Broadcast area | Bristol, Somerset, Bath, West Dorset and Wiltshire |
---|---|
Frequency | FM:
DAB: 11C Arqiva Swindon and Witney ContentsBath, Chippenham and Warminster |
Branding | This is Heart |
Programming | |
Format | Hot Adult Contemporary |
Ownership | |
Owner | Global |
Links | |
Website | Heart West Country |
Heart West Country was a regional radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network, broadcasting to Bristol and Somerset.
It launched on 16 July 2010 as a result of a merger between Heart Bristol (formerly GWR FM), Heart Bath (formerly GWR FM Bath) and Heart Somerset (formerly Orchard FM).
The regional station originally broadcast as three separate stations – GWR FM began broadcasting to Bristol in October 1985, following a merger between Radio West and Swindon's Wiltshire Radio. Two years later, GWR launched a separate service for the Bath area (although some local programming was simulcast with GWR Bristol). Meanwhile, Orchard FM began broadcasting to Somerset in November 1989 – the station was bought out by GWR Group as part of its acquisition of the Orchard Media Group ten years later.
In 2005, the GWR Group merged with Capital Radio to form GCap Media – shortly afterwards, Orchard FM and ten other stations (outside of the company's primary target area) were put on sale. The sale was called off a few months later because of lower than expected bids. [1] In November 2008, GCap was taken over by Global Radio.
GWR in Bristol & Bath and Orchard FM were rebranded as Heart on 23 March 2009. On 21 June 2010, Global Radio announced it would merge the three stations as part of plans to reduce the Heart network of stations from 33 to 16. [2] The new station began broadcasting from the 'West Country Broadcast Centre' in Bristol on Friday 16 July 2010, leading to the closure of studios in Taunton. [3]
On 26 February 2019, Global announced Heart West Country would be merged with three sister stations in Devon and Cornwall, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire. [4]
From 3 June 2019, local output will consist of a three-hour regional Drivetime show on weekdays, alongside localised news bulletins, traffic updates and advertising. [5] Local breakfast and weekend shows were with network programming from London.
Heart West began broadcasting regional programming from the Bristol studios on 3 June 2019. [6]
Heart Somerset was an Independent Local Radio station serving Somerset, England. Originally owned by Orchard Media Ltd, the company was purchased by GWR Group in 1999, and subsequently became owned by GCap Media in 2005. Somerset's Orchard FM broadcast from studios at Haygrove House at Shoreditch near Taunton Racecourse, Taunton, adjacent to the M5.
Heart Gloucestershire was an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Gloucestershire from studios in Gloucester.
Heart North Devon was an Independent Local Radio station in North Devon.
Heart Hertfordshire is an Independent Local Radio station owned by Communicorp UK and operated by Global as part of the Heart network. It broadcasts across Hertfordshire from studios in Watford.
Heart 96.3 was an Independent Local Radio station serving Bristol and surrounding areas and broadcasting on 96.3 MHz in Bristol and Weston-super-Mare. Launched in 1981 as Radio West, it was merged with neighbouring Wiltshire Radio and relaunched under the name GWR in 1985, retaining the name through several changes of ownership until rebranding in March 2009. Heart Bristol merged with sister stations in Somerset and Bath to form Heart West Country.
Heart Wiltshire was an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to north and west Wiltshire. The station was rebranded to Heart in March 2009 in line with Global Radio's rebranding of most of the One Network, which the station was part of. Its local competitors were Sam FM, BBC Wiltshire and community radio station, Swindon 105.5.
GWR FM was a network of three radio stations in the south west of England broadcasting to Bristol, Bath, Wiltshire and surrounding areas. All three stations were rebranded and joined the Heart Network on 23 March 2009.
GCap Media was a British commercial radio company formed from the merger of the Capital Radio Group and GWR Group. The merger was completed in May 2005. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. On 31 March 2008 the company agreed a takeover by Global Radio for £375 million. This was completed on 6 June 2008, and the company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Global Radio.
Heart is a British radio network and brand of 13 adult contemporary local stations operated by Global throughout the United Kingdom, broadcasting a mix of local and networked programming. Ten of the Heart stations are owned by Global, while the other three are operated under franchise agreements. The national version of the network is widely available on Global Player, Freeview, Sky, Freesat, Virgin Media and Digital One DAB.
Heart 103 was an Independent Local Radio station serving Bath in Somerset, England, broadcasting on 103 MHz FM, on DAB Digital radio and online.
Heart Thames Valley was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Berkshire, Oxfordshire, north Hampshire and parts of west Buckinghamshire from studios in Reading, southern England.
Heart Cambridgeshire was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire and eastern Northamptonshire and parts of surrounding counties from studios in Cambridge.
Heart Four Counties was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Northamptonshire.
Heart Essex was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Essex and East Hertfordshire from studios in Chelmsford.
Heart Sussex and Surrey was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Sussex and Surrey from studios in the Portslade area of Brighton.
Heart South West was a regional radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Devon and Cornwall from studios in Exeter.
A timeline of notable events relating to Heart, a 22-strong network of adult contemporary commercial radio stations operated by Global.
Heart East is a regional radio station owned and operated by Global as part of the Heart network. It broadcasts to the East of England from studios in Milton Keynes.
Heart South is a regional radio station owned and operated by Global as part of the Heart network. It broadcasts to the south and south east of England from studios in Fareham, Hampshire.
Heart West is a regional radio station owned and operated by Global as part of the Heart network. It broadcasts in South West England, South Wales, Herefordshire, Malvern and Malvern Hills from studios in Bristol.
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