners will pay £6 a year to fund the rollout of superfast broadband across the country, communications minister Lord Carter said today as he launched the government's Digital Britain report.In his long-awaited blueprint for the future of the UK's communications infrastructure, Carter also said the surplus from the BBC's digital switchover help scheme would help to fund the £200m cost of providing universal access to broadband.The government wants everyone to be able to receive broadband of at least 2Mbps by 2012 as it puts more public services online.It is also anxious that remote or underserved parts of the country are not left behind when the "next generation" of superfast broadband is built."True superfast broadband will be concentrated in the first two-thirds of the market in the next decade, leaving the 'final third' served only with current generation broadband," today's report said. "This would be undesirable."The report proposed a charge of 50p a month on the UK's copper lines to help upgrade the country's fixed-line network, a project on which BT and Virgin Media have already embarked.This levy will raise between £150m and £175m a year to extend next-generation broadband to the "final third" of the country that will not be reached by the market.It will act as "seedcorn funding" – to attract commercial operators to roll out networks further – rather than attempts to cover the total costs of the project.Carter acknowledged that the levy would hit consumers in the pocket at a time when many households were feeling the pinch."How will the public react? We will find out," he said. "Our view as a government is that it's a good exercise of judgment."He said the decision should be seen in the context of a real-terms decline in telecoms prices over recent years.The move would require legislation, Carter said. "We are consulting on it, but it's a firm proposal," he added.The report gave more details about how the government aims to achieve its goal of providing universal access to a minimum 2Mb broadband connection, the so-called Universal Service Commitment.Part of it will come from money left over from the BBC's fund to help people switch to digital television by 2012, with contributions from private partners and public sector bodies also among the other sources of funding.An estimated 2.75m homes, around 11% of the UK's households, are unable to receive a connection of at least this speed at the moment.The report said that 1.5m households with little or no broadband connection might be able to get access to next-generation broadband as a result of the commitment.Carter said the 2Mb speed was like a "technological minimum wage". "We are not specifying a ceiling, we are specifying a floor," he added.The commitment is expected to be achieved through a combination of upgrades to BT's fixed-line network, mobile broadband and satellite broadband. 

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Jazz FM has appointed producer and presenter Rosie Kendrick as deputy programme controller.

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Consultation will start on the BBC sharing a "small element" of the television licence fee after 2013 to help ensure other broadcasters can provide a robust alternative to the national broadcaster. 

The long-awaited Digital Britain report on the future of the internet and TV, the Government called for "high quality, plural provision, particularly in the regions and nations" and this could cost the BBC £130 million a year. 

ITV has long been claiming it can no longer afford this part of its programming which is necessary under its public service remit. 

Outlining the report in the Commons, Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw also announced the cost of maintaining a landline will be going up as a "small levy" is introduced to help pay for "maximum next generation broadband coverage". 

The interim Digital Britain report released in January outlined plans for every home in the UK to be guaranteed access to broadband internet by 2012 but there was confusion over how improvements to the broadband network would be paid for. 

Ahead of the report's publication, Gordon Brown branded the internet as necessary as electricity, gas and water to Britons. 

Mr Bradshaw also said that the Government would implement a new more robust system of content classification for the video games industry. 

And he said that the Government would legislate to curb unlawful "peer-to-peer file-sharing" of digital content. 

According to a report of Digital Spy, new community station Zeta 105.3

(Forest Heath Public Radio Ltd) begins test transmissions on 16 June and

will broadcast a continuous loop of previews until noon on 22 June when

regular programming starts. This station is based in Mildenhall, Suffolk.

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A test radio station - which began broadcasting last month - is claiming itself to be a success, in the hope of winning the right to operate on a permanent basis.

The Coast 107 began its test transmissions in the Edinburgh area - on the frequency vacated by the now defunct all-speech station

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A Scotland-wide broadcasting of pooled programmes is expected to begin today across the AM frequency of some of the country’s best-known radio stations.

Stations such as Clyde 2 and Northsound 2 are all owned by the Bauer Media Group and it is believed that, from today, they will be...

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15 June 2009 12:53

Digital station signs short-term with DAB operator Digital OneChildren's digital radio station Fun Kids will be available nationwide for three months over the summer after it signed a short-term deal with national digital audio broadcasting (DAB) operator Digital One.Fun Kids, which is owned by Folder Media and won digital station of the year at this year's Sony Radio Academy Awards, becomes the national platform's fourth digital-only service, alongside Amazing Radio, which launched at the beginning of this month, and armed forces station, BFBS Radio and fellow Sony award winner Planet Rock.Fun Kids, which features the likes of Thomas and Friends, Angelina Ballerina and Barney the Dinosaur, already broadcasts on digital TV, online, and on DAB in London. The station will broadcast on Digital One from 27 June to 3 October.Gregory Watson, the Fun Kids managing director, said: "We recognise that in 2009 more families than ever will be taking their holidays within the UK."Fun Kids has already established a loyal following among children under 10 and their mums and dads, playing child-friendly pop hits, music from films and shows and well known classic kids' tunes."• To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000.• If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".RadioDigital radioguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions

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15 June 2009

Ofcom today launched a review of its Broadcasting Code ("the Code") which sets rules for TV and radio stations.

The current Code, which has been in force since July 2005, is the rulebook that radio and TV broadcasters must comply with. It sets out what is acceptable to broadcast and covers such areas as the protection of children, harm and offence, fairness and privacy and commercial references in programmes.

The main areas under review are:

    * A range of proposed new rules for commercial radio. These aim to create greater commercial opportunities for radio stations. They could help create a wider range of programming while safeguarding consumer protection and editorial independence.

    * Proposals to clarify other parts of the Code to help broadcasters avoid compliance failures in the future, particularly in relation to audience competitions and voting, and the broadcast of sexual material.

In addition:

* The consultation also asks whether not-for-profit organisations should be permitted to fund programmes about their own activities or interests. These programmes, called 'Public Information Programming', would cover subjects in the public interest but could not deal with controversial matters. Currently such programming is not permitted.

 * The revised Code will also include mandatory changes as a result of new European legislation (the Audio Visual Media Services Directive).

The review of the Code has taken into account recent compliance failings, discussions with stakeholders and audience research. Ofcom will be undertaking further research on public attitudes on the use of language.

RADIO

Our proposals are aimed at liberalising some of the rules on commercial references in programming while continuing to provide consumer protection and editorial independence. This could provide new opportunities for commercial radio to gain additional revenue.

The proposals are underpinned by audience research into listeners' attitudes towards commercial references on radio. This shows that listeners would welcome relevant promotions so long as editorial independence and transparency are maintained.

Promotions might be in the following categories:

* Content-related promotions: radio stations would be permitted to broadcast brief promotions for products or services directly associated with the programme content (e.g. the offer of a music download of a song just after it has been played).

* Venue-sponsored outside broadcasts: stations would be allowed to broadcast outside broadcasts that have been sponsored by the venue or venue owner.

* Sponsored listener competition features: listener competitions could include specific references to the sponsor.

None of these forms of programming are currently allowed.

COMPETITIONS AND VOTING

Ofcom has carried out a number of detailed investigations into programmes using competitions and voting. The current Code includes rules to ensure that consumers are protected and the audience is not misled. Where broadcasters have failed to comply with these rules, Ofcom has imposed significant penalties.

While the current rules cover these areas, we consider it would be helpful to further clarify these rules and to incorporate some of Ofcom's guidance in this area within the Code.

There is no change to the current regulatory practice, only a clarification of the rules to benefit broadcasters and audiences.

SEXUAL MATERIAL

There have been a number of compliance failures concerning the broadcast of sexual material on TV. To help stamp out such failures, Ofcom suggests clarifying the rules about sexual material and incorporating some of Ofcom's guidance in this area within the Code.

Again, there is no change to the current regulatory practice, only a clarification of the rules to benefit broadcasters and audiences.

PUBLIC INFORMATION PROGRAMMING

From time to time not-for-profit organisations wish to fund programmes about their own activities or interests. This is currently prohibited under the Code. The consultation asks whether this prohibition should remain and suggests some possible rules that would ensure audience protection and editorial independence.

These strict safeguards would include:

 * requiring that the programmes are in the public interest;

* prohibiting funders banned from TV or radio advertising from funding such programmes (e.g. political parties);

 * requiring that the programmes do not cover controversial matters; and

 * ensuring that such funding arrangements are made transparent to the audience.

AUDIO VISUAL MEDIA SERVICES DIRECTIVE

The revised Code will also bring into force mandatory changes in European legislation. As a result of the new AVMS Directive, the Government decided it will continue to ban product placement on TV and is currently determining the rules relating to product placement. As these rules will be set out in legislation, Ofcom has no discretion to draft its own rules in these areas. The requirements will therefore be replicated in the revised Code.

AUDIENCE RESEARCH ON RADIO SPONSORSHIP, SEXUAL MATERIAL AND LANGUAGE

To inform our proposals on commercial references in radio programming, we commissioned audience research on listeners' attitudes in this area. This is also published today.

We also commissioned research into audiences' views on sexual content on TV to update our understanding of generally accepted standards in relation to a range of sexual material. This will inform our approach to the application of the rules relating to sexual material and is also published today.

Ofcom has in place a number of rules relating to offensive language and the watershed. Our rules are applied on the basis of Ofcom's understanding of the attitudes of viewers and listeners, and this is underpinned by audience research. We will conduct further research, and look at all available research, to establish public attitudes towards language, which will inform our application of the Code.

We are not proposing revisions to these rules as part of this review. Broadcasters are required to comply with them, and Ofcom has taken and will continue to take firm action against breaches.

The consultation closes on 4 September 2009.

The full consultation and research documents are available here: http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/bcode09/

ENDS

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Radio Today

5 June 2009

Bournemouth radio station Fire 107.6 has been sold by The Local Radio

Company to Westward Broadcasting as the station announces plans to expand

onto DAB.

The sale, for an initial pound, will be followed up by a deferred

consideration of TLRC's sale of 80 percent stake in the station. This will

be based on sales in the year ending 30th September 2009 with a minimum

deferred payment due of £40,000.

The buyer, Westward Broadcasting Limited, is a wholly owned subsidiary of

Triple Media Communications Group. It is the first purchase by the company

into the analogue radio market.

Gareth Cottier-Jansen, CEO of Triple Media, said: "Fire is a great station

and one we jumped at the chance of buying. Fire has been a part of the

soundtrack to life on the coast since it was launched.

"Triple Media has a strategy of operating unique brands with growth

potential. Fire Radio fits this strategy really well.

"Our plan for Fire will build on the success the station has already

enjoyed, adding new branding, the fresher music policy listeners have been

asking for and all the information that is essential to life in Bournemouth

and Poole."

"We really rate the existing team at Fire Radio. It will be fantastic to

give these talented individuals access to the creative investment and skills

required to take the station to an even higher level."

In another update this morning, UKRD has announced they now own 63.24 per

cent of shares in "Local Radio" (TLRC) and urges shareholders who have not

yet accepted their second revised offer, to do so.

Fire 107.6 originally launched in 1999 by founding Directors James Bromley

and David Harber as FM 107.6 The NRG, but changed name a year later

following a dispute with French radio station NRJ. It was sold in 2001 to

Radio Investments Limited, which later became known as TLRC.

