Aircheck Rated & Recommended    UPDATED 12/08/2004

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Tired of hearing the same old songs?  Looking for a bit of personality and less liner cards?  Do you think you're stuck with what you've got?  Welcome to AIRCHECK RATED & RECOMMENDED.  Just incase you don't know, there really is something else out there if you just touch that dial a bit.  This page aims to feature stations that cross the boundaries of their intended broadcast area, offering a real viable, long term answer to those questions. Please feel free to contact me with stations you listen to from outside your residential area and tell me about what you are tuning away from! (ianmsperry@hotmail.com)

Formerly using the strapline, 'The Best Mix Of Yesterday & Today', and now quite simply '80s...90's...NOW!'  In no way related to the long defunct Centre Radio in Leicestershire, this SALLIE (small scale alternative local licence) has a board which included (at launch) CENTRAL NEWS WEST anchorman Bob Warman.  Music from 1980's, 1990s & today.  Previous presenters Sean Goldsmith & Mike Thomas have recently moved to 106 Century FM (East Mids - Breakfast Show) more recently, Chesterfield's Peak 107 & Saga 105.7 (West Mids - Sports Reporter) respectively..  A real viable alternative.  Excellent sports coverage.

Air date: 01/06/1998                     website: www.centrefm.com

'The Midlands biggest station' and arguably so. Currently also using a new additional strapline 'The Right Song, Right Now'. it has now been licensed for 16 years from it's start date.   This West Midlands Regional station is owned and run by Chrysalis Radio Group, who also run the Galaxy Dance network.  It's format is adult contemporary hit radio and although likely to repeat some songs, it isn't to an irritating extent.  Special shows include 'Dancing In The City' 'classic disco' with Paul Bryant on a Saturday.  The CD countdown which is broadcast as an alternative to Dr. Fox's Pepsi Chart or Radio 1's TOP 40, and ex-100.7 Breakfast duo Hannah Cox & Stephen Bumfrey present the 'Packed Lunch' at the weekends, also from the sister London station where they both moved a short time ago.  Living in the same city as BRMB, some presenters have crossed over to Heart-FM, for example, Phil Upton, Carlos (Carl Emms - ex Piccadilly Radio, Manchester) and Paul Bryant, but some presenters, such as Nick Piercy, have been at Heart-FM since the station launched. (The London sister station is slightly more up-tempo than it's East Midlands counterpart, and home to more celebrity based names, in line with life in the Capital.)  Superb coverage across the East Midlands on the powerful 100.7FM frequency. Phil Upton has recently (2003) moved back to BRMB.   Visit the 'AIRCHECK ARCHIVE' for recordings of 'test transmissions and the station's launch with Nick Wright.

Air-date 06/09/94        website: www.heart.co.uk (covers all Heart stations)

Crammed in between Centre FM (102.4) & another station at 102.8 (Ed's editorial licence - unable to remember name of station) Signal is a mainstay in local radio history, and has always maintained it's quality of service.  Featuring the best of today's music, there's also regular 'flashbacks' to great 1980s memories.  Regular OBs from local attractions feature, there are also open invitations to pick the music.  Listening area (with suitable equipment) spans from East of Derby to Liverpool.  Begins to get interference from neighbouring stations on the dial just prior to the M1 at Junction 24, and around Liverpool City Centre.

Air-date 05/09/83        website: www.signal1.co.uk

Broadcasting as an RSL outfit as recently as 1996 as Radio Mansfield.  'Music for you'. Again, remembering a lot more tracks that others have forgotten.  Radio Mansfield benefited hugely from a permanent studio set up, which Mansfield 103.2 were said to inherit.  It is not thought that anyone from the Radio Mansfield set up continued after the licence was won.  Listening possible from M1 Junction 25 upwards through the actual coverage area and just prior to the Chesterfield turn.  Other directional listening qualities not known.  Ex-Trent and Radio 106 presenter Tony Delahunty is Programme Controller.

