Radio Wave was an Independent Local Radio station serving

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

The Fylde The Fylde () is a coastal plain in western Lancashire, England. It is roughly a square-shaped peninsula, bounded by Morecambe Bay to the north, the Ribble estuary to the south, the Irish Sea to the west, and the foot of the Bowland hills t ...

and surrounding areas. It broadcast from studios in the

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area of Blackpool via a specially constructed transmitter atop Blackpool Tower. Following its sale to Bauer Radio, the station was closed and merged with the Greatest Hits Radio network in September 2020.

History

In the late 1980s, local businessman John Barnett started lobbying the radio industry regulator for a distinct Independent Local Radio (ILR) licence for the Blackpool and Fylde area. The licence was awarded in 1992 and Radio Wave began broadcasting at 7 am on 25 May 1992 with an introduction from its founder. The first presenter on-air was Neil Sexton and the first record played was "

The Best Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

" by

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. The official launch took place on a specially erected stage in front of a live audience on the promenade by Blackpool Tower and featured Les Dawson and

Derek Batey Derek Batey (8 August 1928 – 17 February 2013) was a British television presenter and television executive. Batey was born in Brampton, Cumberland, and educated at the White House School, Brampton. After appearing in clubs as a ventriloqui ...

, together with other local celebrities. In its first year of broadcasting, the station won a Sony Radio Academy Awards ''Gold Award'' and was commended in the ''Local Station of the Year'' category. In August 1996, Radio Wave was confirmed by RAJAR as the most listened-to radio station in the area, ahead of fourteen other stations which were available including

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, ...

, which had half the number of listeners locally. In 2000, John Barnett received an

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for services to radio broadcasting. He later became the station's chairman.

Transmission area

Radio Wave's studios were based on Mowbray Drive in the

area of Blackpool, with the signal coming from the top of the Blackpool Tower. The station could be heard from Fleetwood in the Wyre district, in the northwest corner of the Fylde,

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to the east and Southport, west-southwest of Preston. Radio Wave could also be received as far north as

Shap Fell Shap is a linear village and civil parish located among fells and isolated dales in Eden district, Cumbria, England, in the historic county of Westmorland. The parish had a population of 1,221 in 2001, increasing slightly to 1,264 at the 2011 ...

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

Station rebrand

On 8 February 2019, Radio Wave and the Wireless Group's local radio stations were sold to Bauer Radio. The sale was ratified in March 2020 following an inquiry by the Competition and Markets Authority. On 27 May 2020, it was announced that Radio Wave will join Bauer's Greatest Hits Radio network.Most of acquired Bauer stations to become Greatest Hits Radio
Stuart Clarkson, Radio Today, 27 May 2020 On 13 July 2020, local programming outside weekday breakfast was replaced by networked output from the GHR network, with Radio Wave retaining its own branding.Bauer starts to roll out Hits and Greatest Hits to new radio stations
Stuart Clarkson, Radio Today, 9 July 2020 On 1 September 2020, the station merged with six local stations in the North West of England and North Wales, forming

Greatest Hits Radio North West Greatest Hits Radio North West is a regional radio network serving North West England and North Wales, as part of Bauer’s Greatest Hits Radio network. Stations Under relaxed OFCOM requirements for local content on commercial radio, GHR North ...

. The station's local breakfast show was dropped and replaced by a regional afternoon show. Localised news bulletins, traffic updates and advertising are retained as opt-outs. The station's Blackpool studios were closed.

References

External links

Part One video of the launch of Radio Wave on 25 May 1992

Part Two video of the launch of Radio Wave on 25 May 1992
{{Greatest Hits Radio Radio stations in Lancashire Mass media in Blackpool Radio stations established in 1992 Bauer Radio Greatest Hits Radio Defunct radio stations in the United Kingdom