Tag: brmb
Les Ross returns to radio in Birmingham
Les Ross, former BRMB, WM and SAGA presenter in the West Midlands is returning to air on community radio station Big City Radio.
Global Radio on the move in Birmingham
Global Radio is to move Heart and Capital to a new location in Birmingham – just yards away from its current base in Broad Street.
Butler retires from West Midlands radio
West Midlands radio legend Tony Butler is retiring after a career as old as commercial radio itself.
Global leads Arqivas nomination shortlists
Global Radio has 15 nominations for this year’s Arqiva Commercial Radio Awards, including seven for Capital FM which goes up against Absolute Radio and Bauer’s Radio City 96.7 for Station of the Year.
Bauer has 13 nominations and Absolute has 11, while GMG Radio receives seven nominations.
Ed James marks 10 years on Heart breakfast
Heart West Midlands presenter Ed James has celebrated his 10th anniversary on the station’s breakfast show with a lamb, a private plane and his face on a cake.
Ed took over from Daryl Denham on the show in April 2002 and has co-hosted the morning slot with Hellon Wheels (Helen Kennedy), Sarah-Jane Mee and now Rachel New.
Graham Mack band raises £15k for charity
BBC Radio Wiltshire presenter Graham Mack has helped raise more than £15,000 over the last year after forming a band on the air.
The former BRMB and TFM host, who now does the Swindon breakfast show for the BBC, is joined in the group by the Chief Executive of the local council.
Winners of IRN News Awards 2012 revealed
Bauer and GMG Radio have won three awards each at this year’s IRN News Awards, with Orion Media’s stations picking up two and Jack FM Oxfordshire taking the other.
Key 103 Head of News John Pickford was honoured with a special IRN Gold Award, recognising more than three decades as a journalist.
Orion stations morph into Free Radio
Four heritage brands in the Midlands have become Free Radio this week, as names like brmb, Mercia, Wyvern and Beacon disappear from the radio dial.
Owners Orion Media have made the move to enable a bigger share of national advertising revenues and make the stations easier to market together.
Feature: Radio brands go local in 2012
Three years on, is anyone actually still missing Plymouth Sound, Fox FM or SGR? After a period of major consolidation in our industry followed by re-positioning by the big boys, we’re entering the next phase for UK radio brands: regional and local ones.
In a special feature, Radio Today Editor Stuart Clarkson takes a look at what Orion, UTV and Celador are doing to keep up with the Global Radio brands dominating some of their patches.
Phil Upton to leave BBC WM breakfast
Former BRMB and Heart presenter Phil Upton is stepping down as host of the BBC local radio breakfast show for the West Midlands.
He’ll leave the BBC WM morning show at the end of next month after more than five years on air.
brmb Walkathon re-named Walk for Harry
The brmb annual fundraising Walkathon has been renamed this year in tribute to an inspirational fundraiser.
The bravery of Harry Moseley is remembered as he tirelessly raised funds for Cancer Research while battling his own brain cancer touched everyone’s hearts.
GMG Radio leads IRN Award nominations
GMG Radio news teams and reporters have received 8 nominations for this year’s commercial radio news awards.
It comes just a fortnight after the group announced plans to scale back its news operation with redundancies likely across their regional stations.
Feature: Orion’s Phil Riley on Free Radio
The Chief Executive of Orion Media has told Radio Today that rebranding four West Midlands stations as Free Radio is about enticing new listeners, delivering value for money and improving national sales revenues.
Phil Riley defended the decision to say goodbye to heritage radio brands BRMB, Mercia, Beacon and Wyvern and suggested that the new name would grow on people over time.
brmb, Mercia, Beacon, Wyvern to be Free
Orion Media is to rebrand Birmingham station brmb as Free Radio from April this year, along with Mercia, Beacon and Wyvern.
The group says peak time output will remain local on the stations with no redundancies as a result.
Steps’ Lisa joins UK radio duo in Dubai
Dubai-based Steps singer Lisa Scott-Lee is joining the drivetime team at one of the city’s radio stations.
She’s teaming up with former GCap presenters Tom Bushell and Dan Marsh on the Sunday to Thursday 4-8pm slot on Dubai 92 in the UAE.
Orion radio duo join Dancing on Ice
Orion Media weekend presenters Sam and Mark are taking part in this year’s ITV reality show Dancing on Ice and will compete against each other on the series.
The boys do Sunday mornings on the group’s network of stations comprising BRMB, Beacon, Mercia, Wyvern and Gem 106.
Neil Carter comes home for Christmas
Christmas will be all the more special for radio presenter Neil Carter this year, as he’s just moved back to the UK after 11 years on the air around the world with BFBS.
The former BRMB jock, who joined the Forces Broadcaster in 2000, is now taking up a role as a UK-based presented on the network’s DAB station.
Room named after brmb presenter Ross
Birmingham radio presenter Les Ross has officially opened the “Les Ross Room” at Orion Media’s brmb on Broad Street.
The room, one of the station’s meeting spaces for clients and guests, has been refurbished and decorated in memorabilia stretching back over the station’s nearly four decades on air.
Orion Media moves Mercia to Birmingham
A number of changes have been announced to staff at Orion Media this week, including moving Mercia out of Coventry to co-locate with BRMB at Brindley Place in Birmingham and share mid-mornings.
Beacon is also on the move, leaving Tettenhall Road after 35 years in favour of a less expensive out-of-town unit.
BRMB raises £414k in a day
This year’s BRMB Walkathon has raised £414,845 for charity, after 10,000 listeners signed up to walk all or part of the twenty six miles around the circumference of Birmingham.
The money will be delivered to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