The question of whether the station had been sold or not was announced

yesterday via Twitter.

http://www.mediauk.com:80/radio/news/go/72646 

Source Mike Barraclough BDXC

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Radio Seagull/Waddenzee will be broadcasting offshore again May 20 to June 6 on

1602 from the MV Jenni Baynton.

There's a report and photos just posted on offshoreradio.de about a visit Theo

Bakker made when the ship was in dry dock last week:

http://www.offshoreradio.de/images4/drydock/index.htm

Station websites:

http://www.radioseagull.com

http://www.radiowaddenzee.nl

The transmitter on board the lightship LV Jenni Baynton will be used from Friday

22nd May to 1900 CET (1700 UTC) on 5th June when Radio Waddenzee will close down

the offshore broadcast (the last Radio Seagull (English) programme from the ship

will therefore be on 4th June). So transmissions on 20th & 21st May will still

be from the land-based transmitter near Harlingen (which will be switched off

when the transmitter on the ship is used) (Radio Seagull website 17 May and

'Nico' on radioseagull yahoo group)

Radio Head: Up and Down the Dial of British Radio by John Osbourne

Radio Head by John Osbourne will be Radio 4's Book of The Week Monday 25 May to

Friday 29 May.

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Book of the Week is broadcast at 9.45 a.m. on Radio 4 FM, repeated at 12.30 a.m

on all Radio 4 outlets.

> This paperback, published last week, sounds interesting, John listens to a

different station each day, all day for 30 days, Simon and Schuster's publicity

says that:

>

> John Osborne has long been a fan of radio - from late night sessions of John

Peel to Test Match Special at dawn, he has always enjoyed tuning in to the

riches of our best broadcasts. When his dull temporary job became drearier than

ever, John decided to remain attached to his headphones all day to listen to

some of Britain's more unknown stations as well as revisiting the mainstream to

fully experience the breadth of our radio output.

>

> The result is a funny, disarming ride through aspects of Britain that are

uplifting, informative and sometimes plain bizarre. Throughout his month of

intensive radio listening, John flits through talk radio, sports shows, dips

into the mainstream and the minority, exalts in specialist music shows, comedy

and local radio before expanding his mind with an experimental arts channel. It

seems there is something for everyone at the turn of a dial, whether that is the

ranting of the permanently enraged, the gentle tinkle of a string quartet, West

Indian stomp or the sound of frozen peas being thrown around Elephant and Castle

underground station. John also gets under the skin of the radio business by

interviewing presenters such as Mark Radcliffe and Nicholas Parsons as well as

industry insiders.

>

> John's daily life is directly affected by his radio habit as he finds himself

organising a poker night during exposure to The Jazz, and Zane Lowe's energy on

Radio One goads him into cooking his stir fry at the same speed as Morecambe and

Wise prepared their breakfast. Finally, John decides to turn his life around and

radio becomes his saviour.

>

> I found two reviews, a short one in the Guardian and a longer one in the

Scotsman, which is also a feature on radio's appeal generally.

>

> It's a 304 page paperback, cheapest price I've found on a quick online search

is £5.49 including delivery from Amazon:

>

> Guardian review:

> http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/apr/16/british-radio

>

> Scotsman review:

> http://living.scotsman.com/books/Book-review-Radio-Head-by.5250230.jp

>

> John also has a blog with clips of his favourite radio moments, I can

particularly recommend the John Peel clip:

> http://johnosbornepoet.blogspot.com/2009/02/radio-head.html

>

> Having viewed that I checked YouTube's related clips and came across an

excellent 10 minute montage of Kenny Everett material, not all of which I

remember hearing before:

> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBbez-h7pQ0

Radio Caroline

30th May 2009

Waffler

At long last the bird song on dab has to cease, surely it is time that we had some new innovative stations on dab nationally and in London?   Interesting that Switch are even asking for applications for stations which are part time.   This may give some specialist music or speech stations to get on air. If only the rates for licences was not so expensive then this may happen.

News from other sources

BBC Radio 4's Today should have explained that 
interviewee on Tibet spoke from pro-Chinese government 
position, trust rulesThe BBC should have informed 
listeners that an academic interviewed about Tibet on 
Radio 4's Today programme was speaking from a 
pro-Chinese government viewpoint, the BBC Trust has 
ruled.In its latest roundup of rulings, the BBC Trust's 
editorial standards committee partly upheld a complaint 
about a Today Show item on demonstrations in Tibet aired 
in March 2008.

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The DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) session was very well 
received by the commercial FM broadcasters in the annual 
India Radio Forum held in Mumbai on Wednesday. The 
event’s special session titled ‘Digital Broadcast – 
Changing the World of Radio’ was attended by delegates 
from most of the biggest Indian FM broadcast companies.

Arrow Classic Rock and Arrow Jazz FM are to be 
relaunched, but only on cable and Internet. Ad 
Ossendrijver, the boss of the bankrupt companies 
Crosspoints BV and Rokit BV, has bought the rights to 
the names of the two stations through his new company 
Mediad BV. Arrow’s third station, Caz!, will continue on 
Internet only

Switchdigital is looking for broadcasters to provide 
extra content on the London 2 DAB multiplex.

BBC Local Radio for the East region is celebrating the 
life and work of King of Swing Benny Goodman on Saturday 
30 May between 11.00pm and 1

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May 29, 2009 - Media regulator Ofcom has fined Lakeland Radio £15,000 for unfair conduct of competitions. The penalty was levied after the station ran three listener competitions called Suss the Celeb.

Lakeland broadcast three ‘guess the celebrity voice’ competitions, inviting listener entries by telephone or text. Over approximately 85 daily rounds the station utilised a policy of deliberately selecting entrants to go to air with the wrong answers, thus unfairly extending the competition.

In its ruling, Ofcom found that the Licensee had failed to put in place sufficient compliance procedures and checks, and that there had been a lack of appropriate compliance training for its staff.

May 28, 2009 - Southampton station Radio Hampshire closed at 2pm today (Thursday). The station, previously known as The Saint, was owned by Southampton Leisure Holdings but was sold following relegation.

Staff at the station were told - according to the Southern Daily Herald - that the company had been shut down and would cease broadcasting immediately.

A message posted on the station's website said: "Without any prior warning to our listeners and to our advertisers Radio Hampshire was forced to switch off on 107.2 & 107.8. Sadly none of the presenters were able to say good bye and thank you to everyone for listening."

It continued: "The station is now been handed over to the administrators". The site has now been closed and re-directs to a holding page.

Though the station still appeared to be broadcasting this afternoon, Radio Today’s calls to the studio were left unanswered. Radio Hampshire bought up Winchester's Dream 107.2 in November 2008 as part of a joint venture between local radio groups Town and Country Broadcasting and Tindle Radio.

It’s the second station to close today following the news that Focal Radio ceased by at lunchtime.
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May 28, 2009 - After being on air less than a year, Focal Radio went off air at 1pm today. The closure of the Stoke-on-Trent based DAB radio station comes despite what it called "overwhelming" support from the local community.

Focal had been given until the beginning of June to find new investment after millionaire backer Mo Chaudry pulled funding from the station. However, the station ran out of time and has had no alternative but to stop broadcasting.

"It's a sad time for all the team", said Station Manager Verity Hilton. "They have all been working really hard to gain more investment, but time has not been on our side".

Focal Radio first went on air on November 5th and was partly the brainchild of Potteries broadcasting veteran Sam Plank. "We have been overwhelmed by the support our listeners and the business community of the area have given us", said Sam.

“We were pledged over 3/4 of our target to take the radio station forward but couldn't achieve the other £20,000”, he added. “None of us can cash any of those pledges without knowing there is a future.

“I would like to thank everyone for their support over the years - especially our listeners - if it wasn't for them we wouldn't have contemplated the future!"

Focal Radio went off air when Plank finished his programme at 1pm today.

It originally went on air in November 2008, but closed down after four months on-air after the original backers pulled out citing difficulties in gaining advertising. It reopened with Mr Chaudry's backing at the beginning of March, but again struggled to bring in advertisers.

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Glyn Jones, Acting Chief Executive of Digital One, has 
expressed regret at the planned closure of the company’s 
world-famous Birdsong Channel on Sunday night. “When the 
channel went on air, back in January 2008, we warned 
that the transmission could cease at any time. There’s 
never going to be a good time to pull the plug on what 
some regard as a national treasure, but we’re hoping 
that at this time of year many people will find an 
alternative simply by opening a window or taking a walk 
in the park or countryside.”

The audio was originally recorded for the test 
transmission of Classic FM prior to its launch in 1992. 
It was later used for the imaginatively named station 
“D1_temp” and won plaudits from listeners who complained 
when it was taken off air in June 2005. Birdsong 
returned to the airwaves in early 2008 and was upgraded 
in April of the same year to become available in stereo 
and for 24 hours a day.

Listeners who are not able to access performances by 
live birds can click here to listen to the Birdsong, 
which will continue online at least until the autumn of 
2009.

“Birdsong has been more popular with journalists than 
real listeners”, Glyn Jones added. Stories about the 
station have appeared in most of the UK’s national 
newspapers but also on television, radio and in papers 
around the world. “Many journalists have suggested that 
as many as half a million people listen to Birdsong each 
week. But sadly, there’s no evidence for that as the 
channel’s audience has never been measured. But it’s 
been a lovely story on slow news days and loads of fun.”

More information about the Birdsong Channel is available 
at the Radio Birdsong website.

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May 27, 2009 - Former Radio 1 breakfast host Zoe Ball is one of three new regular presenters on BBC Radio 2. She will take over Saturday breakfast from June 6th.

Richard Allinson and Emma Forbes are also starting new weekend shows on the network.

Richard will present a new overnight show on weekend mornings, whilst Emma will takeover Sunday morning early breakfast.

Zoe, Richard and Emma join Radio 2's recently refreshed weekend schedule, which includes Paul O'Grady's new Sunday afternoon show, and the indispensable guide to everyone's Saturday night, Going Out With Alan Carr, where Alan is joined each week by Emma.

Bob Shennan, Controller, Radio 2, says: "Zoe, Richard and Emma are fantastic additions to the Radio 2 weekend schedule.

"They are warm, entertaining presenters who have many years of broadcasting experience between them, and I look forward to their shows becoming essential listening for all early risers."

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9th May 2009

Waffler

Thanks to site visitor Nigel Dixon for giving me some excellent offshore reminiscences.  I will soon be incorporating this into my offshore chunk section of the site.    I am always grateful for input from others, if you have an idea of something new I can put on site, or even a page you would like me to put up, please get in touch with me at wirewaffle@hotmail.com

Some varied reviews on the internet and in my club magazine about the Boat that Rocked film.  I have yet to see it but when I do I will then pass my comments.  If you have any perhaps you can email them into the site.

I managed to listen to some of the Pirate BBC Essex, but over the next year I will be listening back to downloads from the wonderful azanorak site, thanks to all for providing this excellent back up service. I hope that this site will be archived eventually so that it can live on for future generations.  Maybe the Internet Radio Archive in America could host the collection?  At the end of the day of course it is the decision of Ray the site owner.

It is good to have BFBS back on DAB nationally, some of the shows are very good. Unfortunately it would have be better to have BFBS 2 on instead, but I understand that they are cutting back on this network.

NME radio is launching on DAB soon, it is pity that Mojo closed down, that was one of my favourite back to back music stations.

