University Radio Nottingham is the university
radio station
Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...
of the
University of Nottingham
The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, where it is part of the
Students' Union
A students' union, also known by many other names, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, ...
. During term-time it broadcasts locally on
University Park Campus on 1350 AM and worldwide via its website. It is a multi-award winning station run by the student volunteers from the
University of Nottingham
The University of Nottingham is a public university, public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. The University of Nottingham belongs t ...
.
History
URN was established from the University's Radio Broadcasting Club, who, in the late 1970s had an hour's slot on
BBC Radio Nottingham
BBC Radio Nottingham is the Local BBC Radio, BBC's local radio station serving the county of Nottinghamshire.
It broadcasts on frequency modulation, FM, Digital Audio Broadcasting, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios on London Road ...
. The station set up its first studio in the Cherry Tree buildings in 1978 and "University Radio Nottingham" started broadcasting to
Hugh Stewart Hall and
Cripps Hall of residence on 963 kHz (312m) in November 1979. Additional
induction loop
An induction or inductive loop is an electromagnetic communication or detection system which uses a moving magnet or an alternating current to induce an electric current in a nearby wire. Induction loops are used for transmission and reception of ...
s were set up over the next few years in other halls on campus. A fifth induction loop was installed on
Sutton Bonington
Sutton Bonington () is a village and civil parish lying along the valley of the River Soar in the Borough of Rushcliffe, south-west Nottinghamshire, England. The University of Nottingham has a site just to the north of the village: Sutton Boni ...
Campus in 1990, financed by their Guild.
In 1997, URN became one of the first radio stations to broadcast on the internet using the
MP3
MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Origin ...
format. The station started broadcasting in the
Ogg Vorbis
Vorbis is a free and open-source software project headed by the Xiph.Org Foundation. The project produces an audio coding format and software reference encoder/decoder (codec) for lossy audio compression. Vorbis is most commonly used in conjun ...
format in 2002.
The station was one of the first to broadcast using an
LPAM
Low-power broadcasting is broadcasting by a broadcast station at a low transmitter power output to a smaller service area than "full power" stations within the same region. It is often distinguished from "micropower broadcasting" (more commonly " ...
long-term
restricted service licence
A UK Restricted Service Licence (often called an RSL), is typically granted to radio stations and television stations broadcasting within the UK to serve a local community or a special event. Licences are granted by the broadcasting authority Ofc ...
to the whole of University Park on 1350AM in 2001.
In 2004, URN moved into new purpose build studios located in the University's
Portland Building
The Portland Building, alternatively referenced as the Portland Municipal Services Building, is a 15-story municipal office building located at 1120 SW 5th Avenue in downtown Portland, Oregon. Built at a cost of US$29 million, it opened in 1982 ...
. This was due to the demolition of the Cherry Tree buildings in 2003.
![URNStudio2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/URNStudio2.jpg)
During the summer of 2012 the whole station was refitted to use a
Studer
Studer is a designer and manufacturer of professional audio equipment for recording studios and broadcasters. The company was founded in Zürich, Switzerland, in 1948 by Willi Studer. It initially became known in the 1950s for its professiona ...
digital system for audio routing and mixing.
In 2014 the station won the Student Radio Awards Best Station for a record breaking fifth year in a row and still holds the record for the most consecutive Best Station awards to this day.
![URN Studio 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/URN_Studio_1.jpg)
In the Summer of 2018 the station was relocated in the Students' Union Building to the new MediaZone. A brand new AoIP Studio was installed in Spring 2020.
Programming
URN broadcasts twenty-four hours a day during Nottingham term time, with shows from 09:00 a.m to 3:00 a.m. The station is split into three sections: Daytime, After Dark, and Speech shows.
URN's programming includes news-show The Pulse, feature-based speech programming, including sport and a large variety of other topics, daytime personality-based programming and evening specialist music shows. URN has a strong focus on Nottingham University students in all areas of its programming.
Stunts
Steve Doran
Steve Doran is an English community organiser, activist and former radio DJ from the University of Nottingham. She is currently fronting a campaign against payday lenders in the UK in conjunction with Movement For Change. She has discussed the is ...
accomplished a 40-hour continuous broadcast in November 2005 for
Children in Need. In 2016, four teams walked 50 miles in under 24 hours in aid of
Sport Relief
''Sport Relief'' was a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, established in 2002.
It was the idea of Kevin Cahill, CBE, who had joined Comic Relief in 1991 to establish a new department as Director of Educati ...
.
During December 2020, presenters George Scotland and Damian Stephen attempted to get
Russ Abbot's novelty track '
Atmosphere
An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A s ...
' to Christmas number 1, gaining endorsements from
Paul Chuckle
The Chuckle Brothers were an English comedy double act comprising Barry David Elliott (24 December 1944 – 5 August 2018) and Paul Harman Elliott (born 18 October 1947). They were known for their BBC children's programme ''ChuckleVision'', w ...
, Scott Muslin and
Alistair Griffin
Alistair Richard Griffin (born 1 November 1977) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Already an established songwriter, he first became famous as a solo artist through his appearances on the BBC television show ''Fame Academy 2'' in 2 ...
. All proceeds were to go to charity with
Abbot
Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...
and his family fully behind the campaign.
Famous alumni
The former head of music for URN presented
BBC 6 Music
BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...
's weekly chart show. Philippa Treverton-Jones graduated in 2007.
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6522857.stm BBC News]
Another former presenter on the station; Ian Chaloner is the current producer of the
Greg James Show on
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
. Katie Baxter was a previous member of URN and now produces the Happy Hour Podcast. Rob Howard was another former presents; he now hosts
Capital (radio network)
Capital is a network of twelve Independent Local Radio, independent contemporary hit radio stations in the United Kingdom, broadcasting a mix of local and networked programming. Nine of the stations are owned and operated by Global Media & Ente ...
Breakfasts.
Awards
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2010
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2011
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2012
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2013
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2014
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2016
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2017
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2018
Student Radio Awards
The Student Radio Association (SRA) is a representative body which supports and acts on behalf of the UK student radio community, comprising radio stations that are associated with or linked to a place of education. It is a not-for-profit organi ...
Best Station 2021
References
External links
Introduction to URNURN History Project
{{Student radio in the United Kingdom
Farm
A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...
Student radio in the United Kingdom
Music in Nottinghamshire
Radio stations established in 1979
Mass media in Nottingham
Radio stations in Nottinghamshire