JockFest speaker Robin happy with League 1

We might be in League One but out of the speakers we are the European Champions, says Robin Banks at Star Radio NE.

Robin Banks has recently celebrated the history of TFM on his Star morning show, and hired a presenter who blogged about joining a radio station ‘a couple of leagues below’ what he’s used to.

But Robin takes it all in his stride and is looking forward to talking about recent controversies at the upcoming JockFest event, Alton Towers, Saturday 18th May.

In advance of the session he’s part of, we asked him a couple of questions to give you an idea of what to expect at JockFest.

On your breakfast show you apparently went on and on about TFM ‘closing down’. Some people are saying you shouldn’t be promoting the competition. What do you say to them?

What I say to those people is 1. You probably didn’t hear it – and are reading things on the internet and Facebook about how terrible it is.

It’d be really easy of me to say we’ve won the battle and isn’t Star great – but no, I didn’t do that. Everybody in our market knows about the station so why not remember the great TFM as it was, and also tell my audience what’s happening instead of what Bauer seem to have done which is say they’ve done extensive market research within the TSA and created the new TFM.

Really? I’ve been in radio 30 years – you might as well put up a listener comment line. Tell us what you want from the radio station and we’ll do it when you know what your changes are going to be anyway.

And 2. I am the small guy at the small radio station in the market and if you think for one second I can’t mention my main competitor and give them a bit of stick on the radio for what they’ve done then you have zero clue about marketing, talk-ability and engaging and different radio. Everybody needs to know what Bauer have done. And that is they’ve made TFM a relay of Metro Radio. The whole reason for mentioning them was a) tell the audience what’s happening they think you’re stupid, and b) for Bauer to come clean saying they are relaying Metro Radio.

Have you seen their websites? They’re exactly the same! Either come clean or sell TFM to us. And this isn’t a PR stunt because we’ll buy it and either merge it into Star and be really open about what we’re doing or we’ll bring TFM back and it will remain TFM for Teesside and not TFM for Toon.

Ditchy starts next week. He blogged about joining you saying it was like going from the Premier League to Division One. How do you feel about that?

I’ve got to admit when I first read Ditchy’s blog I was a bit disheartended and had my head in my hands but you know something, what he’s saying is completly true and I can understand that. He has worked for the big radio stations and if you use the football analogy, he has worked at Key and City which he said are in the Premier League, Radio Aire in the Championship and to be honest this little radio station in Darlington serving the north east would be in league one if you use the football analogy.

Ditchy goes on in his blog to say that is in no way a critism of the radio station in size, it’s nowhere near the big boys, one day it hopes to be, but not yet.

So what he’s saying is actually true. I’ve been after Ditchy for ages, in fact I offered him a job at the radio station before I even started on December 17th 2012 and I’m delighted.

We may be as Ditchy puts it in League One but out of the speakers, we are the European champions!

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Robin is part of the panel at JockFest called PD Tips – four programme directors sharing their secrets in an open and honest discussion.

Other sessions include a fun session on audio – from jingles to outtakes and much more, including how to make much needed extra money out of doing creative things with audio. Plus, we’ve a headline interview with Jon Holmes and a fantastic session on how to keep your breakfast show online 24 hours a day by Capital FM Yorkshire’s Simon Hirst and his Producer Scott Myers.

We’ve dropped the price of the twin and double rooms to £99 so take another look at jockfest.co.uk for all the details.

Pop it in your diary, May 18/19, Alton Towers. Hope to see you there?