On wi fi radio I have been listening into Radio Veralum, Chum 1150, Radio Nonsense, Radio Northsea International, Radio Hauraki, Wight Fm and many more stations.

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News from other sources

May 09, 2009 - Radio 1 breakfast presenter Chris Moyles has claimed on television that he is about to re-sign a new contract with the BBC in a few weeks time.

Chatting with Phillip Schofield on ITV1's This Morning programme yesterday, he said: "No, I’m not being sacked. As you know, my contract is coming up for renewal so we’re about to enter into some very uncomfortable contract negotiations.

"So I’m trying not to go, I’m staying whatever happens."

Chris went on to say:" The bottom line is I’m going to re-sign [a new contract] in a few weeks."

The Times reports he will take a 25 per cent drop in salary to around £500,000 as the corporation seeks to use the recession to trim the salaries of its top stars. A new four year deal has been suggested in the newspaper.

After his charity climb of Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief, his latest RAJAR results showed an increase in listeners to 7.7 million each week, just 80,000 behind Terry Wogan on Radio 2.

Chris is up for another Sony on Monday evening, with him and his team hoping to hang on to the Best Breakfast Show Award from 2008. Full coverage and photos live from London here on RadioToday.co.uk and radioawards.org

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May 07, 2009 - Radio listening has reached an all time high, with 45.8 million adults tuning in each week, according to the latest RAJAR figures out today.

The BBC still has the biggest share of listening at 56.3 per cent, but commercial radio has seen a year on year increase compared to the BBC's drop.

Andrew Harrison, chief executive of RadioCentre, the industry body for Commercial Radio said: “It is very encouraging to see that Commercial Radio continues to attract more and more listeners and local Commercial Radio in particular, has had another healthy quarter.

"Commercial Radio is increasingly being listened to via DAB and other digital platforms; with the Government's Digital Britain report due for publication shortly, which we hope will include a date for switchover, we look forward to that growth accelerating.”

May 07, 2009 - A number of local radio stations have recorded a large increase in listening hours in the latest RAJAR results.

The station with the biggest increase in average hours per listener is Gold Crawley on 18.6, up from just 3.2 last quarter, followed by The Bee's regular large record of 17.20. Both are higher than all of the BBC's average hours combined.
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Time FM 106.8, a station which closed down in March, also achieved 13.3, up from 8.1 last quarter.

In the northwest, Steve Penk's Revolution is also up with hours almost doubling from 4.8 to 8.1 per cent. Former TLRC station Dune FM is also up from 4.9 to 7.9 per cent.

"At a time when it seems everyone’s saying it’s ‘Game Over’ for local radio these are simply stunning results” says Station Manager John Evington. “Not only are more people tuning-in but they’re listening for almost double the amount of time than previously which kind of suggests they’re liking what they’re hearing."

"It's absolute vindication of our decision to go ‘back to basics’ with broad-based locally-focused radio that actually gives a damn about the area it serves”.

BBC Radio Lincolnshire, Island FM and Gold Gloucester are also enjoying average hours of 14 per cent or higher.

Pennine FM, which is currently broadcasting non-stop music after ending live programmes two weeks ago, recorded a rise from 5.6 ro 6.2 per cent. Valleys Radio, which closed last week, is up in listener numbers and hours.
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The BBC has announced Peter Horrocks as the new director of the World Service, taking over from Nigel Chapman

Staff at KMFM - the Kent Messenger Group's network of seven local radio stations - have been warned of plans to cut more jobs in what is being described as "phase-two" of a group-wide restructuring programme...

NME Radio will launch on digital audio broadcasting radio – DAB – for the first time within the next six weeks.

The spin-off from the indie music magazine will be available to DAB listeners in London on one of the three multiplexes serving the capital.

NME Radio, which is run by Xfm founder Sammy Jacob, has so far only been available on digital TV and online.

The station has also run a series of restricted service licences on analogue frequencies and is currently available on 87.7FM in Manchester until the end of this month.

NME Radio had an average weekly reach of 152,000 in the final three months of last year, down 29% on the previous quarter.

The next official listening figures, for the first three months of this year, will be published on Thursday.

NME Radio, which is operated under licence by multimedia music company DX Media, launched in May last year.

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22nd April 2009

Waffler

My apologies for not updating sooner, I have not been on holiday but obviously this site has not had my full attention.  I hope when this fails to materialise, or indeed daily you will visit the diversions link above, which gives you feeds from a variety of BBC media and other news.  I have also changed the size of the font on the diary - hope it makes easier reading for you.

Pirate BBC Essex was a superb Easter Diversion, one I enjoyed with the usual degree of relish. It was superb to have the opportunity to hear Emperor Rosko live on the station.  He probably does all of his other many shows on Gold stations etc, live by satellite.  I was amazed looking at the pictures on the Offshore Radio Website and the BBC website, how old and grey some of my offshore favourites now are.  Come to think of it I am now on the way to a full grey myself. In 1999 when I started off this site, before the other technical Wireless Waffle site emerged, I used to refer to myself as the Old Wireless Waffle, I now begin to resemble that description! 

Radio Veralum which I have picked up on the internet also is a good music station.  I speak mainly only with experience of the John BS drive time show, and the jazz presenter with the gravelly voice who comes first.  There is a link in our internet log section.

Steve Allen does a great show on Sundays on LBC.  He mentioned that when Nick Ferrari was in the studio all the heating was turned off.  He likened Nick to a penguin. He also once referred to Fearne Cotton as a bimbo, come to think of it if you are in the news you are a fair target for this broadcaster's comments.

Bob Dylan's Theme Time hours are good.  Initially it seemed that we were not going to get them in this country.  BBC Radio 2 have come up trumps.  I am listening to the programme dedicated to Night as I type this update.

WAFN is a good oldies station, from Huntsville USA. I have been listening in to their morning programme at lunch time here on wi fi radio.  Michael St John and Susan do the morning programme, which also has a variety of news and talk in it, also a horoscope.  The main news at the top of the hour comes from CNN, then follows their local news read at lightning speed, which seems a bit irreverent when mentioning deaths and other tragedies.  Overall though I have been looking for a station which has a fast delivery and this is much better than some.  Bobby Knight does a show which we receive here at around 10pm UK time.   There is a link to the station in our internet log section.

Hayes FM is my local radio station, well it comes from my borough.  Unfortunately due to other stations adjacent to 91.8 it gets a lot of splatter. This morning it came through quite well, with a few cut outs when a bus went past the house.  The lady who presents the morning show is very good, as is Gordon Baxter who does the late morning show. Gordon interviews a lady from the local Gazette on the Wednesday show. Today he played the hit parade for 1969 which was good, loved the "Goodbye" by Mary Hopkin.

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News from other sources

Apr 21, 2009 - Community station Radio Scilly is starting a request show with a difference.

Starting this Sunday at 1pm is "Request Stop". Island bus driver turned radio presenter Steve Simms will be recording dedications with passengers for the hour long show on the Island's only bus route.

Steve's show follows on from the success of the "Charity Shop Chart Show". Each Sunday at 4, retired vet Malcolm Martland presents a countdown of the best 9 tracks he has been discovered from his CD purchases at the St Mary's Charity "Shop", effectively a weekly jumble sale that opens between 10 and 12 on Saturdays at the Church Hall.

Managing Director Keri Jones said they would consider syndication, if the price was right: "If I hear that Bauer or Global have ripped off these ground breaking format shows I shall be very grumpy. We've invested considerably in development for these destination programmes. In fact the "Request Shop" concept cost me a round of Doom Bar while we bounced around ideas.

"I'm particularly pleased that we have brought back the 70's practice of programme names, too. I'm thinking about re-branding the afternoon show "Afternoon Delight". I'm sure we could find a track we could use to make short stings from."
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Apr 21, 2009 - XFM’s London breakfast show presenter Alex Zane has finally hung up his XFM headphones, amid unsubstantiated rumours that the presenter had been let go by the station.

An XFM spokesman said: “Alex Zane is a busy man right now and by mutual agreement he is moving on to do other things. We wish him every success for the future."

A spokesperson for Zane responded: "Alex has done all he can at the station and given the number of projects going on he just can't commit to host the show for another year."

After dabbling in stand-up comedy, Zane came to prominence on MTV and his weekly show on XFM. He was suspended from the latter in August last year after airing a song he and his team had written that was deemed offensive by XFM management. The team returned a week later with Zane accusing the network of a massive over reaction.

The presenter has also fronted Channel 4's now defunct Popworld and appeared in the network's Balls Of Steel and the hoax reality TV show, Space Cadets. More recently he's been seen reporting on the new band series, Orange Unsigned Act.

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Apr 16, 2009 - John Myers' report on local radio as part of the Digital Britain review has been published today. In his report, the former-chief executive of GMG Radio has recommended an entirely new philosophy to local radio’s approach.

Utilising both the carrot and the stick, Myers has recommended that stringent music policies and local programming be dropped once his newly titled Local Impact Test - which must provide evidence of local consumers' satisfaction with the content provided by their local radio station - had been completed satisfactorily.

The report also stated also that if regulations don’t move with the times then they could be the death of a slew of small stations. Going so far as to warn that with the current financial climate and a dearth of radio advertising, there was a real possibility that up to 50 local stations could disappear from the landscape within the next two years. Consequently, he recommended the idea that some smaller stations be allowed to share one licence.

He also called for radical proposals concerning stations serving a population of fewer than 700,000 people – around 200 in the UK. Most importantly perhaps, stating that it didn’t matter where the service might be situated. Meaning that a regional station might be allowed to be based anywhere in the UK, which could dramatically alter the working set-up for commercial networks like Real, Smooth or the regional Galaxy stations.

However, Myers said regulation should be strengthened in one area, with local stations of all sizes required to broadcast "at least 12 local news bulletins a day ... accompanied by clarification of the rules concerning the definition of 'local news'".

Myers also said that the BBC should take the "lead role" in paying for the rollout of the DAB transmitter network. "It will be the BBC that has to dig deeper to fund our pathway to creating Digital Britain," he said.

He said the industry, regulator and government should take a "more ambitious approach towards digital migration", including taking national and regional stations into the digital only world "as early as possible".

Myers was commissioned in February to write the independent review of local radio recommended in communications minister Lord Carter's interim Digital Britain report.

Responding to the report, RadioCentre CEO, Andrew Harrison said: "Commercial Radio has committed to a very bright future in the digital age. This operational commitment must be supported by a new-look regulatory framework that is in step with the realities of running modern media businesses. The replacement of outdated analogue regulation is a critical part of that reform.

"The proposals set out in the Myers review bring some really visionary thinking, from an experienced radio practitioner, about how to operate and regulate great local services for listeners in the digital age. It is crucial that government and Ofcom now put the report’s full proposals quickly into place."

He added: "The idea of a Local Impact Test is exciting and right for the digital age. Research with local listeners will confirm how well local stations are serving local communities, rather than judgements from London based civil servants. As a sector, we work daily with local listener research and fund a world class audience survey run by Rajar; we are extremely enthusiastic about working with Ofcom to help devise how the Local Impact Test will be introduced.

"Commercial Radio is justifiably proud of the impact it makes on its local communities and it seems only right that our listeners should have the final say on how we are doing".

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NME Radio is celebrating Adidas’ 60th anniversary of the brand’s Originals with its own House Party campaign.

