Suffolk Group Radio

Last updated

Suffolk Group Radio was the parent company for two Independent Local Radio stations serving the county of Suffolk in England. [1] [2]

Contents

The Stations

Radio Orwell began transmissions from Electric House, Ipswich on 28 October 1975. It was one of the original group of ILR stations set up by the Independent Broadcasting Authority following a relaxation of the rules governing broadcasting in Britain. Other stations that were included in the original 19 were LBC, Capital Radio and BRMB.

The western side of Suffolk got its own radio station in the form of Saxon Radio, which began broadcasting in Bury St Edmunds on 6 November 1982. [3]

Programmes

The two stations operated with separate breakfast shows and other programmes were networked from either site to both transmitters. Most of the programmes came from the Electric House studios in Ipswich and a few came from Bury St Edmunds' Long Brackland studios.

In 1984-85, the stations experimented with a drive-time news and current affairs programme ("The Home Run") which had presenters in both studios - Allan Lee in Ipswich and Adrienne Rosen in Bury. This proved too expensive to continue for long and the programme was cut back to one presenter in the Ipswich studio.

Take overs

In 1990, Norwich-based station Radio Broadland took over Orwell and Saxon and to reflect the addition of these new stations, the company became East Anglian Radio. The new group re-launched Orwell and Saxon as one station under the name of SGR FM in 1992 and the following year, the station moved from its original studios in the centre of Ipswich to a brand new base on the outskirts of the town. The studio and offices in Bury St Edmunds were then closed.

EAR also launched a sister station to SGR in 1993 named SGR Colchester after successfully applying for the broadcast licence. The Ipswich station provided programmes which were shared during offpeak times with SGR Colchester.

In 1995, the decision was made by East Anglian Radio to make better use of its AM frequencies and Amber Radio was created to play 60s and 70s music from its studios in Ipswich and also Norwich. Amber operated on the AM transmitters previously used by the SGR stations to simulcast. [4]

Then in 1996, the East Anglian Radio was bought by the GWR Group, which later became GCap Media and then Global Radio. [5] [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suffolk</span> County of England

Suffolk is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Anglia</span> Region of England

East Anglia is an area in the East of England. It comprises the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, with Cambridgeshire and Essex also included in some definitions. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the East Angles, a people whose name originated in Anglia, in what is now Northern Germany.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart Norwich</span> Radio station in Norwich

Heart Norwich was an Independent Local Radio station for Norfolk and North Suffolk, including Norwich, Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft, until early 2009. The station, now part of the national Heart Network, is owned and operated by Global Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart Ipswich</span> Radio station in Ipswich & Bury St Edmunds

Heart Ipswich was an Independent Local Radio station that evolved from Suffolk Group Radio, which was the parent company for two Independent radio stations serving the county of Suffolk in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart Colchester</span> Radio station in Colchester

Heart Colchester was an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Colchester and the surrounding areas. The station was launched in 1993 as SGR Colchester by the East Anglian Radio group, which also operated the Ipswich-based SGR-FM, Radio Broadland in Norwich, and Amber Radio across Suffolk and Norfolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Beach (UK radio station)</span> Radio station in Lowestoft, Suffolk

The Beach was an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to the Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft areas. It used to broadcast from studios in Norwich and Ipswich. Before that it broadcast from studios at the junction of Hollingsworth Road and Oulton Road, in Lowestoft, Suffolk until 8 January 2017 when it was transferred to central hubs in Norwich and Ipswich along with sister stations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dream 100 FM</span> Radio station in Colchester

Dream 100 was an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer. It broadcast to Tendring and Essex from studios in Colchester and Ipswich, airing the same music programming as sister station Town 102.

North Norfolk Radio was an Independent Local Radio station in North Norfolk, England, owned and operated by Bauer Radio as part of the Greatest Hits Radio network. It was closed on 1 September 2020 and merged with Greatest Hits Radio Norfolk & North Suffolk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stowmarket</span> Human settlement in England

Stowmarket is a market town in Suffolk, England, on the busy A14 trunk road between Bury St Edmunds to the west and Ipswich to the southeast. The town is on the main railway line between London and Norwich, and lies on the River Gipping, which is joined by its tributary, the River Rat, to the south of the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GCap Media</span> British radio broadcasting company

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.

Greatest Hits Radio Norfolk & North Suffolk (Norwich) is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer, broadcasting to Norwich and the surrounding area. The station was merged with North Norfolk Radio and The Beach and became Greatest Hits Radio Norfolk and North Suffolk.

Town 102 was an Independent Local Radio station serving Ipswich that was owned by Tindle Radio, Anglian Radio Group and Bauer Radio. It broadcast from 2006 to 2020.

East Anglian Radio was a company based in Norwich that operated 3 Independent Local Radio stations in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex in the UK.

Amber Radio was originally a classic hits/gold radio station operating from studios in both Norwich and Ipswich, in the region of East Anglia in the United Kingdom. It was the AM sister station of Radio Broadland and SGR and served Norfolk and Suffolk, covering a population of over a million for several years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart Essex (regional)</span> Radio station in Chelmsford

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.

The East Anglian League was a football league in the East Anglia region of England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart East Anglia</span> Radio station in Norwich

Heart East Anglia was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Norfolk and Suffolk from studios in Norwich.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kiss 105-108</span> Radio station in London

Kiss 105-108 was an Independent Local Radio station serving East Anglia from the Kiss Network. All programming after 2010 was networked from the national station KISS.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heart East</span> Regional radio station in Milton Keynes, England

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Actual Radio</span> Radio station in Colchester

Actual Radio, Colchester is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Colchester & North East Essex in the United Kingdom. The station was started as a concept in 2014 by Pete Chapman, a former Essex FM presenter. The company was formed in 2016 and launched in Colchester on the 1st January 2017. On 8 September 2020, Actual Radio launched on the Essex DAB Multiplex.

References

  1. ↑ "Contact and licence details" . Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  2. ↑ "Contact details" . Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  3. ↑ "Air dates of original IBA-awarded contracts" . Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  4. ↑ "Brief details of Orwell and Saxon acquisition" . Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  5. ↑ "History of GWR" . Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  6. ↑ "Details of Broadlands take over of Orwell and Saxon and GWRs take over of East Anglian Radio Group". Archived from the original on 30 December 2008. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.