Easy Radio London
Encyclopedia
Easy Radio London was a British radio station broadcasting to London
on DAB
.
, a country and western station broadcasting to London on medium wave. Over the next few years, successive takeovers and relaunches saw the station broadcast under the names RTL Country 1035, Ritz Radio 1035 and Mean Country 1035.
In 2003, the Sunrise Radio Group
acquired Mean Country 1035 and renamed the station Easy Radio. Sunrise agreed a slight change of format with the Radio Authority
permitting it to reduce the proportion of pure country tracks and play more mainstream pop and rock songs that were either influenced by country music or musically compatible with it.
The station's presenters during this period included Ron Brown on the breakfast show and Jack Kelly on the mid-morning programme. The programme controller was Simon Yates.
In July 2004, Sunrise applied to Ofcom
to change the station's format to an Asian speech station, Kismat Radio
. In its submission, Sunrise claimed the country format had never been profitable, losing between £6m and £7m since launch, and had proven "disastrous financially". It also cited poor sound quality on medium wave.
In addition, Sunrise pledged to maintain the Easy Radio service on DAB if its application to change the medium wave format was granted. The station had originally launched on the DRg
multiplex for London in January 2002, during the Ritz Radio era.
Ofcom granted Sunrise permission to change format in November 2004, and Kismat Radio took over the 1035kHz frequency, with Easy Radio moving to DAB only, now playing a broader mix of music with some country crossover.
In 2007 and 2008, Easy Radio formed part of successful applications by the DAB
operator MuxCo for digital multiplexes in Gloucestershire
, Herefordshire
and Worcestershire
, Lincolnshire
, North East Wales
and West Cheshire
, North Yorkshire
, Somerset
, and Surrey
and Sussex
.
In June 2008, live presentation by DJs ended, with the station now playing non-stop music, interspersed with jingles and hourly news bulletins from IRN
.
The station played a mix of pop
, rock
and easy listening
, as well as a proportion of country
tracks by mainstream artists such as Shania Twain
, Dixie Chicks
, Kenny Rogers
and Dolly Parton
. It had 19,000 listeners a week, according to listening figures published by RAJAR
for the period ending June 2008.
The station closed on 28 October 2008 and was replaced on the DRg
multiplex by Kismat Radio
.
Ron Brown (Now working for Time 106.6 On the Breakfast show).
Keith Butler
Lee Canderton
Philip Chryssikos
Gavin Harris
Sid Griffin
Kerry McCarthy
Paul Owens
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on DAB
Digital audio broadcasting
Digital Audio Broadcasting is a digital radio technology for broadcasting radio stations, used in several countries, particularly in Europe. As of 2006, approximately 1,000 stations worldwide broadcast in the DAB format....
.
History
The station began life in September 1994 as Country 1035Country 1035
Country 1035 was a country music based Independent Local Radio station based in London, England.-History:After airing test transmissions the first voice officially heard on air was the stations chairman John Wellington. In his opening words he noted that the station will "fulfill a long awaited need"...
, a country and western station broadcasting to London on medium wave. Over the next few years, successive takeovers and relaunches saw the station broadcast under the names RTL Country 1035, Ritz Radio 1035 and Mean Country 1035.
In 2003, the Sunrise Radio Group
Sunrise Radio Group
Sunrise Radio Group Limited is a UK radio broadcaster. The group is owned by the Litt Corporation , and runs Sunrise Radio, Yarr Radio, Kismat Radio and Punjabi Radio...
acquired Mean Country 1035 and renamed the station Easy Radio. Sunrise agreed a slight change of format with the Radio Authority
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
permitting it to reduce the proportion of pure country tracks and play more mainstream pop and rock songs that were either influenced by country music or musically compatible with it.
The station's presenters during this period included Ron Brown on the breakfast show and Jack Kelly on the mid-morning programme. The programme controller was Simon Yates.
In July 2004, Sunrise applied to Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
to change the station's format to an Asian speech station, Kismat Radio
Kismat Radio
Kismat Radio is a radio station broadcasting from the Crystal Palace Transmitter in south-east London.- Background :The target audience is British Asians and South Asian expats aged 30+, with programme formats comprising Asian Talk and music....
. In its submission, Sunrise claimed the country format had never been profitable, losing between £6m and £7m since launch, and had proven "disastrous financially". It also cited poor sound quality on medium wave.
In addition, Sunrise pledged to maintain the Easy Radio service on DAB if its application to change the medium wave format was granted. The station had originally launched on the DRg
DRG London
DRG London is a Digital Audio Broadcasting multiplex available in the London area that has been broadcasting since January 2002. It is also referred to as the Greater London 3 multiplex...
multiplex for London in January 2002, during the Ritz Radio era.
Ofcom granted Sunrise permission to change format in November 2004, and Kismat Radio took over the 1035kHz frequency, with Easy Radio moving to DAB only, now playing a broader mix of music with some country crossover.
In 2007 and 2008, Easy Radio formed part of successful applications by the DAB
Digital audio broadcasting
Digital Audio Broadcasting is a digital radio technology for broadcasting radio stations, used in several countries, particularly in Europe. As of 2006, approximately 1,000 stations worldwide broadcast in the DAB format....
operator MuxCo for digital multiplexes in Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
and Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, North East Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and West Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, and Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
and Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
.
In June 2008, live presentation by DJs ended, with the station now playing non-stop music, interspersed with jingles and hourly news bulletins from IRN
Independent Radio News
Independent Radio News provides a service of news bulletins, audio and copy to commercial radio stations in the UK and beyond.The managing director of IRN is Tim Molloy, who succeeded long-term MD John Perkins in November 2009...
.
The station played a mix of pop
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
, rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
and easy listening
Easy listening
Easy listening is a broad style of popular music and radio format that emerged in the 1950s, evolving out of big band music, and related to MOR music as played on many AM radio stations. It encompasses the exotica, beautiful music, light music, lounge music, ambient music, and space age pop genres...
, as well as a proportion of country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
tracks by mainstream artists such as Shania Twain
Shania Twain
Shania Twain, OC is a Canadian country pop singer-songwriter. Her album The Woman in Me , brought her fame and her 1997 album Come On Over, became the best-selling album of all time by a female musician in any genre, and the best-selling country album of all time. It has sold over 40 million...
, Dixie Chicks
Dixie Chicks
The Dixie Chicks are an American country band which has also successfully crossed over into other genres. The band is composed of founding members Martie Erwin Maguire and Emily Erwin Robison, and lead singer Natalie Maines...
, Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
and Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
. It had 19,000 listeners a week, according to listening figures published by RAJAR
RAJAR
RAJAR was established in 1992 to operate a single audience measurement system for the radio industry in the United Kingdom. RAJAR is jointly owned by the British Broadcasting Corporation and the RadioCentre...
for the period ending June 2008.
The station closed on 28 October 2008 and was replaced on the DRg
DRG London
DRG London is a Digital Audio Broadcasting multiplex available in the London area that has been broadcasting since January 2002. It is also referred to as the Greater London 3 multiplex...
multiplex by Kismat Radio
Kismat Radio
Kismat Radio is a radio station broadcasting from the Crystal Palace Transmitter in south-east London.- Background :The target audience is British Asians and South Asian expats aged 30+, with programme formats comprising Asian Talk and music....
.
Former presenters
Mark AnthonyRon Brown (Now working for Time 106.6 On the Breakfast show).
Keith Butler
Lee Canderton
Philip Chryssikos
Gavin Harris
Sid Griffin
Kerry McCarthy
Paul Owens