Radio Live (stylised as Radio LIVE) was a nationwide

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

-based

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

talkback Talkback or talk back may refer to: * ''Talkback'' (album), a 1983 album by the Canadian band the Spoons * ''Talk Back'' (Kembe X album), 2016 *Talkback, an alternate name for Marvel Comics superhero Chase Stein * Talkback (recording), an audio ...

news News is information about current events. This may be provided through many different media: word of mouth, printing, postal systems, broadcasting, electronic communication, or through the testimony of observers and witnesses to events. N ...

and

sport Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, ...

radio network There are two types of radio network currently in use around the world: the one-to-many (simplex communication) broadcast network commonly used for public information and mass media, mass-media entertainment, and the two-way radio (Duplex (telecomm ...

owned and operated by

MediaWorks New Zealand MediaWorks New Zealand is a New Zealand-based company specialising in radio, outdoor advertising and interactive media. It is jointly owned by U.S. company Oaktree Capital Management and out-of-home advertising company QMS. It operates nine ...

. It was formed by the 2005 split of talk and racing network Radio Pacific into a dedicated talk network which prioritised breaking news coverage (Radio Live) and a talk network which broadcast live horse racing and greyhound racing commentaries which initially retained the Radio Pacific name before a rebrand to Bsport and finally LiveSport. The network competes directly against NZME. station Newstalk ZB. In November 2018, it was announced that RadioLIVE would be merging with Mediaworks sister network,

Magic Magic or Magick most commonly refers to: * Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces * Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic * Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...

, to form a talk-music radio hybrid known as Magic Talk, which started on 19 January 2019. Former TVNZ news presenter Peter Williams was the first host revealed for the new network.

History

Radio Pacific

The network began as one,

Radio Pacific TAB Trackside is a New Zealand horse racing and sports broadcast network, incorporating two pay TV channels. The TV channels are available on Sky channels and the Spark Sport streaming service. The radio station broadcasts on 14 AM radio and 16 ...

station, in 1978. Set up originally by talkback host Gordon Dryden, Radio Pacific became a

New Zealand Stock Exchange New Zealand's Exchange (), known commonly as the NZX, is the national stock exchange for New Zealand and a publicly owned company. NZX is the parent company of Smartshares, and Wealth Technologies. On 30 August 2020, the NZX had a total of 1 ...

listed company, with the

Totalisator Agency Board The Totalisator Agency Board, universally shortened to TAB or T.A.B., is the name given to monopoly totalisator organisations in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. They operate betting shops and online betting. They were originally gove ...

as major shareholder. The company also bought a share of a group of North Island music stations known as Energy Enterprises and merged with the South Island radio company

Radio Otago Radio Otago was a radio company that operated a group of local radio stations in radio markets around New Zealand from the 1970s to the late 1990s. Radio Otago was started in 1971 when Dunedin station 4XO was started, 4XO was originally branded a ...

in 1999. The merged company, now known as Radioworks was purchased by a subsidiary of

CanWest Global Communications Canwest Global Communications Corporation, which operated under the corporate name Canwest, was a major Canadian media conglomerate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with its head offices at Canwest Place. It held radio, television broadcasting an ...

which at that time owned the

More FM More FM is a New Zealand radio network that plays hot adult contemporary music. It is operated by MediaWorks New Zealand. More FM broadcasts in 25 centres throughout New Zealand on 81 transmitters with a mix of local and network programming. ...

radio network and TV3. CanWest later sold off the company as part of

. During the 1990s Pacific became one of the first stations to be networked across the country. Although ownership of the network changed, live races and live betting odds continued to be broadcast on the network in pre-determined, limited periods during the race day under a contract with the

New Zealand Racing Board TAB New Zealand (TAB NZ), formerly the New Zealand Racing Board (NZRB) and the Racing Industry Transition Agency (RITA), now the TAB again, is a statutory monopoly for New Zealand sports betting, including betting on horse racing and greyhound ...

. Between 2001 and 2005, this was complemented by a trial Radio Trackside station in the Southland market which simulcast Trackside TV and Radio Pacific as a dedicated racing station.

Relaunch

In April 2005, MediaWorks launched the Radio Live talkback network with newsreader

Sarah Bradley Sarah Bradley (born 20 April 1966 in Auckland) is a TV presenter and the daughter of the controversial former naval officer Captain Ian Bradley. After studying finance and marketing at Waikato University and graduating with honours, Bradley ...

and talk host

Martin Devlin Martin Devlin (born 1964) is a New Zealand radio and television broadcaster. In July 2012, The Radio Network announced that Devlin would take over the morning show for NZ's first private station, Radio Hauraki. Devlin later anchored a show on ...