Jon Gaunt, on the newly launched SunTalk, sounded giddy with the freedoms of online broadcasting.

Liz and Cameron, Radio Aire's afternoon drive presenters have been replaced by Monkey Boy from the Breakfast ShowRose Aston, currently Assistant 

Editor, BBC Shropshire, has been appointed as Managing Editor at BBC Wiltshire.

BBC World Service and BBC College of Journalism have launched a language guide to assist journalists. Users of the multimedia website bbcukrainian.

Famed for its amusing headlines and page three models, the Sun has become the first newspaper to launch its own radio programme.

Americana a new weekly programme presented from the worlds most powerful country by Matt Frei launches on BBC Radio 4 this spring.

Friday's guilty verdict in the Pirate Bay trial certainly gave For One Night Illegally: The History of Bootleg (Radio 4, Saturday) added piquancy.

Rick Dees, who's been based out of Los Angeles since 1979, was recently removed from his local radio home due to a format change

Thai authorities are going after pro-Thaksin broadcast stations. Police raided three radio stations and a TV station, seizing equipment and arresting personne

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25th March 2009

Waffler

Great news about changes on BBC Radio London, but surely local radio should give opportunities to new broadcasters or no name presenters?  BBC 3 Counties has a very good team who are not all necessarily stars.

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News from other sources

March 23rd, 2009 - 13:42 UTC by Andy Sennitt

RadioNova.ie is now on the web. It’s a tribute site to Radio Nova, the station owned by the late Chris Cary. There are profiles of many of the presenters who worked on the station. The documentary produced for the 25th anniversary of the Radio Nova “closedown”, Bring Back Radio Nova, is now available on YouTube (click on the video below to view). In the coming months www.radionova.ie will be expanded to include a full video player/streaming facility for this documentary.


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KCBS, serving San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose, is celebrating its 100th birthday. The world’s first 
broadcasting station has created a special section on its website to mark the centenary, featuring a history of the 
station, audio archives and a photo section. More airchecks and audio clips are always being added to the archives 
as the station continues to celebrate its centennial throughout 2009.


Mar 25, 2009 - David Jason, best know for his roles as Del Boy and Inspector Frost, has found himself embroiled in 
a race row after a comment he made on the Christian O'Connell Breakfast Show on Absolute Radio.

On the 'Who's Calling Christian' feature - where celebrities ring up with a chance to win £20,000 for charity - 
Jason was asked for a question for the next guest. He replied: "What do you call a Pakistani cloakroom attendant?" 
Before delivering the punch line: 'Me hat, me coat.'

The joke was edited out of the show’s podcast posted later that morning. A spokesman for Jason said that the actor 
was: “Sorry and distressed that that joke upset people.”

Director of Mediawatch John Beyer added: “It was an inappropriate comment, although I do not think it was meant in 
an offensive way. People in the media need to learn the lesson that these kind of jokes are not appreciated any 
more.”

Absolute Radio has since issued a statement saying: “The comments made by David Jason were unacceptable and 
Christian O’Connell distanced himself from them live on-air by swiftly saying, “no more jokes like that”. To 
minimise any offence amongst our listeners we also edited the comments from the Breakfast Show podcast. We consider 
the views of our listeners to be very important and have received no complaints about these comments. David Jason 
has already apologised. We will continue to monitor any complaints and Christian O’Connell will issue an on-air 
apology in tomorrow’s breakfast show.”

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Two of radio's best known and most reputable DJs, Tony Blackburn and Gary Crowley, head up BBC London 94.9's new 
weekend line-up from Saturday 4 April.

Music guru and long-time respected "champion of new music" Gary Crowley, brings his new show – celebrating music 
and memories from the Seventies and Eighties – to Saturday lunchtimes from 12noon to 2.00pm. His love of music was 
fired in the Seventies by a passion for The Beatles and the new sounds of that era.

His Saturday 6.00-8.00pm show will repeat part of his earlier show plus London Calling, celebrating new music.

Legendary Tony Blackburn goes back to his roots when his Sunday show (12noon-2.00pm) will feature his one true 
love, soul and Motown music.

Tony built his reputation for championing black music in the Eighties on his morning show on the original BBC Radio 
London.

Other Saturday changes see Breakfast with Jo Good and Simon Lederman returning to 6.00-9.00am and Vanessa Feltz 
will get London talking from 9.00am to 12noon.

David Robey, BBC London 94.9's Editor, says: "The new weekend line-up is the best of what BBC London 94.9 is known 
for – great debate, great entertainment and the best presenters in their field.

"Vanessa Feltz and Lesley Joseph interacting with listeners and fascinating guests and music radio legends Tony 
Blackburn and Gary Crowley with the soundtrack of our lives, the music and memories of the past 30 to 40 years."
Notes to Editors

Weekend changes commence from Saturday 4 April 2009.

Saturday
Breakfast with Jo Good and Simon Lederman, 6.00-9.00am
Vanessa Feltz, 9.00am-12noon
Gary Crowley, 12noon-2.00pm

Sunday
Lesley Joseph, 9.00am-12noon, Lesley talks about the issues affecting your life, as well as focusing on leisure and 
lifestyle
Tony Blackburn's soul show, 12noon-2.00pm

Listen again to BBC London 94.9FM at bbc.co.uk/london or bbc.co.uk/iplayer.

LB2

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March 24th 2009

Waffler

Exciting that a comedy about offshore radio is about to hit the cinemas. I am seeing posters on J D'Deaux bus shelters which illuminate at night. The Boat that Rocked is a very exciting film by the looks of it. It is comedy so will it satisfy anoraks?

A bit confused as to whey Big L is now carrying Mike Read from Star 107, and he is actually also identifying Big L.  It is possible that Ray Anderson now owns the Star 107, or his investors?   The local ads on Big L sound out of place and last for some time.  Good to hear Mike Road on air in the mornings though.

I cannot explain why I have not updated since the 16th of February, must have become busy elsewhere. A few days back the free site was taken down by the provider - but they have sent me the following email

Your account wirelesswaffle.net76.net has been checked and approved by the system administrator. Domain is now active.

We are sorry for inconveniences it may caused and thank you for patience.

I am wondering how this site came under scrutiny and was removed from the net. The NTL world site is supplemented by the free web provider, mainly to accommodate my magazine articles. The free site is complete, but the NTL world one straddles both!

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News from other sources

From BBC Site

Ship ahoy, it's Tony Blackburn!

Alrite guys and girls, the sounds of the swinging Sixties are set to be re-created by some of the orignal disc jockeys on board a ship in Harwich. Pirate BBC Essex moors up this Easter.

Award winning Pirate BBC Essex returns for a four day broadcast aboard the LV18, the vessel which was used in the filming of 'The Boat That Rocked'.

Legendary DJ’s Tony Blackburn and Johnnie Walker are just two of the original '60s offshore radio presenters who will be teaming up with BBC Essex for a celebration of that unique watery wireless sound.

"In 2007 we told listeners it could be the last time for Pirate BBC Essex," said BBC Essex Managing Editor Gerald Main.

"Ever since, fans from Essex and across the world have been asking us to do it one more time. We’ve been swayed by their wishes and their ship is literally coming in."

In 2007 and for the first broadcast in 2004, Pirate BBC Essex came from the LV18 half-a-mile off the Essex coast. This year, the vessel will be moored alongside the Harwich Ha’penny Pier.

"Thousands of '60s pirate radio fans will be able to get within a few feet of the fun action," said Pirate BBC Essex creator Steve Scruton.

"It’s the 45th anniversary of the start of Radio Caroline but for fans of the offshore radio sound, it’s like yesterday," he said.

Thousands of younger listeners were turned on to 60’s music by Pirate BBC Essex in 2004 and 2007 and thousands more are likely to join them once they’ve seen 'The Boat That Rocked'.

The film was written and directed by Richard Curtis and stars Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans and Kenneth Branagh.

"We’re really pleased that Universal used the LV18 for one of the most eagerly anticipated films for years," said Tony O’Neil of the Pharos Trust which owns the LV18.

He adds: "To welcome Pirate BBC Essex back within days of the film’s release is just wonderful news."

The vessel’s bridge will be converted into a radio studio from where Pirate BBC Essex will broadcast on 729, 765 and 1530 MW and on www.bbc.co.uk/essex from 7 am on Good Friday April 10.

"We’ll be playing those great pirate radio classics like Caroline and A Whiter Shade Of Pale," said Pirate BBC Essex programmes producer Tim Gillett.

Tim is looking forward to spinning a few long lost gems: "Plus songs which may not have been heard for more than forty years like 'That’s The Way Love Goes' by Charles Dickens or 'Incense' by The Anglos. And after 'A Fine Fine Bird' in 2004 and 'Untrue Unfaithful That Was You' in 2007, I’m already thinking about a new record of the week."

Presenters like Dave Cash and Roger Day, who’ll be appearing on Pirate BBC Essex this Easter, remember playing those songs for the first time on the pirate ships moored off the Essex coast between 1964 and 1967.

Listeners will be able to also hear some of those '60s style radio jingles and that unique echo which was so reminiscent of those pioneering pop music radio days.

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From Radio Today:

Mar 15, 2009 - Sir Jimmy Savile has joined Radio Aire to pledge his support for WWF’s Earth Hour on Saturday 28th March.

The Earth Hour is a global event in which millions of people across the planet switch off their lights for one hour, sending a signal to world leaders that they must take urgent action to tackle climate change.

Sir Jimmy has teamed up with 96.3 Radio Aire - who are responsible for getting WWF’s message out across West Yorkshire - and recorded messages to the people and businesses of Leeds to sign up and switch off their lights for one hour on Saturday 28th March 2009.

96.3 Radio Aire presenter Simon Logan from Logie’s Big Breakfast said “WWF’s Earth Hour is the perfect opportunity for the people of Leeds, West Yorkshire and the world to send a sign to global leaders to show that they care about climate change and that something huge needs to happen. To have Sir Jimmy behind the campaign on the side of WWF and Radio Aire is a great boost, so sign up and switch off, Leeds!”

In the picture, Jenny Seymour from radio Aire is with Sir Jimmy Savile.

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Gloucestershire's Star 107.5 has hired Emperor Rosko to present a new weekend programme, starting this Saturday.

Rosko will be flying into the UK today to attend the premier of the new movie based on the pirate radio era of the 1960s - The Boat That Rocked. He will also be interviewed for many television programmes before heading to Cheltenham to get to know his new work mates at Star 107.5.

The independent station is now home to former BBC Radio 1 presenter Mike Read, who a daily show from 10am.

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Mar 19, 2009 - The Sun newspaper is to launch an online radio station called Sun Talk, with former talkSPORT presenter Jon Gaunt at the helm.

The station is part of parent company News International's £1m investment in the television and radio studios.

Gaunt will be "on-air" every weekday morning for three hours from 10am till 1pm, with guests such as Conservative leader David Cameron MP.

The station aims to attract 150,000 online listeners in its first year.

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Mar 23, 2009 - Chris Moyles has been found in breach of an Ofcom rule with his impression of Will Young that he aired on BBC Radio 1 on the 20th January this year.

Moyles, while discussing Will Young’s birthday with his team, gave his own take on two of the singer’s hits, Evergreen and Leave Right Now. He then proceeded to imitate the singer, adopting an effeminate, high-pitched voice. On the former, he substituted the song’s lyrics with his own, including the line, “It’s my birthday, gonna wear my new dress tonight”. While on the latter he sang, “I get camper by the hour, oh, would you look at the muck in here. I’m Will Young and I’m gay.”

