Capital London is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by the Global media company as part of its national Capital FM Network. As Capital Radio it was launched in the London area in 1973 as one of Britain's first two commercial radio stations. Its brief was to entertain, while its opposite number, London Broadcasting (LBC), was licensed to provide news and information. In search of a larger audience in 1974, Capital Radio rapidly moved from a general and entertainment station with drama, features, documentaries and light music to a more successful pop music-based format.
BBC Radio Oxford is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Oxfordshire.
BBC Essex is the BBC's local radio station serving the county of Essex.
Heart Berkshire was an Independent Local Radio station, serving Berkshire and North Hampshire from studios in Reading.
Heart Kent was an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Kent from studios at John Wilson Business Park in Whitstable.
Heart Sussex was an Independent Local Radio station which was owned by Global Radio and played commercial, chart-oriented popular music. Broadcast and managed from studios and offices in Portslade, Brighton and Crawley, the station played a mix of pop, rock and RnB with the overall tag line being 'The station for Sussex and Surrey' – replacing Mercury FM.
The Breeze (Bristol) was an Independent Local Radio station serving Bristol.
County Sound Radio was an analogue commercial radio station covering Surrey and north-east Hampshire in the United Kingdom. One of its closing forms in 2012–2014 formed Eagle Extra occupying 1566 MW following an internal split between older and newer music/features into two allied stations in 1988 and an incomplete takeover by Mercury FM then sale leaving a third station, that of Mercury, with enhanced coverage of this area and its successor Heart Sussex and Surrey. The post-1988 branch of the radio which was rooted in recent music, concerts and events in the area including for a younger audience alternated between three FM frequencies ; in 1996 it relaunched as 96.4 Eagle Radio.
Australian radio audiences have had virtually no exposure to pirate radio. There were no broadcasts as part of the World War II propaganda campaigns and commercial as well as community stations alongside the taxpayer funded Australian Broadcasting Corporation were available during the mid to late 1980s and early 1990s - a period when the UK was experiencing a surge in illegal broadcasts during the early days of acid house and the Second Summer of Love. The absence of pirate radio in Australia is primarily attributed to the relatively large number of commercial licences that were issued, particularly after World War 2, as well as the existence of public non-commercial broadcasting licences supported mainly by listener subscription. Additionally, the lack of availability of imported broadcasting equipment and the likely application of severe, legislated penalties including jail for offenders, would also have been a factor.
Pirate radio in Ireland has had a long history, with hundreds of pirate radio stations having operated within the country.
Greatest Hits Radio Manchester & The North West is an Independent Local Radio station based in Manchester, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester and North West England.
FM broadcasting is a method of radio broadcasting that uses frequency modulation (FM) of the radio broadcast carrier wave. Invented in 1933 by American engineer Edwin Armstrong, wide-band FM is used worldwide to transmit high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. FM broadcasting offers higher fidelity—more accurate reproduction of the original program sound—than other broadcasting techniques, such as AM broadcasting. It is also less susceptible to common forms of interference, having less static and popping sounds than are often heard on AM. Therefore, FM is used for most broadcasts of music and general audio. FM radio stations use the very high frequency range of radio frequencies.
Radio enjoys a huge following in the United Kingdom. There are around 600 licensed radio stations in the country. For a more comprehensive list see List of radio stations in the United Kingdom.
Radio Nova was a pirate radio station broadcasting from Dublin, Ireland. Owned and operated by the UK pirate radio veteran Chris Cary, the station's first broadcasts were during the summer of 1981 on 88.5 MHz FM and 819 kHz AM.
WLR FM, or more commonly WLR is the local radio station covering Waterford City and County, Ireland. It is Ireland's Local Station of the Year 2019, 2020, 2021 & 2022. In addition to the official franchise area, the station also enjoys a considerable listenership in South County Kilkenny and East County Cork. Licensed by the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland since 1989, WLR had previously been a pirate radio station.
FM sound broadcasting began in the United Kingdom on 2 May 1955 when the BBC started an FM broadcasting service the Light Programme, the Third Programme and the Home Service to the south east of England. There are now over 40 BBC and over 250 commercial FM sound broadcasting stations in the United Kingdom.
Radio Victory was the Independent Local Radio (ILR) station for Portsmouth in southern England. It was launched on 14 October 1975 and served south Hampshire, West Sussex and the Isle of Wight initially until 1986, with various later reincarnations. It took its name from the famous historic ship HMS Victory which is preserved at Portsmouth.
This is a timeline of the development of radio in London.