Air-date 01/02/99        website: not known:

'From The Humber to The Wash' & 'Hits & Memories'.  Originally just a mere ILR station on it's own, and now over 10 years old (not many stations seem capable of saying that nowadays!) Lincs-FM is the mother station to the Lincs-FM group which has stations in Lincs, Notts & Leics, (but not Derbyshire yet unfortunately! Ed)  Lincs FM was the home to David Lloyd after his days with Trent and before Century in Nottingham.  It's audience figures are superb, with only one major local competitor BBC Radio Lincolnshire.  Truly awesome in music variety and personality, and hasn't really changed a bit since it started.  Everywhere you go in Lincolnshire, you'll undoubtedly hear Lincs FM on radios in shops, pubs and factories.  Ex-Trent/GEM jock Paul Robey still believed to be involved within the management group LINCS FM plc.  Local ex-hospital radio presenter Sean Dunderdale has been a programme and news presenter for some time now, and the station was the home of David Lloyd after he left Radio Trent in Nottingham.   Lincs FM group now also own TRAX-FM in North Notts, and Rutland Radio & Fosseway Radio in nearby Leicestershire, as well as other regional stations Compass FM (Grimsby) & Ridings FM.  The Lincs FM group unsuccessfully bid for the Rugby franchise, which was won by Rugby FM, but this is unlikely to phase the management who certainly know what real local radio is all about.  They were unsuccessful in their bid for the second East Midlands Regional Licence with a country station, Route FM.  Lincs FM makes driving further into their broadcast area along the A52 (holidays in Skegness) a delight!  Reception is OK around some parts of Nottingham, up the M1 from Junction 25 onwards, and southbound around Loughborough & Charnwood.  Previously Choice FM 102.2, now Galaxy 102.2 from Birmingham has put a stop to reasonable reception in East Derby, but die-hards will put up with it to great extents.

Lincs-FM Air date: 01/03/1992    website: www.lincsfm.co.uk

Your life, your music'.  The second West Midlands Regional station which launched 16/10/01, is owned and run by the Saga group, with it's radio division fronted by Mr. Radio Trent, and ex-Radio 106 front man Ron Coles.  Having successfully bid for the licence, they entered the bidding for the second East Midlands Regional in addition to 106 Century FM and won.  As a result, SAGA 106.6 will come on air (101.4 for Derbyshire) in early 2003. See our news pages for more information. SAGA have also entered the running for an AM licence in London and they have expressed interest in a licence for Lincoln.  SAGA's sister station appears on the Digital radio and SKY digital network called PRIMETIME and Edinburgh & Glasgow also have SAGA Radio on the local digital multiplex.  SAGA appeals to a new radio audience, i.e. the older generation, who have previously been out in the radio wilderness with no targeted radio station in particular.  Music spans from the 1930s to easy listening of today, including specialist shows.  'Diddy' David Hamilton presented the Breakfast Show but moved to the East Midlands sister station from February 2003, and was replaced in Birmingham by Les Ross,  ex-Classic FM presenter Jane Markham on mornings, ex-Trent / GEM /Century presenter Andy Marriott on afternoons, and ex-Heart presenter Mike Baker on drivetime.  Tony Lyman (ex Gem/Century), started with the West Midlands station, but he's now moved back to the East Midlands to sister station SAGA 106.6.  SAGA 105.7FM features broadcasting legend Tony Brandon at weekends.  SAGA is a pleasurable listening experience if you like something different or it's music format appeals to you.   Whilst some small quantities of programming is shared with it's East Mids sister station, it's fun to jump between the two to see what's they're doing, or listen longer to 105.7FM.