Ofcom received eight complaints from listeners who were concerned that Chris Moyles ridiculed Will Young because of his sexuality. The complainants also said that

the comments were offensive and derogatory towards the gay community.

In response to the Ofcom’s enquiries as to whether the material had contravened Rule 2.3 of the Code – material that may cause offence must be justified by the context - the BBC responded that Young was not being ridiculed because of his sexuality, though they did concede that Moyles’ comments were misjudged and unacceptable. Adding that the Controller of Radio 1 had since spoken to both Moyles and his production team about the matter in an effort to remind, “not to inadvertently perpetuate certain stereotypes.”

In summing up, Ofcom stated that it was concerned both by the material, and in particular the language used and the tone and manner in which the comments were made. Adding that it had potential to cause considerable offence. Judging that the programme had breached Rule 2.3. It’s the second time that Moyles’ prgramme has breached the Ofcom Code.

Mar 23, 2009 - Martin Kelner is returning to national speech station talkSPORT to host a one-off show, covering this weekend for Jeremy Kyle.

Martin is mostly known for his time presenting at the BBC, with stints at many stations including Radio 2, Radio 5 Live and Radio Leeds.

His programme on talkSPORT will be on Sunday March 29th from 12pm till 2pm.

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Planet Rock--and the stations could soon share the Golden Square address.

The deal, announced by Absolute's chief executive Donnach O'Driscoll on the station's One Golden Square blog, will see the TIML-owned broadcaster represent Planet Rock from 1 April.

In the blog, O'Driscoll writes: "This means media-buyers will be able to target a compelling national audience of music-passionate, male-focused listeners in a core demographic of 30-54 year olds in one streamlined media-buy from the existing Absolute Radio sales team.

"Planet Rock will be establishing its own sponsorship and promotions team to work alongside Absolute Radio’s to specifically sell Planet Rock’s sponsorship and promotions assets."

He has also raised the possibility of a studio share with the independent digital station which was acquired from the former GCap Media by millionaire Malcolm Bluemel last June: "We are also in talks with the Planet Rock team about them renting some empty office space and a studio that we have here at Absolute Radio and will come back to you with more news."

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Two of Bauer Media's digital radio stations are moving out of London. Q will move to Birmingham to share resources with Kerrang!, whilst heat radio will move in with Key 103 and The Hits in Manchester.

Reports suggest up to 15 jobs will be lost in the move, which could result in less investment in each of the brands programming, with fewer presenters dedicated to the output.

Both stations have relaunched with extra investment over the last couple of years, but this latest move suggets a return to their former 'jukebox' style programming.

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After ten years at BBC Radio 1, Colin Murray is leaving to join 5 Live full time. His nightly 10pm till midnight slot will be filled by weekend presenter Nick Grimshaw.

Colin is no stranger to 5 Live as he hosts the weekly Fighting Talk show during the football season. His new job will include a Friday night and Sunday afternoon show. He said: "I'm honoured to be given these new shows on Radio 5 Live. With it comes a responsibility to deliver the best sporting radio content anywhere in the world, and I intend to give 100 percent while introducing my own style of presentation."

Nick, who started his radio career just a few years ago working as part of the promo team at Smooth (FM) in Manchester, will move to the new Monday to Thursday, 10pm-midnight slot from the weekend breakfast show but will continue to co-host Switch with Annie Mac on Sunday nights.

Ben Cooper, Head of Programmes, Radio 1, says: "It will be fantastic to get Nick's mix of humour, music and guests on four nights a week. I look forward to it soon becoming the 'must listen to' show for our young audiences."

Nick Grimshaw adds: "I'm so excited to be taking on a whole new challenge. Doing an evening show for Radio 1 is something I've always dreamed of and I can't wait to start."

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Mar 18, 2009 - Gold presenter Dean Martin has been presented the Freedom of the City of London at the Guildhall London.

The honour entitles Dean to a number of ancient quirky privileges although they are more a product of collective memory than of documented evidence. They include the right to herd sheep over London bridge, to go about the City with a drawn sword, and if convicted of a capital offence, to be hung with a silken rope. Other advantages are said to have included the right to avoid being press-ganged, to be married in St Paul's Cathedral, buried in the City and to be drunk and disorderly without fear of arrest.

Dean said "I am delighted to receive this unusual honour. The City of London is a unique locality and I am determined to contribute what I can to life in the area".

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A law which stipulates all new radio receivers, including in-car terminals, should be able to pick up digital radio transmissions is set to be passed in France.

In June the the French media regulator will publish its migration and licensing plan, with the government giving a clear message to the industry that digital migration will happen and the process should be fast.

The law sets out a three step programme to integrate digital radio into all radio receivers:

- 1st September 2010 – radio receiver which can display multimedia content will have digital radio reception enabled with the exception of in-car terminals

- 1st September 2012 – all new terminals will be dedicated to the reception of digital radio and multimedia with the exception of in-car terminals

- 1st September 2013 – all radio receivers will be digital

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Quentin Howard, President of the WorldDMB Forum, said, "The bold position taken by the French government recognises the need to ensure universal availability of digital receivers and gives the radio industry a solid foundation and certainty with which to plan its digital future."

Hospital Radio Tunbridge Wells is £5k better off after being awarded a grant by the National Lottery.

Volunteers at the station will use the extra money from the Awards For All scheme, to replace the outdated studio computer equipment and software that keeps the station running 24 hours a day.

Project manager Tony Finn said: "The equipment is getting old and we did not want it to affect the quality of the service we provide to patients. We are delighted that Awards For All are helping us to upgrade the system and continue providing patients with music, information and entertainment at any time of the day or night.

"The grant also means we can have the same facilities at our fundraising and publicity events as we have in the studios, which will enhance the quality of the broadcasts."

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Mar 13, 2009 - Smooth Radio in the Northwest has presented Macmillan Cancer Support with a cheque for £102,450 after a year of fundraising.

Smooth Radio’s Brand Programme Director Steve Collins and breakfast presenter Chris Best handed over a station record breaking cheque to the cancer support team this week.

The money, the highest amount ever raised at the GMG Radio station, was raised through many fund raising activates which included a coffee morning, running in marathons and their annual Bring A Pound To Work Day.

Steve Collins, who as well as being Brand Programme Director is the presenter on the station’s afternoon show, said; “We are so pleased and all very proud to be able to give this cheque to Macmillan Cancer Support on behalf of our listeners and the people of the North West. We are of course only the collectors and holders of these monies and it is down to the continued generosity of the public, shops, companies and their staff who join in and all the staff here at GMG Radio who care so much and give so selflessly.”

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16th February 2009

Waffler

Have been listening in to Wight FM on wi fi and bit disappointed that their weekend programmes appear to be fully automated.

Last week there was a fire in the basement of Northwick Park Hospital in Harrow in Middx, and it still continued to broadcast back to back music in spite of this.  They must have had a fireproof room or pc!

Radio 4 has some interesting programmes on during the weekend.  I have particularly enjoyed Saturday Live, and on Sunday Broadcasting House.  Speech radio is seldom done in the UK, other than the phone in medium.  Radio 4 and the BBC World Service are well worth dipping into.

PC Wise I can recommend Comodo Internet Security, home edition which comes free of charge.   I have used Zone alarm for some time, but find the unified virus and firewall offered by Comodo, makes my internet surfing much more rapid.

News from other sources

Smooth Radio has today launched The Smooth Radio Love London Awards in association with the Independent. 

Deutsche Welle’s radio, television and online services are used by at least 86 million adults around the world every week. 

BBC Radio 2’s Chris Evans and Natasha Shishmanian have celebrated the birth of his second child today; Noah Nicholas Martin Evans who weighed in at 7lb 4oz.

BBC Radio Newcastle afternoon presenter Alfie Joey is to join Charlie Charlton to host the station's breakfast show, replacing Mike Parr.
Moyles to climb a mountain

Chris Moyles will set off on a seven day mountain climbing adventure in Africa with fellow BBC Radio 1 presenter Fearne Cotton and a host of celebs to raise money for Comic Relief.

Tim Grundy, the former host of the Breakfast Show on Manchester’s Piccadilly Radio and the man who helped launch Reading 107 has died at the age of fifty. 

Friday Night Project host Alan Carr is said to be joining BBC Radio 2 on a regular basis, as a replacement for Russell Brand. The Mirror claims producers at the station were determined to have a comedian back in the late-night slot. 

Greater London AM station ZEE Radio will launch on the Sky platform in January, offering programmes across the UK 24 hours a day. 


All 40 BBC local radio stations are now available via the online BBC iPlayer. Full station schedules and listen again also form part of the listening experience. 

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Staff involved in The Alex Zane Breakfast Show on Xfm have received disciplinary action from station management for making and broadcasting a politically incorrect song. 


Feb 12, 2009 - 107.6 Juice FM, UTV's youth station for Liverpool, The Wirral and Merseyside, is to begin broadcasting on DAB on a new multiplex serving Liverpool, Cheshire and East Wales that’ll launch later this year.


Dutch commercial station BNR Nieuwsradio has unveiled a new membership scheme to raise money from its listeners. This follows an announcement on Thursday by FD Mediagroep, the parent company of BNR, of 49 redundancies. The radio station will also be affected, with cuts in its afternoon programming. BNR Nieuwsradio has a weekly reach of just 550,000 listeners, but its listeners are very loyal and its market share is stable.


The Guardian Media Group (GMG) has announced a pay freeze for 2009 across its entire business. 

Independent Radio News has said it will cut the length of its hourly bulletins from three minutes to two when Sky takes over the three-year contract next month.
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Independent production company Somethin Else has been awarded the contract to produce BBC Radio 4s Gardeners Question Time after a competitive tender

Last week, Virgin Radio International told us the Indian owners of its Absolute Radio replacement are “out of their depth” in the UK. Now it emerges Richard Branson’s brand wants to return to British airwaves. Branson and former talkSPORT owner Kelvin MacKenzie told Ofcom they want to bid when the regulator is expected to auction spectrum used by Absolute, Classic FM and talkSPORT in 2011 and 2012, as Times Online reports.

Times Of India owner Bennett, Coleman & Co bought Virgin Radio’s UK station from ailing SMG last year for £53.2 million but was denied the right to use the Virgin name amid fears it might tarnish its reputation. Having changed name to Absolute, the station promptly lost nearly a fifth of its listeners, according to H208 Rajar figures.

The Virgin Radio brand continues to operate under license in various countries. Better than simply returning to its old 1215 MHz slot, winning Classic FM’s spectrum would give Virgin its first national FM license. And the winning auction bid is likely to be cheap: Absolute and talkSPORT only pay £100,000 a year while Classic pays £50,000 plus six percent of revenue, Times Online reports.

A win for Branson and MacKenzie would leave one of the three spectrum holders to consider broadcasting only on DAB, TV and online, or packing up and going home. This would, of course, be a completely different company to Absolute. Of most interest to us - would Virgin Radio 2.0 try to bring over its respected former online team from Absolute?

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The UK Ministry of Justice (MoJ) discovered keeping jail inmates locked up for longer each day was saving £17m a year.



So it’s given the go-ahead for a £2m radio service beaming messages and "educational programmes" into jail cells across prisons in England and Wales.



