BBC Radio Merseyside

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

BBC Radio Merseyside
City of license	Liverpool
Broadcast area	Merseyside and northern Cheshire
Frequency	95.8 MHz, 1458 kHz, DAB
First air date	22 November 1967
Format	Local news, sport, talk and music
Language	English
Audience share	13.4% (March 2009, [1])
Owner	BBC Local Radio, BBC North West
Website	BBC Radio Merseyside

BBC Radio Merseyside is the BBC Local Radio service for the English metropolitan county of Merseyside and north Cheshire. It was the third BBC local radio station to launch on 22 November 1967.

[edit] Technical

BBC Radio Merseyside broadcasts from its studios in Hanover St, Liverpool on 95.8 MHz (Allerton Park) , 1485 kHz(Wallasey)and DAB.

The Allerton Park transmitter also transmits Radio City on 96.7 MHz. Both have the same coverage. DAB signals come from the EMAP Digital EMAP Liverpool 11B multiplex] from Billinge Hill (strongest signal, near Billinge between St Helens and Wigan), Hope Mountain (between Buckley and Wrexham) and St. John's Beacon (on top of Radio City's studios). EMAP owns Radio City. BBC DAB National comes from Moel-y-Parc (the main television transmitter for North Wales) in Flintshire, which also has Digital One, and the MXR North West 12C multiplex.

On 15th July 2006, BBC Radio Merseyside moved from its former home in Paradise Street, Liverpool, to a new purpose-built studio building on the corner of Hanover Street and College Lane in Liverpool. This building has three ground-floor studios next to a public performance space. An open learning centre is on the first floor and the main office is on the second floor.

[edit] Staff

The Managing Editor is Mick Ord. For ten months from July 2007, Ord stood down from his role for to coordinate the BBC's response to Liverpool's year as European Capital of Culture, and Phil Roberts was Acting Editor, until he was appointed as Head of the BBC in the North East and Cumbria. The Assistant Editor is Jonathan Hallewell.

[edit] Presenters

[edit] Sports presenters

Station jingles, trailers and promos are voiced by former North West Tonight presenter John Mundy.

[edit] Former presenters

[edit] Programming

BBC Radio Merseyside broadcasts from 5am until 1am each weekday, 6am until 1am on Saturday and 6am until 2am on Sunday, though formerly it shared evening and late night programming with other BBC local radio stations in the North West and the BBC Night Network. The first programme from the new studios was presented by Ian Kenyon.

Radio Five Live's overnight programme Up All Night is simulcast every night after closedown. At weekends, the early morning news programme Morning Reports is also simulcast.

[edit] Weekday line-up

Radio Merseyside's weekday output opens at 5am with Steve Coleman proceeding the breakfast show, Tony Snell in the Morning, broadcast from 6-10am. Sean Styles presents the mid-morning show from 10am to 12pm when Roger Phillips's lunchtime phone-in goes to air. Billy Butler presents an afternoon show from 2-5pm, followed by Drive with Claire Hamilton from 5pm. Merseyside Sport airs each weeknight from 7pm ahead of hour-long specialist programmes from 9pm:

Monday: Orient Express
Tuesday/Thursday: Folkscene
Wednesday: Phillips Xtra
Friday: Open House

The late show with Linda McDermott airs from 10pm until 1am when Radio Merseyside closes down and hands over to Radio 5 Live's Up All Night as a sustaining programme.

[edit] Saturdays

Radio Merseyside stays with Radio 5 Live for the early morning news programme Morning Reports from 5am before local output commences at 6am with Andy Ball's Saturday breakfast show. Billy Butler hosts a weekend show from 9:30am before Merseyside Sport coverage starts at around 12:00pm (during the football season). Specialist music show On the Beat at 6:30pm and black community programme UpFront at 8pm proceed Billy Maher's late show at 10pm. The station closes at 1am, handing over to Radio 5 Live's Up All Night.

[edit] Sundays

After a simulcast of Radio 5 Live's Morning Reports at 5am, Radio Merseyside opens at 6am with the religious breakfast programme Daybreak with Wayne Clarke at 6am. Maureen Walsh presents a mid-morning show from 9:05am until 11am when Sean Styles and Willie Miller go to air. Nickie Mackay and Helen Jones present from 1-3pm (pending on football commentary) and Frankie Connor presents a nostalgia show from 3-5pm, followed by The Phillips Hour at 5pm. Kenny Johnson presents Sound Country at 6pm, followed by the local rock show The Pool with Dave Monks at 8pm. Billy Maher's late show broadcasts from 10pm until midnight when Roger Hill presents the alternative music programme PMS. The station closes at 1am, handing over to Radio 5 Live's Up All Night.

[edit] Controversy

During a breakfast show on 25 June 2007, presenter Simon O'Brien accidentally broadcast an unedited interview in which he said, "fuck the government, fuck the planners". O'Brien resigned from the station later in the day. He now presents the Saturday breakfast show on talk radio station City Talk 105.9 in Liverpool. City Talk later used the now infamous phrase that led to his resignation as part of their marketing for the station.

[edit] External links

• BBC Radio Merseyside
• North West Radio
• History of local radio in Merseyside
• MDS975's Transmitter map.
• Allerton transmitter 95.8 MHz
• Hope Mountain (Digital)
• Wallasey transmitter 1485 KHz Mediumwave