Heart Norwich - Station History

Station History

On 1 October 1984, a new independent local radio station called "Radio Broadland" was launched by a Norfolk-based group with experience in local business, newspapers and television, but little in radio.

A number of people with solid radio experience were brought in to start the station. Russell Stuart arrived from Gwent Broadcasting in Newport as MD, Mike Stewart from Radio West in Bristol as programme controller and Robb Young moved from Radio Orwell in Ipswich as sales manager.

Stewart put together the first team of presenters. Nick Risby joined from Red Rose Radio in Preston, Tony Gillham came from Chiltern and BBC Bedfordshire, Dave Brown from Radio Tees, Rob Chandler from Radio Orwell and Adrian Finighan from Gwent Radio. Rob Chandler remains after more than 25 years as breakfast presenter. Bob Harris presented a weekly show on the station for a time while living in the area.

For the first two years, Radio Broadland went off air at 10pm until 6am the following morning. The station simulcast on 97.6FM and 1152AM for three years but in 1987, due to national changes in local radio frequencies, moved to 102.4FM. Broadland at the end of the 1980s, was achieving an audience reach of 50 per cent and weekly listening of up to 17 hours, some of the best in the UK.

In 1990, Broadland took over Suffolk Group Radio which owned Radio Orwell in Ipswich and Saxon Radio in Bury St Edmunds and to reflect the addition of the new stations, the company became East Anglian Radio. The two Suffolk stations were renamed and re-launched as SGR fm in 1992.

Initially, Radio Broadland played both classic hit music and current chart hits, but in 1995 the decision was made by the EAR group to make better use of the AM slot. Amber Radio was created in Norfolk and Suffolk, playing 60s and 70s music whilst Broadland 102 focused more on current and recent chart hits. The EAR group continued to be run by the original Broadland management team.

In 1996, the GWR Group bid for the entire East Anglian Radio Group, which resulted in changes to the station such as networked programming and a new strapline of "Today's Better Music Mix". The original management remained in different roles with GCap, but had all left by 2003. Mike Stewart and Russell Stuart were part of a new company, Norwich Radio Group which narrowly failed to win a new ILR licence advertised in 2005 for Norwich.

In 2007, the station reverted back to Radio Broadland, adapting 'More Music Variety' to reflect an emphasis on classic hits in place of chart material. Also that year, as with all of GCap's One Network, the station gained a new logo and website.

An offer of £375 million for the GCap group from Global Radio, owner of Heart and LBC in London and Galaxy station, was accepted in 2008. All GCap's senior management departed on completion of the takeover.