, making it the first New Zealand radio network to begin broadcasting nationwide on the same day. It launched the station, "the new voice of talk radio", as a sister network to Pacific, "more stimulating talk radio". The new network gained many of Radio Pacific's frequencies and presenters, including

Michael Laws Michael Laws (born 1957) is a New Zealand politician, broadcaster and writer. Laws was a Member of Parliament for six years, starting in 1990, initially for the National Party. In Parliament he voted against his party on multiple occasions an ...

Kerry Smith Kerry Lois Smith (29 March 1953 – 20 April 2011) was a New Zealand actor and broadcaster. Between 1978 and 1989, she co-presented the "Top Marks" breakfast show on 89FM in Auckland. She was a presenter on the radio station ''The Breeze'' from ...

until 2006 and Paul Henry until 2007. Live was a dedicated talkback network that could prioritise breaking news coverage, while Radio Pacific continued as a talkback and racing network on new frequencies. John Banks, Alice Worsley and Martin Crump remained behind on Radio Pacific to present morning talkback, while a Trackside TV simulcast, branded as Radio Trackside, was broadcast in the afternoon. On 29 October 2007, the station changed its morning format to

sports radio Sports radio (or sports talk radio) is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A widespread programming genre that has a narrow audience appeal, sports radio is characterized by an often- boisterous on ...

and introduced new presenters. It was initially branded as "BSport, the station you can bet on" and it was rebranded again as LiveSport in January 2010. On 31 January 2016, RadioLIVE news became Newshub. The first bulletin was presented by Leanne Malcolm. The last Newshub bulletin on RadioLIVE was at 11pm 18 January 2019 and was presented by Brin Rudkin.

Programmes

Magic Talk broadcasts news updates, breakfast and drive current affairs, open-line talkback, and weekend lifestyle content. News, sports and weather updates are broadcast live half-hourly during current affairs programmes and hourly at other times, through a partnership with MediaWorks's 24-hour Newshub service. Newshub Live at 6 was simulcast live every night until 19 January 2020.

Breakfast

From 5am - 6am
Rural Today
is hosted by agricultural journalist Dominic George. The show focuses inside and outside the farm gate, featuring rural news, detailed weather reports and sport, while covering hot on-farm topics as well as some off-farm too. Rural Today is broadcast on Magic Talk and on Magic Music in

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth D ...

. From 6am - 9am, The AM Show hosted by

Duncan Garner Duncan Garner (born 8 March 1974) is a New Zealand radio and television host and journalist. He took over the Radio Live drive slot in December 2012 and was previously the Newshub political editor in Wellington. He moved to host '' The AM Show ...

, Amanda Gillies and Mark Richardson, with social media guru Aziz Al-Sa’afin. The AM Show is New Zealand's second groundbreaking multi-platform breakfast show, broadcasting simultaneously on

Three 3 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 3, three, or III may also refer to: * AD 3, the third year of the AD era * 3 BC, the third year before the AD era * March, the third month Books * '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...

and online; the first was Paul Henry, hosted by the broadcaster of the same name and ran from 2015–2016.

Daytime

From 9am - midday Peter Williams hosts Magic Mornings, a three-hour show which invites its listeners to "discuss the news that affects you most. What's happening in NZ and around the world - you'll hear it first". Former morning hosts during the RadioLIVE era include

Sean Plunket Oliver Sean Plunket (known professionally as Sean Plunket) is a New Zealand broadcast journalist. Plunket has worked for several New Zealand broadcast media companies and stations including Radio Windy, Independent Radio News, Radio New Zealand, ...

and Mark Sainsbury. Magic Afternoons is hosted by

from 12pm - 4pm (12pm - 3pm during 2019). This show allows listeners to call the free speech hotline for "no-holds barred common sense talk that you control". Former afternoon hosts during the RadioLIVE era include Willie Jackson,

John Tamihere John Henry Tamihere (born 8 February 1959) is a New Zealand politician, media personality, and political commentator. He was member of Parliament from 1999 to 2005, including serving as a Cabinet minister in the Labour Party from August 2002 to ...

Alison Mau Alison Mau () (born 14 February 1965), known professionally as Ali Mau, is an Australian-born New Zealand journalist and broadcaster. She is a former television news anchor, former co-host of the TVNZ current affairs show ''Seven Sharp'', forme ...

and Wendyl Nissen.

