Laser Broadcasting was a

commercial radio Commercial broadcasting (also called private broadcasting) is the broadcasting of television programs and radio programming by privately owned corporate media, as opposed to state sponsorship. It was the United States′ first model of radio (an ...

operator based in

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

, England, which was active between 2002 and 2008.

History

The group was founded in 2002 by Nigel Reeve—one of the launch directors of Classic FM and one-time chief executive of London News Radio, owners of

LBC LBC (originally the London Broadcasting Company) is a British phone-in and talk radio station owned and operated by Global and based in its headquarters in London. It was the UK's first licensed commercial radio station, and began to broadcast ...

—and Nick Jordan, a media sales executive who previously worked at

Invicta Radio Heart Kent (previously Invicta FM) was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Heart network. It broadcast to Kent from studios at John Wilson Business Park in Whitstable. History Invicta in the 80s Originally ...

, KMFM and the

Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...

. Jordan left the company in August 2004. Laser Broadcasting, via subsidiaries, held the licences for nine commercial local radio stations in the UK: *

Bath FM Bath FM was a local independent radio station based at the former Weston railway station in Bath, England. The station was launched in November 1999 and closed on 24 March 2010. The station broadcast to an area with a population of 104,000. I ...

, in

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

, Somerset *

Brunel FM Sam FM Swindon was a commercial radio station based in Swindon, England, broadcasting on the 107.7 FM frequency. The station was formed by The Local Radio Company, who wanted to create a local radio rival to GWR FM (now Heart). It started in ...

, in

Swindon Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...

, Wiltshire *

Sunshine 855 Sunshine Radio is a local radio station, based in Ludlow, Shropshire. The station currently serves south Shropshire, north Herefordshire and north Worcestershire. History Sunshine Radio in Ludlow dates back to the late-1970s. In the summer of ...

, in

Ludlow Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The t ...

, Shropshire *

Sunshine 1530 Sunshine 1530 (formerly Sunshine Gold, Sunshine Radio, Classic Hits 954 & 1530, Classic Gold 954/1530 AM, Wyvern AM and Radio Wyvern) was a radio station which broadcast to Herefordshire and Worcestershire on 1530 and 954 kHz Medium Wave fr ...

, in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Englan ...

* Sunshine 106.2, in

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

* Quay West 107.4, in

Bridgwater Bridgwater is a large historic market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. Its population currently stands at around 41,276 as of 2022. Bridgwater is at the edge of the Somerset Levels, in level and well-wooded country. The town lies alon ...

, Somerset * Quay West 102.4/100.8 in

Watchet Watchet is a harbour town, civil parish and electoral ward in the county of Somerset, England, with a population in 2011 of 3,785. It is situated west of Bridgwater, north-west of Taunton, and east of Minehead. The town lies at the mouth of ...

, Somerset *

3TR FM 3TR FM (Three Towns Radio) was a radio station based in the ancient market town of Warminster, Wiltshire, United Kingdom. It broadcast on 107.5 FM to the West Wiltshire, East Somerset and surrounding area, and online via Internet streaming. It ...

, in

Warminster Warminster () is an ancient market town with a nearby garrison, and civil parish in south west Wiltshire, England, on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. The parish had a population of about 17,000 in 2011. The 11th-century Minster Church of S ...

, Wiltshire *

Fresh Radio Fresh Radio was a local radio station broadcasting to the Yorkshire Dales in northern England on two medium wave (AM) frequencies and three FM frequencies. It was also heard online via the Fresh Radio website. Transmission Two of the three AM ...

, in

Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...

, North Yorkshire After administration,

Begbies Traynor Begbies Traynor () (until 1997 known as Traynor & Partners) is a firm specialising in corporate restructuring. They were formed in 1989, expanded through mergers and organic growth and were floated in 2004. The company employs over 700 people and ...

sold five of Laser's stations to farmer and property developer John Roberts, who was also the owner of Exeter-based

South West Radio Ltd SouthWest Radio Ltd (or SWR) owned and operated radio stations in Wiltshire and Somerset in the South West of England. The company was founded in 2008 and was based in Exeter, Devon in the United Kingdom. Stations owned *Bath FM which serves ...

. He bought Bath FM, Brunel FM, 3TR, and the two QuayWest stations.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Bath FM.net All fact, no fiction: A potted history of Bath FMQuay West Radio set to foldWiltshire radio station's owner goes into administration
Radio broadcasting companies of the United Kingdom Companies based in County Durham Mass media companies established in 2002 Mass media companies disestablished in 2009 2002 establishments in England