Greatest Hits Radio South West
| Broadcast area | MHz (Bath)Classic Hits |
|---|---|
| Network | Greatest Hits Radio |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Bauer Radio |
| History | |
First air date | 1 September 2020 |
| Links | |
| Website | GHR Bristol & The South West GHR Bath & The South West GHR Somerset GHR Gloucestershire GHR Devon GHR Cornwall GHR Plymouth GHR Swindon |
Greatest Hits Radio South West is a regional radio station serving the
Coverage
The ten local stations broadcast to the areas of Bath, Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Gloucestershire, Plymouth, Somerset, Swindon and West Wiltshire across the South West of England.[1]
Stations
On 1 September 2020 nine local radio stations in the South West of England merged:[2]
- The Breeze (Bath)
- The Breeze (Bridgwater & West Somerset)
- The Breeze (Bristol)
- The Breeze (Cheltenham & North Gloucestershire)
- The Breeze (Frome & West Wiltshire)
- The Breeze (South Devon)
- The Breeze (North Somerset)
- The Breeze (Yeovil & South Somerset)
- Sam FM (Swindon)
On 2 November 2020 a tenth local radio station joined the portfolio:[3]
Also joining the GHR network in the South West:
- Cornwall (DAB only)
History
In the
and also owned by UKRD.In 2000, the station name had changed, and was called Star 107.3. The station played a different variety style of
From 7 September 2010 Celador became the new licence holders and rebranded Star 107.2 as The Breeze 107.2 on 14 February 2011.
In West Somerset, originally first launched as Quay West and was launched in August 1998. It was later relaunched as Total Star Somerset under the ownership of One Gold Radio and breached Ofcom regulations after transmitting new transmitter power at North Hill at 30,000 watts vertically without permission on the 102.4 frequency. OFCOM said they would then terminate and re-advertise their licence by 1 December 2011.[4] The station has since changed their ownership to Celador, and from midday on 7 August 2011 they joined The Breeze Network.
In Bridgewater, a new radio station went on air on 4 July 2001 as BCR FM under the owners of Choice Media and later was sold to Laser Broadcasting in July 2006.
The station was relaunched as 107.4 Quay West to bring it in line with the other Quay West stations in West Somerset. In August 2010 the two Quay West stations merged as one station called Total Star Somerset and was taken over by One Gold Radio Ltd until 2011.
In Bath and North East Somerset, the original station launched as
In Wiltshire, serving
Programming
During the week most programming is shared with the Greatest Hits Radio Network in Manchester, London, Birmingham, and Glasgow. A regional three-hour afternoon show is broadcast from the studios of County Gates, Ashton Road in Bristol on weekdays 1pm to 4pm, presented by Tony Wright.[7] Each localised area in the South West has their own latest local news, weather and travel news updates. Another station, Hits Radio (Bristol & The South West), shares its facilities in the same building and is also owned by Bauer.
Notable presenters
Past presenters
- Janice Long (died 25 December 2021)
- Pat Sharp
- Mark Goodier
References
- ^ Clarkson, Stuart (27 May 2020). "Most of acquired Bauer stations to become Greatest Hits Radio". RadioToday. Retrieved 9 September 2020.
- ^ most-of-acquired-bauer-stations-to-become-greatest-hits-radio/ Most of acquired Bauer stations to become Greatest Hits Radio Stuart Clarkson, Radio Today, 27 May 2020
- ^ "Bauer buys Radio Plymouth to extend GHR network". Radio Today. 17 September 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
- ^ RadioToday - Somerset licence cut and re-advertised
- ^ 'The Breeze to arrive in Bath this month', 8 Sep 2011
- ^ RadioToday: The Breeze extends to Frome and West Wiltshire
- ^ Martin, Roy (27 August 2020). "Greatest Hits Radio Drivetime presenters revealed". RadioToday. Retrieved 9 September 2020.