However, Shadow justice minister Edward Garnier says inmates should be working in their cells not listening to the radio.   Mr Garnier told the Sun newspaper: "The government has presided over the worst prison overcrowding in the history of the Prison Service. Now it tries to pretend pumping radio
programmes into cells makes everything all right.”  "It would be comic if it were not so tragic."  Last week figures showed the prison population in England 
and Wales had reached 81,748.


The pregnant woman known only as Allison has told what happened when she called into the Star 94, Atlanta, breakfast show  to confess she had already broken her New Year's resolution.  In the middle of the call, the show's host heard....  "Noah, Noah, Noah, Noah."  Allison said: "The first words out of my mouth were Noah because that's the name of my baby and I was so scared that I lost him I kept screaming please God not Noah.”   Allison hit another car that pulled in front of her. She and her baby are fine, but she admits her mind was not  on the road.  She said "I was so caught up in being on the phone and not  paying attention.”



Doctor David Burke a brain injury expert at Emory School of Medicine says talking on a cell phone pulls your concentration away from driving and slows your response to stimuli like an oncoming car.  “That's why reaction times of drunk drivers and cell phone  users are similar.”  BBC presenter Chris Moyles is in trouble with BBC management over an Auschwitz joke he made on his BBC ONE program. He was discussing his participation in the TV reality series ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’ and talking about researching his genealogy for the TV show.  He said that he "went off to Ireland and other places to film and unlike a lot of the ‘Who Do You Think You Are?’ shows, I didn't go to Auschwitz. Pretty much everyone goes there whether or not they're Jewish. They just seem to pass through there on their way to Florida."  The BBC said that no complaints have been received about the comment, but that managers are speaking to Moyles about the joke, which referred to other celebrities, including Stephen Fry and Jerry Springer, reduced to tears upon discovering that they had relatives who died in the Holocaust. 

Meantime another BBC presenter Jonathan Ross has landed himself in a fresh controversy after joking on his Radio 2 show that his producer should have sex with an 86-year-old Spanish woman, who suffers from dementia, as an act of "charity".  Ross, who has just returned to his Radio 2 show following 
a three month suspension for the Andrew Sachs affair, was just eight minutes and 35 seconds into the show before unleashing the remark.



Two men were rescued from a 50m radio tower in Lenasia,Johannesburg, after they climbed up it to be "closer to Jesus" at Christmas. They had been there for almost 20 hours. A bystander spotted the men and alerted police and emergency services. Paramedics and members of the fire department climbed the tower to speak to them. One of the men had spread salt along the tower's ladder to “protect them”.  A sky lift was used to get them down after two hours of
negotiating.

26th January 2009

Waffler

BBC 3 Counties continues to be a splendid radio station.  The only programme I find a little tedious is the Treasure Hunt programme on a Sunday, and that is probably because it does not take place in my own area.  The joy of receiving this radio station designed for Hertfordshire, Beds and Bucks, on FM is long lived.  I dip into the programmes mainly in the morning.  Howard Hughes was on there a while back on a Sunday, and that was an absolute joy.  I can receive them here on 92 FM, 104 FM directionally, and 103.8 FM approximately slightly less strong than 92FM. They of course come in on am.

Radio Jackie on 107.8 still booms into my home.  A great music station with a fantastic range of music.  It has a great history, and the recent book on Radio Jackie's History is well worth looking at.

I was amazed to find listen again on BBC World Service on my wi fi radio.  It must also be available on the BBC Site.  I enjoyed listening in to an edtion of their digital world.

I was amazed a while back to see a picture of Jim Coad on the excellent Bob Le Roi Site. I also noticed that somebody was asking if anyone know anything about the whereabouts of Radio Jim which was on in the sixties.  If anyone has any audio of the station I would be very interested in obtaining a copy, please email at wirewaffle@hotmail.com

I have restarted the internet radio section of the site.  From now on I will include details of radio stations worth a listen, and also include a link to their web address.  I have a wi fi radio which uses the Receiva software, and I will also include a letter R after the web address to indicate you can listen to it on the receiva site, and if you have a log on there can add it to "My Stations" on your radio.

I wonder how far the range of the dab signal boosters is at the Curry's superstores.  We have one in nearby South Ruislip, but we still get a very low signal from the Drg network (our favourite station there is Chill)   I know that many site visitors outside the London area only get the Digital One Network.  I can get the Hertfordshire stations on my Bush personal dab player with a ? but the signal strength is not good enough to yield a sound.  I have tried to get the stations on Moor Park Station and also in Rickmansworth.   I note that they have Our Kind of Music on the Hertfordshire network, from what I have heard on wi fi they play back to back middle of the road music with standards like Sinatra etc.  

Arrow Radio which was on dab, as we know is no longer there.  It is however on Sky and also on Cable.  I listened to it today for the first time in ages and noted it was playing back to back music with the same recorded announcement at intervals.  It used to have announcers and also play more up to date music, it seems to have taken over the format that Virgin Classic Rock once championed.  Sadly Absolute Classic Rock contains too much chat now for my liking.

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News from other sources

Ofcom has granted a licensing scheme allowing electrical goods outlets, such as Currys, to install DAB signal boosters. The move is designed to improve DAB sound quality and drive flagging sales, but there is concern from industry analysts that the move contradicts the Consumer Act.
The move follows a year-long trial of DAB repeaters installed in Currys Superstores and branches of John Lewis, and now puts in place a new permanent licensing for all retailers across the UK.'Increasing sales potential'

The Digital Radio Development Bureau (DRDB) says: 'Many electrical retailers suffer from poor analogue and DAB signal strength due to the steel framed infrastructure of the building or their basement location. Installing a DAB repeater on the roof of the store means a signal can be boosted in-store and DAB radios can more easily be demonstrated, thus increasing sales potential.'

The DRDB goes on to report that 'Some stores have reported as much as 30% uplift in sales simply by ensuring all DAB radios enjoy clear, uninterrupted reception'. The Dixons Store Group International (DSGi) has already installed more than 300 DAB repeaters in its Currys stores nationwide.
Consumer rights

Some commentators have expressed concern, that this new scheme new scheme isn't fair for consumers and even goes against the Consumer Act, which states that goods taken home 'must correspond to the [shop] sample in quality'.

Lizzy Payne, digital radio expert at Which?, said: 'We recommend that when you buy a DAB radio, you buy it from a store that will allow you to return the product if you are unable to receive an adequate signal when you get the device back home. We would also like to think that the stores with DAB repeaters installed will be courteous to their customers and point out that there is a DAB repeater installed and explain what this means.'


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More than half a million digital audio broadcasting – DAB – radio sets were sold in December but overall growth in 2008 fell short of industry forecasts. 

Staff working in the South Asian section of the BBC World Service are to ballot on possible strike action over redundancies and plans to relocate jobs and programme-making.

Former Labour MP Tony Benn defied the BBC's self-imposed ban on broadcasting an appeal for the people of Gaza - by hijacking an interview on the Today to make the appeal himself. 
Sky News announced today that it was joining the BBC in refusing to broadcast an emergency appeal for Gaza. 

Who will be the next Sibrydion Radio Luxembourg or Euros Childs This is what Brwydr y Bandiau The Battle of the Bands aims to find out and Mentrau Iaith Cymru and BBC Radio

Ofcom has cleared the Steve Sutherland programme on Galaxy of being in breach of the media regulator’s code after he played a track by rapper Busta Rhymes

Evan Davis is to become a permanent presenter on Today, BBC Radio 4's flagship current affairs programme. 

Former staff at Cambridge’s first commercial radio station CN.FM 103 are reuniting on Saturday 7th February to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the station’s launch.

A new radio station by the name of Mersey 106.7 is now broadcasting on the frequency previously used by KCR FM. 

Classic FM and Waitrose have agreed a six figure partnership which will see the supermarket sponsor Smooth Classics at Six with Margherita Taylor. 

Manchester's Key 103 and Magic 1152 will promote the activities of North West professional rugby union side Sale Sharks in a new advertising deal.

Chris Moyles sparks controversy on his Radio 1 show after making insensitive comments about Auschw
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20th January 2009

Waffler

Hope you are all enjoying radio.  I have changed my internet radio from the Imp Adapt Magibox to one made by Acoustic Solutions.  This has speakers on it, although not hi fi, it enables me to listen without putting the hi fi on.  With the hi fi on it sounds every bit as good as the Magibox.  I advise anyone wishing to buy an internet wi fi radio to buy from Amazon or Ebay.  Both of my models have been new and both around £40 including postage.  I discovered Watford Radio WHR from Watford Hosptial this weekend.  I have been enjoying Flea FM from Auckland for several weeks.

The shortwaves have been very quiet around here recently.  I do not think it is interference from any electronic noise etc.  The other Wireless Waffle has a good article on this matter worth reading http://www.mf2fm.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry081030-212340

I bought a cd of Wolfman Jack recordings made for Radio Caroline in 1981.  It is full of life and it is pity that the show was never aired.  If you fancy one look under Pirate Radio on eBay.

I have found that Big L on Sunday was playing back to back music.  The news about Wight FM coming on as an internet station with Mike Read, might mean that Big L will lose their breakfast star.  Pity Big L had to give up Satellite and AM transmissions. Will Isle of Man Broadcasting ever launch?  It should at least launch as an internet station considering all the money that investors sunk into it?

News from other sources

BBC 7 - and Radio 4 - had a great success not long ago revisiting 50s thrillerdom in the shape of Paul Temple, and 
now the digital station is re-running The Psychedelic Spy

Fresh from his holiday Zane Lowe returns to BBC Radio 1 with a bang on Monday with a live performance from Franz 
Ferdinand at the legendary Maida Vale studios. 

Jan 19, 2009 - Former Isle of Wight presenter Alex Dyke is leading a team of veteran presenters including Tony Blackburn and Mike Read to launch an online radio station - Wight FM.

The station plans to launch on February 2nd with a line-up of familiar names, from a new studio on the island.

The station's new website, at wightfm.com, reports: "We have even more great presenters who are joining our line-up - Tony Blackburn, Paul Burnett, Big Al, Mark Wesley, Howard Pearce, Benny Brown, Steve Robson, Ed Stewart, Richard Cartridge, Sean Tilley, (Shaun Tilley? - Ed) Simon Ledger, & Simon & Dave from Hipshaker. More to follow..."

Alex Dyke, in a video interview on Wight FM TV, says "I've been so excited about Wight FM I haven't really thought about where I used to work."

"Wight FM will sound familiar... we won't be playing the same old songs over and over again. We've had DJs queuing up wanting to get on, because they are so fed up with radio stations restricting them."

RadioToday.co.uk has emailed the station for further news and we'll bring you more news when we get it.
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Jan 20th 2009 



From Radio About.com

Yesterday, the 50th anniversary of “Rock ‘n Roll” was celebrated with a global salute to Elvis Presley and his tune 
“That’s All Right” - thought to be the song which began it all.

Presley recorded the song on July 5, 1954 and yesterday upwards to 1500 radio stations played the song 
simultaneously via a satellite feed.

But, as the world celebrates Rock ‘n Roll this week, we shouldn’t forget the man who is credited with coining the 
term, “Rock ‘n Roll” - DJ Alan Freed.

Freed's first radio job was at WKST, New Castle, Pennsylvania in 1942. From there he went to WKBN, Youngstown, Ohio 
where he worked as a sportscaster.