Drive

Magic Drive (commonly known as The Ryan Bridge Drive Show) is hosted by Ryan Bridge from 4pm - 7pm (3pm - 6pm during 2019, followed by a live simulcast of

Newshub ''Newshub'' (stylised as ''Newshub.'') is a New Zealand news service that airs on the television channels Three and Eden, as well as on digital platforms. It formerly operated across radio stations run by MediaWorks Radio until December 2021 ...

Live at 6). With a mixture of current affairs and open-line talkback, this show sees its host, Ryan Bridge, driving the conversation home when listeners need it most, with unrivalled insight and the passion to share their truths. Previous drive hosts during the RadioLIVE era have included Paul Henry in 2005, 2007 and 2011, James Coleman in 2006,

Bill Ralston Bill Ralston (born 1953) is a New Zealand journalist, broadcaster, and media personality, active in television, radio and print. He has worked as a political correspondent, fronted the television arts show Backch@t, and was the head of news an ...

in 2008,

Maggie Barry Margaret Mary Barry (born 5 October 1959), generally known as Maggie Barry, is a New Zealand politician and former member of the House of Representatives, first elected in the 2011 general election. She is a member of the National Party, and ...

in 2009 and 2010, Brent Impey in 2011,

from 2011–2016,

from 2017–2018, and Lisa Owen in 2018.

Early Evenings

A daily

simulcast played from 6pm nightly until 19 January 2020. Monday–Thursday from 7–8pm was InFocus, a deeper look at the day's top interviews and stories, hosted by former

newsreader Brin Rudkin. The final edition was broadcast in December 2018 during the RadioLIVE era. On Friday evenings during the RadioLIVE era, the Outdoors Group Fishing Show ran from 7–8pm.

Nights

Magic Nights is hosted by Leah Panapa from 7pm - 11pm. Time to discuss the day's events and have your say with what matters most to you. Previous night hosts during the RadioLIVE era have included

Marcus Lush Marcus Lush (born July 1965) is a politician and television and radio presenter in New Zealand. Broadcasting He made his first footsteps into television in the 1990s as a reporter co-presenting TV2's ''Newsnight'' alongside Simon Dallow and Ali ...

Karyn Hay Karyn Hay (born 1959 in Auckland) is a New Zealand author and broadcaster. She came to fame as the presenter of 1980s music TV show Radio with Pictures before going on to an extensive career in television and radio. Early life Hay grew up in t ...

Andrew Fagan Andrew Fagan (born 1962) is a New Zealand writer, singer-songwriter and long-distance solo sailor. He grew up in Wellington. He gained fame in New Zealand in the 1980s as the lead singer of the pop group The Mockers.Bruce Hopkins, Emma Lange, Joe Reid and Hayden Rickard.

Weekends

Rural Exchange
(commonly known as REX) is hosted by Richard "Loey" Loe and

Hamish McKay Hamish McKay is a New Zealand television presenter. He was the lead sportscaster, rugby editor and sports journalist for 3 News, presenting the sports news on the weekday 6pm bulletins. He is a sports presenter and commentator for sports coverag ...

. REX, which has been on air since August 2017, is a show dedicated to the backbone business of the nation, hosted by a couple of seasoned buggers. It broadcasts on Magic Talk (and on Magic Music in Taranaki) both Saturday and Sunday mornings from 6am - 8am. During the RadioLIVE era, REX ran from 5am - 7am and Sarah Perriam co-hosted the show until she left in early 2019 due to other commitments. On Weekend mornings during the RadioLIVE era,

Mucking In ''Mucking In'' is a New Zealand "reality" television programme that airs on Television One. It is hosted by Jim Mora. He is assisted by gardener Tony Murrell. The show features a very similar premise to the show '' Ground Force'', in which a t ...

landscaper Tony Murrell hosted The Home and Garden Show. He was joined on Saturday by former New Zealand Woman's Weekly food editor Helen Jackson and Sundays by interior designer

Hamish Dodd Hamish Morley Dodd (born 25 May 1976) is a New Zealand celebrity interior designer, television and radio presenter. He is most notable for appearing on the New Zealand television show ''My House My Castle'', as the interior designer. The show ai ...

and Stan Scott for advice on DIY. By mid-2019, The Home and Garden Show was replaced by The DIY Experts with Hamish Dodd and Stan Scott providing DIY tips and advice in a two-hour, fast-paced, question and answer type format; it broadcasts Saturday mornings from 8am - 10am. From 10am - 1pm on Saturdays is Weekend Life with

Carly Flynn Carly Flynn (''née'' Kirkwood) is a New Zealand journalist and television personality. Personal life Born and raised in Taupō, New Zealand, where both of her parents were English teachers at Tauhara College, Flynn is the eldest of the three ...

