Hospital Radio Plymouth

Infobox Radio Station
name = Hospital Radio Plymouth


area = Derriford Hospital and The Royal Eye Infirmary (Plymouth)
airdate = 1969
frequency = FM: 87.7 MHz
format = Hospital
owner = -
website = [http://www.hospitalradioplymouth.org.uk]

Hospital Radio Plymouth is a hospital radio station based in Plymouth, England. It provides entertainment to the patients of Derriford Hospital and The Royal Eye Infirmary, broadcasting via Patientline and on 87.7fm.

The station is run as a charity staffed by volunteers (registered charity number 260238).

History

During the 1950s, Plymouth Argyle commentary was broadcast to the patients of Plymouth hospitals by the Toc H Organisation, via the telephone network. In 1967, requests began to be collected from Mount Gould Hospital by the Plymouth Lions Club, forming the basis of the first weekly music programme, "Disc Date".

On the 2nd October 1969, the station secured its first permanent premises on the Barbican and was officially opened as Hospital Radio Plymouth by Alderman George Creber, the then Lord Mayor.

Since 1969, the station has been housed at the Ladies' Hospital on Lockyer Street; Nelson Gardens; Greenbank Hospital and Freedom Fields Hospital. In 1998 it moved to Derriford Hospital, where it remains broadcasting to this day.

Present Day

Hospital Radio Plymouth now broadcasts 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with over 60 hours of live programming every week. This consists of a mix of specialist music programmes; request shows live from the hospital wards; news programmes; speech based shows; classic comedy and sport.Patients can make requests directly to the studio, by calling star 800 free from their Patientline bedside sets.

The station still broadcasts commentary from Plymouth Argyle home matches in the form of "Argyle Live", a programme which is sponsored by First Devon and Cornwall Bus Group. Another notable sponsor is Toshiba, who support the weekly programme "Requestline".

The station also interacts with the wider community in the form of its mobile Showstage. This provides live entertainment and music at various local events throughout the year, such as "Plymouth Hoe Bonfire Night", "Music of The Night" and "The Lord Mayor's Day Parade".

On 29th March 2008, the station was announced as Station Of The Year at the Hospital Broadcasting Association's award ceremony. The John Whitney Award, equivalent to lifetime achievement, was presented to Connal Cather for his dedication to the station since 1970.

Executive Committee

Station Manager: "Andrew Hill"

Assistant Station Manager / Programme Manager: "Keith Jolley"

Treasurer: "Nicola White"

Membership Secretary: "Adrian Rickard"

Fundraising Officer: "Andy Greenaway"

Public Relations Officer: "Emma Tyler"

Head of Audience Liaison: "Richard Hilbourne"

Technical Facilities Manager: "James Sanders"

Current Presenters

"Adrian Rickard";"Andrew Hill";"Bill Aitken";"Camille Dalais";"Carleigh Wordsworth";"Chris Stone";"Connal Cather";"David Price";"Dawn Cawley";"Frank Mears";"Gary Curtis";"Isobel King";"James Sanders";"Jill Bright";"Jodie Clamp";"John Garry";"Josh Andrews";"Josie Scobling";"Keith Thompson";"Lilian Andrews";"Louise Smith";"Mark Hewes";"Michael Worden";"Neil Ellis";"Neil Farley";"Neil Gray";"Richard Bailey";"Richard Hilbourne";"Roger Bulpitt";"Roger Williams";"Sally Box";"Sammy Browne";"Steve Glanville";"Sue Bennett";"Trev Jackett ".

Previous Presenters have included: Phillip Schofield (now works for ITV), Richard Latto (now BBC Radio Solent), Matt Lissack (now Red Dragon), Dave Gould (now Pirate FM), Oliver Ings (now BBC Radio Devon) and Ben Glover (now Power FM).

External links

* http://www.hospitalradioplymouth.org.uk