In 1945 he moved to WAKR, Akron, Ohio and became a disc-jockey - playing jazz and popular recordings. Then, in 
1949, he was offered a TV position at WXEL, Cleveland, Ohio.

In 1951, Freed moved back on to the radio at WJW, Cleveland with a new DJ name: "Moondog". It was there he came up 
with the term, "Rock ‘n Roll" to describe the black R&B songs he was playing on the air and getting so much 
response from.

Riding on his Cleveland success, Freed was lured to New York City in 1954 where he worked for WINS. It was in New 
York that Freed's live "Rock and Roll" shows drew incredible crowds and national publicity. Freed later moved to 
WABC, New York.

Unfortunately for Freed, the Radio payola scandal hit in 1959 and Freed, who was "on-the-take", was fired from his 
Radio and TV jobs. Afterwards, he worked briefly at KDAY, Los Angeles and WQAM, Miami.

In 1962, Freed pled guilty to commercial bribery charges and on January 20, 1965, he died from alcohol related 
diseases.

So, you can credit Elvis with the first Rock ‘n Roll song - but don’t forget the man who came up with the term 
years before that very recording - Alan Freed. 

Broadcaster and journalist Jonathan Maitland is to cover for Donal MacIntyre's BBC Radio 5 Live show whilst Donal 
Dances On Ice. 

WestSound has held its annual Burns Supper celebration for the 24th year running, complete with a live performance 
from singer Darius Danesh. 

National digital radio operator Digital One is to cut its carriage costs in a bid to encourage more stations on to 
the struggling digital audio broadcasting – DAB – service. 

Leading media industry figures have reopened the debate about the future of the BBC's most popular radio stations 
by calling for Radio 1 and Radio 2 to be privatised. 

Taxpayers will fork out up to £3,000 to pay for new carpets and curtains for BBC staff moving from London to 
Salford, it emerged. 

NME Radio today announced its return to London’s airwaves on 87.7FM for another month long FM broadcast. 

Neil Fox has extended his contract with London commercial radio station, Magic 105.4 where he presents Magic’s More 
Music Breakfast every Monday to Friday from 5.30am to 9am. 

NME Radio today announced its return to London’s airwaves on 87.7FM for another month long FM broadcas on 2nd March 
2009.

Jan 09, 2009 - Gary Stein has begun the New Year by taking on the role of Station Director for Bauer Radio’s Key 
103 and Magic 1152, Stein was previously Programme Director for both stations. He replaces Tracey Eastwood in the 
post.

Eastwood now takes up the role of Regional Managing Director for Bauer’s Yorkshire stations: Hallam FM, Viking 
FM and Radio Aire, along with their Magic AM sister stations. 

Michelle Surrell, Regional Managing Director for 
Bauer’s North West stations said: “It was a natural transition for Gary to take over from Tracy to manage the 
current Sony Station of the Year and the move will allow us to continue to build on our success with consistency 
and confidence.”
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Jan 09, 2009 - Green radio station Passion for the Planet is to give away free advertising to six nominated 
charities, in celebration of reaching its sixth birthday this week.

The MS Trust campaign will launch on air on the 
digital station from 12th January 2009.

Guests at the birthday celebrations were asked to nominate a charity to 
receive the free radio advertising campaign and the winning charities were:

The MS Trust
Cancer Research UK
The 
Westminster Society
The RSPCA
PEAS (Promoting Equality in African Schools)
Unicef

“What a great way to start 2009 – 
radio advertising is so powerful and it gives us the opportunity for us to reach more people and tell them about 
the services offered by the MS Trust. Its great to be able to publicise our work without having to raise additional 
funds to do so.” said Jo Sopala, Director of Fundraising and Marketing.

“We decided from the very beginning of 
Passion for the Planet that we’d like to be able to support charities by giving them promotion on air. In many ways 
this can be more valuable than any cash donation we could make. On air advertising helps raise their profile and 
raise funds at the same time.” Explained Passion for the Planet’s managing Director Chantal Cooke.

Passion for the 
Planet reaches over 90,000 people per week and broadcasts on DAB radio in London and the across the south and 
nationwide via the Internet at www.passionfortheplanet.com

Jan 07, 2009 - The commercial radio chart show hit40uk is to no longer reflect CD sales in its weekly countdown. 
This historic move comes after figures show 96 per cent of sales in the charts are downloads only.

The networked Top 
40 chart show is hosted by Lucio Buffone and broadcasts on over 130 UK commercial radio stations every Sunday from 
4pm to 7pm. 

Paul Jackson, Group Programme Director, 95.8 Capital FM, The Hit Music Network, The Xfm Network and 
Hit40UK said: “Downloads have now become the driving force for record sales, as the statistics clearly show. It 
makes complete sense that the UK’s most listened to chart show reflects the changes in how people are listening to 
music. We constantly look to innovate and sit at the cutting edge of music taste and trends.” 

Lucio Buffone, 
Hit40UK host said:” It’s exciting times for Hit40UK to be the first chart show to follow the downloads movement.”


Jan 09, 2009 - Gary Stein has begun the New Year by taking on the role of Station Director for Bauer Radio’s Key 
103 and Magic 1152, Stein was previously Programme Director for both stations. He replaces Tracey Eastwood in the 
post.

Eastwood now takes up the role of Regional Managing Director for Bauer’s Yorkshire stations: Hallam FM, Viking 
FM and Radio Aire, along with their Magic AM sister stations. 

Michelle Surrell, Regional Managing Director for 
Bauer’s North West stations said: “It was a natural transition for Gary to take over from Tracy to manage the 
current Sony Station of the Year and the move will allow us to continue to build on our success with consistency 
and confidence.”
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Jan 07, 2009 - Richard Wheatly the man who sold Jazz FM to Guardian Media Group for £44.5m six years ago and 
relaunched it in October last year through The Local Radio Company is planning a management buyout of the station.

Wheatly has stepped down from the board of the group he founded and set the wheels in motion to take over the 
running of Jazz FM. He’s expected to be joined in his bid by Alistair Mackenzie, his former finance director at 
Jazz FM and The Local Radio Company. It’s expected that Wheatly will start bringing investors on board next week.

Jazz FM, after a hiatus under the Smooth FM banner, returned to air last year but on DAB digital radio multiplexes 
not FM and garnered a string of high profile sponsors in spite of a stagnating advertising environment. 


Jan 07, 2009 - A new weekend schedule awaits all 12 Heart stations this weekend, as Chilled Sunday is introduced, 
along with a Saturday and Sunday version of The Time Tunnel.

Feel Good All Weekend With Heart will feature Toby 
Anstis, Jason Donovan, Club Classics, Heartbreakers and The Time Tunnel.

The new Chilled Sunday show will air 
between 4am and 12pm, presented across the network by Paul Hollins, and locally at each station from 8am till 12pm. 
The Time Tunnel now runs for seven days a week from 9am till 10am, and Club Classics is increased from two to six 
nights a week (Monday to Saturday), having previously only broadcast every Friday and Saturday night.

The refreshed 
weekend line-up comes after the launch of nine brand new local Heart stations in the Anglia region yesterday, as 
part of phase one of the Heart roll-out across the UK. New Heart stations gave launched in Ipswich, Colchester, 
Norwich, Dunstable, Bedford, Peterborough, Cambridge, Milton Keynes and Northampton, joining the original Heart 
stations in London, Birmingham and Nottingham.

Adrian Stewart, Programme Director of London’s Heart 106.2 said: “We are delighted to lead the refreshed line-up 
for the weekend, featuring everyone’s favourite Heart presenters and shows from Club Classics to The Time Tunnel, 
as well as our brand new Chilled Sunday. With the launch of nine new Heart stations in phase one of the roll-out 
and more to come, 2009 is going a very exciting year for Heart!”

Jan 05, 2009 - A veritable cavalcade of stars are set to take over Zane Lowe’s BBC Radio 1 show for two weeks in 
January. The line-up includes Lily Allen, Jimmy Carr, Damon Albarn, The Prodigy and Razorlight.

While Lowe takes a 
break from his show, which airs Monday to Thursday, 7.00-9.00pm, his guest presenters will hand-pick contemporary 
and classic tracks for their playlists. The full line-up is:

Monday 12 January – The Prodigy
Tuesday 13 January – 
Friendly Fires
Wednesday 14 January – Damon Albarn
Thursday 15 January – Biffy Clyro
Monday 19 January – Lily Allen
Tuesday 20 January – Razorlight
Wednesday 21 January – Wombats
Thursday 22 January – Jimmy Carr

Zane Lowe says: "I'm 
absolutely thrilled with the line-up. It's going to be a great listen and I know that wherever I am I will 
certainly be tuning in online and checking out the shows myself and maybe even calling in now and then."

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3rd January 2009

Waffler

Happy New Year to all our site visitors.  I listened this morning to the shortwaves for the first time for around 8 weeks.  Just my luck a tropospheric low and only China Radio Internatinal and the usual suspects on air.

News from other sources

John Gaunt, who was sacked from national talkSPORT in November for 
calling a Councillor a "health Nazi" has begun legal action against the 
UTV-owned talk radio station.

John made the comments during an interview with the council's head of 
Children's Services Michael Stark.

"I have tried to offer an olive branch to (head of TalkSport) Scott 
Taunton but he has declined my overtures," he said in a statement.

"He claims he will not reinstate me despite the tens of thousands of 
e-mails that you (the public) have sent in and that he and his press 
boy have struggled to reply to.

"Therefore he has left me with no choice but to take legal action and 
that has now started."

A message on John's website reads: "Of course if you wish to tell Mr 
Taunton and talkSQUAWK what you think of their decision to terminate my 
contract after ONLY 16 COMPLAINS TO OFCOM please email them .."

"As you know I have been forced to take legal action which is 
proceeding as we speak."

James Whale, who was also let go from the station for breaching Ofcom 
guidelines last year, also launched legal action against the station 
for unfair dismissal, but later dropped all charges.



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Island FM presenter Simon Charlwood has been dismissed from the 
Guernsey station after playing Barking Dogs, Jingle Bells instead of 
listening to Cliff Richard.

And since the sacking on Christmas Eve, two Facebook groups have been 
started campaigning to get him back on the radio.

One of the admins from the group says: "We think that this is 
ridiculous and he should be back on air.


Former head of BBC Audio and Music Jenny Abramsky has been made a Dame 
Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for her services to 
broadcasting, in the New Year's Honours List of 2009.

Abramsky, who spent 40 years with the BBC before stepping down to join 
the Heritage Lottery Fund as chairwoman, is joined by BBC Radio 4 
cricket commentator Christopher Martin-Jenkins in the 2009 New Year's 
Honours List who received an MBE. Richard James Emery, Dr Anita Kumari 
Bhalla, Ms Lakhbir Kaur and Ms Boni Patricia Sones are also honoured 
for their services to broadcasting.

Abramsky became Director of BBC Radio in January 1999 and was 
subsequently promoted to the BBC's Executive Board with over all 
responsibility for BBC Radios 1, 2, 3, 4, and Five Live; as well as the 
BBC digital radio stations 1Xtra, 6 Music, BBC 7, Five Live Sports 
Extra and the Asian Network. In 2006 she became Director of Audio and 
Music.