Air-date: 16/10/2001    website: www.saga1057.co.uk or www.saga.co.uk/radio

Previously 'The big mix of the best songs' 107 Oak-FM now uses the strapline 'The best songs, the big news' and calls itself OAK 107,  Irrespective of name, this is also a small scale alternative local licence station, which brands itself as 'music, news and community information'.  Another good music mix again going back to the 1980s up to today.  It has gained quite a following in it's short time on air.  Oak-FM has also subscribed to and broadcast David Jensen's CD Countdown in place of the Commercial Radio Dr. Fox Pepsi Chart.  The 'Kid's' show was deemed more suitable for it's target audience maybe!  The great Steve Merike was once Programme Director at the station.  The station is one of the portfolio of the CN Group which also includes Centre-FM (see above)

Air-date: 14/02/1999    website: www.oak.fm

Experienced on a recent trip to the region, KCR was first noticed on the back of local buses run by local company GTL.  KCR stands for Knowsley Community Radio, and KCR is what Community Radio should be.  To the trained ear, this is definitely a station of this format with presenters that talk to you in a friendly, but still radio based voice.  There were definitely some cheesy jingles in there with the presenter I heard playing them in to react to as a 'funny' but this wasn't unpleasant to listen to and rather restored your faith in real local radio run by real people.  Music variety is diverse with the evident versatility to play a wide range of stuff on demand.  Interesting and challenging competitions were heard, and there was an interesting use of IRN.  The local newsreader used the IRN newsreader as a co-host with one story from one and then the other giving a mix of local, national and international news in the usual 2-3 minutes.   Very good signal for what must be a community station.   Heard as far away as the M62 junction with the M6.

KCR 106.7 FM is the Independent Commercial Radio Station for the Borough of Knowsley and surrounding areas and was launched on June 16th 2001. and provides a truly local service to a population of over 150,000 people in areas including Kirby, Huyton, Prescot, Whiston, Aintree, and Maghull.

With local news, sport, traffic & travel and weather, KCR 106.7 FM is the only FM station in the Northwest playing a wide mix of music from the 1960's right through to the current chart hits. KCR broadcasts 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from it's purpose built studio complex on the Cables Retail Park in Prescot.

Air-date 16/06/2001        website: www.kcr.fm

Arguably the Midlands best Gold station. As the name would suggest, this station is part of the Capital Radio Network,  'GOLD' took over the AM frequency from XTRA-AM, the original and highly popular local gold and sports station which was created by Midlands Radio Group about the same time as GEM-AM.   XTRA was brought from GWR when the latter took over Midlands Radio, and was re-launched as Capital Gold Birmingham to much local and regional dismay.  Capital jumped at the chance to buy the station to make up it's 'capital cities portfolio'.  Capital Gold isn't afraid to admit it's not always local, which makes putting up with it bearable.  Tom Ross is on the local breakfast show, but otherwise, most other programming is networked from London. Night-time listening from distance is is difficult due to this and general problems with 'bleed' from the continent.  OK during the day as with a lot of AM frequencies.

Air-date 04/04/1989 (as XTRA-AM)    website: www.capitalgold.com

Breakfast is now fronted by Elliott Webb although for almost 27 years, it was fronted by West Midlands radio stalwart and all round funny man Les Ross.  Les was with BRMB then XTRA-AM then back to BRMB to be at his arguable best with Suzi Becker as co-host.  (Suzi, previously a presenter on Central TV's 'Our House' joined Capital Gold in London due to personal commitments.)  BRMB has spent many years in old ATV studios in the centre of Birmingham.  Some presenters moved to Heart-FM after the West Midlands regional had established itself.  BRMB was one of the first ILR stations to come on air outside London, alongside Radio Trent in Nottingham and LBC in London.  Latterly, BRMB became part of the Midlands Radio Group, then GWR when they took Midlands Radio over, who quickly sold it to Capital Radio along with XTRA-AM (see above).  BRMB is Capital Radio at it's best.  Reception is OK around parts of Derby, especially from the A38.

Air-date 19/02/1974   website: www.brmb.co.uk

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