She was awarded a CBE in 2001 for her services to broadcasting, a 
Special Sony Radio Academy Award in 2008 (pictured above), and was a 
guest of the annual radio industry event The Radio Festival in 2007.

Tim Davie was appointed as her replacement in June 2007.


Fun Radio is grabbing a slice of the radio rebrand pie by changing its 
name to Fun Kids. New owner Folder Media wants to attract new digital 
listeners who might not know the station is aimed at children.

As well as the new name, the station is also re-launching its 
pre-school output with ‘Giggle’ broadcasting weekdays from 9am to 1pm. 
The station has created a new character, Millie the Moosical Cow who 
introduces the stories and music and encourages children to sing and 
play-a-long at home.

Matt Deegan, Creative Director at Fun Kids’ parent company Folder Media 
says “Since acquiring the station in September we’ve been working hard 
to develop the station’s on-air and on-line content to make it even 
more enjoyable for our listeners. The change of name from Fun Radio to 
Fun Kids will also allow us to grow the station into a truly 
multi-platform brand”.


Regular presenters were given the boot on Christmas Day afternoon on 
Kick FM in West Berkshire and Kestrel FM in North Hampshire to allow 
listeners to take over the programming.

In West Berkshire a local plumber, his wife and children presented an 
hour of their music and Christmas jokes, followed by programmes 
presented by the local town mayors, rugby club, and local pantomime 
stars.

On Kestrel FM programmes were presented by the staff from the local 
housing association, a kids football team, representatives from the 
local hospice, and Basingstoke Hospital Radio.

Tindle Radio South’s Regional Station Manager Andy Green came up with 
the idea and said, “We wanted to reflect the true spirit of Christmas 
in our local communities, and what better way than to hand the radio 
station over to the listeners”.

“I’ve been really impressed with the standard from our listeners, who 
have loved being part of our Christmas Day schedule.


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A new website has also launched at funkidslive.com.

Matt continues: “With 1m more digital radio sets sold in December, we 
also think it’s the perfect time to create an even better radio station 
and website for our listeners and advertisers”,

Since UTV Radio issued a press release on December 17th about the 
closure of Edinburgh speech station talk 107, there has been very 
little if any media interest in the closure of the station.

The station ceased broadcasting 24 hours ahead of schedule at 10pm on 
December 23, but apart from a few comments on radio forums, there has 
been no coverage of the two-year-old station disappearing forever from 
the airwaves.

Owners UTV Radio announced in October they were looking for a new owner 
for the station, and a management buyout was on the cards at one point 
but no deal was reached. 

Saint FM 94.7 Burnham-on-Crouch, Esse has had its transmitter stolen
according to this item in the Burnham Standard:

Saint FM off the air
11:44am Wednesday 31st December 2008
By Lauren Hockney

THE Maldon district's radio station is off the air after its 
transmitter was
stolen overnight.

Saint FM, which is based at St Peter's High School in Southminster 
Road,
Burnham, is currently only able to broadcast online after its 
transmitter
was stolen from a site in Mayland at about 8.30pm on Tuesday December 
30.

The station will now be forced to look for a new one which could cost 
about
£2,500 and installation charges could see that figure rise to up to 
£8,000.

It is hoped insurance will cover the cost but until a claim is put in 
the
station will not know what is going to happen and if it will have to 
find
any of the money itself.

Other equipment was also at the site but only the transmitter was 
stolen,
leading staff at the station to believe it was specifically targeted by
thieves.

Sandra Amey Martin, station organiser, said everyone is shocked and 
dismayed
after hearing the news.

She said: "We're all extremely upset and disgusted someone would do 
this.

"We live in quite a rural area and offer a vital service to a lot of 
people
who don't all have internet access and have lost complete contact with 
us.

"At the moment we're completely off air and we don't know how long it 
will
be for."

The police have been informed and are expected to visit the station at
midday today (December 31).

http://www.maldonandburnhamstandard.co.uk/news/localnews/4012077.Saint_
FM_off_th\
e_air/

(see also station's website http://www.saintfm.org.uk/ )

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For your information - a review of the last 12 months from the Radio Review site.


Radio Today Awards and Review
Posted in Industry News on Jan 02, 2009
New Year, and time for our annual look back at the last 12 months in radio - and what a year it has been.

Also, keep reading to find out who has won a prestigious Tony Award for services to the radio industry in 2008. Named of course in honour of the great early Tony Blackburn.

JANUARY

Let's start with GCap Media - Operations Director Steve Orchard and Group Programme Director Dirk Anthony announce their departure, theJazz (remember that?) launches a stereo signal, and Core closes down. (Maybe Core closed down so that theJazz could gain that extra bandwidth?) Global Radio makes their first offer for the company too, which is declined.

Elsewhere, BFBS started a month-long trail on Digital One, Smooth (Saga) Radio launched in the North East, and Russell Brand urinated in a paper cup in the BBC Radio 2 studio because he couldn't remember where the loo was. (All the signs were there, Lesley.)

Andy Kershaw was jailed for three months.

FEBRUARY

Back to GCap and house keeper CEO Fru Hazlitt threw her digital toys out of her analogue pram and announced the closure of theJazz and the sale of GCap's interest in Digital One, whilst rejecting a second offer from Global Radio. They wanted it bad.

Bob Shennan, who left his top position at BBC Radio 5 Live to head up Channel 4's radio division (whoops) was replaced by Adrian Van Klaveren.

Steve Penk left his breakfast show at Fox FM a week early to start a revolution, and Andy Kershaw was released from jail.

MARCH

Big changes planned at GMG Radio as, for the first time, a deputy chief executive (Stuart Taylor) was appointed under CEO John Myers. It was announced later in the year that Stuart would take over due to John's early retirement.

Not much else happened in March, except a little incident at 6pm on the 31st. Global Radio's third and (probably not) final offer for GCap Media was accepted. The real radio revolution was about to begin.

Andy Kershaw was locked up again.

APRIL

Galaxy and Heart will change forever - with Global announcing weekday mid-morning and afternoon programming will be networked, as allowed by an earlier Ofcom ruling. In 2009, the Heart brand will spread to most of the one network and even local news bulletins will be axed during the daytime.

Similar networking going on at CN Group too as five Touch Radio stations in the Midlands received approval to network all output except breakfast. Turned out not even that was enough to save two of the five.

And BBC Radio 1 announced that international pop star Madonna will headline the station's Big Weekend at Mote Park in Maidstone, Kent. (well if Radio 1 can't get the queen of pop for a roadshow, who can?!)

Over at the BBC, Jenny Abramsky left her position as Director of BBC Audio and Music (er, Radio?) to join the Lottery Fund. And we're not quite sure what was happening to Andy Kershaw. I think we became more and more uninterested at this point.

MAY

Global was reminded something must be done about Capital as the station slipped to number 4 in the London (commercial) radio market. Ouch. Time to bring back the old Paul McKenna style news intro and throw a big music party for 16,000 of their favourite fans.

James Whale decided he was above the law and started to advise listeners who to vote for in the London Mayoral elections on talkSPORT. He was later fired and the station was given a £20,000 fine.

Then at the end of May, it got a little busy with radio stations being bought and sold. GCap sold Planet Rock to a mystery buyer (later we found out it was businessman Malcolm Bluemel), Xfm South Wales was sold to Town and Country Broadcasting, and Absolute Radio played the winning card to take over Virgin Radio for £53million. A bit cheaper than SMG paid for it a few years earlier, then.

JUNE

iPhone 3G launches without digital or analogue radio on board. Fail.

JULY

One of the BBC's fines for fakery took place in this month. On this occasion, they had to spend £400,000 of our money for misleading listeners during radio shows.

It was announced Chris Tarrant will return to radio via a networkeed GMG show, and the people of Plymouth were relieved as Ofcom finally granted a licence to a group who are actually going to use it. Talking of which, CanWest started to exit the UK radio industry about as fast as they entered it.

AUGUST

Changes at BBC Radio 1 as Dick, Dom and Dave all exit stage left. (Dave Pearce, that is). Ofcom let Global Radio simulcast the FM service of LBC on mediumwave for 12 hours a day, taking away half a London radio station. In the Midlands, Heart 106, BRMB, Beacon and Mercia must be sold, Ofcom said. But six months later we are still waiting to find out who the lucky buyer is.

Steve Penk is back, and has bought a radio station in Oldham, and Scottie McClue and Alan Shields purchased L107 in Lanarkshire.

SEPTEMBER

Arqiva and National Grid Wireless were given the go-ahead to merge, Absolute Radio was announced as the new name for Virgin, KCR was sold for the 4th time in as many years, and Fun Radio was sold by GCap to Folder Media. (If you placed a bet on a name change at this point, hopefully you have collected your winnings).

OCTOBER

It was a worrying month for many as Laser Broadcasting was served a wind-up petition for buying more stations than they could handle, former Radio City breakfast presenter Kev Seed was in court for drinking one too many before getting behind the wheel, and Channel 4 finally admitted it had bitten off more than it could chew and withdrew itself from our industry altogether. Bye, then. Thanks for the free bar in Cambridge.

And TLRC Executive Chairman Richard Wheatley took a surprise step down from his long standing role.

Something else happened in October too, something to do with a couple of Radio 2 presenters. Now, we can't recall any kind of coverage about it, so no point bringing it up here.

NOVEMBER

Bauer announced Mojo was to close, rumours started about the future of talk107, and Perth FM launched. Then RadioCentre Chairman Paul Brown announced he was to step down after 30 years in the industry. TLRC decided networking most of the weekend out put on their local radio stations was a bad idea after all and Jon Gaunt was fired from talkSPORT after comments about a London councillor. He must have been taking lessons from Whale.

Also this month, CN Group said they were closing or handing back the licences for Touch Radio in Banbury and Coventry if no buyer could be found. The deadline was, apparently, yesterday. We shall await to see what happens. Well we can't expect them to reply to a press enquiry on New Years Eve can we?

And Pirate FM told Ofcom they weren't too happy about Atlantic FM's claims that they are "the UK's new number one radio station". No, I don't suppose we'd be too chuffed either. 'Specialy if it wasn't too, like.

DECEMBER

Jason Bryant was appointed as managing director of TLRC's Local Stations Division (so, everything except Jazz FM then?) in addition to his duties at Town and Country, and former TLRC station KCR falls off air after the owners were locked out of their studio for six weeks. Surely someone on Merseyside could have lent them a brick for the window?


GMG Radio throws the bash of the century for staff in Manchester with all A-list artists turning up to sing, and staying in the North West, Bauer's three Liverpool radio stations offered more choice by networking the Pete Price phone in on all frequencies.


Finally, the Gold winners for the prestigious Tony Awards for services to the radio industry in 2008 are as follows:

Best Station Security: Galaxy Birmingham

Best Value for Money Marketing Campaign: Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross, BBC Radio 2

Best Use of Computer Automation: KCR 106.7

Best Use of Ofcom Guidelines: James Whale and Jon Gaunt

Best Resignation Letter: Kev Seed, Radio City

Best Not Outstaying Your Welcome Award: Denise Van Outen

Best Use of Dragging Out A Station Sale Award: UTV Radio on behalf of Imagine FM

Best Multi-Tasking Award: Jason Bryant

and finally..

The Best Use of a Blackberry When Making Important Decisions Award: Lesley Douglas

Have a great 2009, and stay with RadioToday.co.uk as we celebrate our 5th birthday!

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