. It's your perfect accompaniment to your Saturday morning covering lifestyle, real estate, books, home styling and food & nutrition. The Sunday Cafe broadcasts Sunday mornings from 8am - 1pm, hosted by Mel Homer. With a blend of guests, interviews and talkback, The Sunday Cafe is described as "a conversation at a cafe, covering off the Sunday papers in a laid back way". Previous Sunday hosts during the RadioLIVE era were

Wallace Chapman Wallace Leslie Chapman (born 1969) is a New Zealand radio and television host. Early life Chapman attended Nelson College from 1982 to 1986.''Nelson College Old Boys' Register, 1856–2006'', 6th edition Career He began his broadcasting career ...

, Mark Sainsbury, Ryan Bridge, Heather du Plessis-Allan and Trudi Nelson. Saturday Sport hosted by Glen Larmer and, later, Brendan Telfer aired on Saturday from 2pm - 6pm, and included interviews with sports personalities and really getting to know our sports people. The final edition was broadcast in December 2018 during the RadioLIVE era. Sunday Sport hosted by Andrew Gourdie and Jim Kayes aired on Sunday from 2pm - 6pm, and included interviews with sports personalities and unique perspective for our sporting mad country. The final edition was broadcast in December 2018 during the RadioLIVE era. The Magic Talk Weekend Catch Ups fill the weekend afternoon schedule (after 1pm) and feature clippings of the best segments from the previous week's shows. Occasionally, live talkback will replace the Magic Talk Weekend Catch Ups in the event of major news.

Weekend nights

Sunday Social with Vaughn Davis was broadcast on Sundays from 7pm to 8pm - the social media, app and internet show for the rest of us. It is a geek-free zone, where 'buzzwords' are forbidden and jargon is busted. The final edition was broadcast in December 2018 during the RadioLIVE era. Weekend Variety Wireless aired both Saturdays and Sundays from 8pm - midnight. The talk programme had been part of the station since its inception, and focused on music, conservation, world issues and science. Regular contributors included linguist Max Cryer, Stardome Observatory astronomer Grant Christie, Sceptic Siouxise Wiles and American John Dybvig. Host Graeme Hill is a former

Radio Sport Radio Sport (previously Sports Roundup) was a New Zealand sports radio radio network, network and the talk radio, talkback sister network of Newstalk ZB. It held commentary rights for most cricket matches, international and domestic rugby uni ...

and bFM announcer, Sports Cafe presenter and The Able Tasmans band member. His on-air name is a musical pseudonym, due to his 'embarrassment' performing under his real name. "For anyone with a curious bone in their body, tune into the most interesting radio show on the planet!" The final edition of the Weekend Variety Wireless was broadcast in December 2018 during the RadioLIVE era.

Newshub News Bulletins

Award-winning news bulletins, presented live hourly, are produced by the

Radio service. Network weekday newsreaders include Amanda Gillies (The AM Show), Mary-Jane Tomasi (Workdays), Geoff Bryan (Drive), and Richard Baddiley (Evenings/Overnights). Weekend and fill-in newsreaders include Trudi Nelson, Leanne Malcolm, Brin Rudkin, Karen McCarthy, Bridget Hastie, Kim Blair and Eric Young. Sports readers include John McNeil, Chris Forster, John Day and Bruce Rickard.

Magic Music

The Magic Music programme is being simulcast on the Magic Talk network from 11pm - 6am on Fridays and after 7pm on weekends and public holidays. The Saturday Night Jukebox is commercial free and run from 7pm - midnight on Saturdays, while, on Sundays, Country Magic is hosted by Mark Leishman and simulcast on Magic Talk until Tony Amos takes over at 11pm. The final hour of Country Magic plays exclusively on the Magic Music network. Occasionally, live talkback will replace the Magic Music programme in the event of major news.

Stations

Frequencies

These are the frequencies Magic Talk broadcasts on: * Mid-Northland - 100.7 FM * Whangarei - 90.8 FM *

- 702 AM *

Waikato Waikato () is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsul ...

- 100.2 FM *

Paeroa Paeroa is a town in the Hauraki District of the Waikato Region in the North Island of New Zealand. Located at the base of the Coromandel Peninsula, it is close to the junction of the Waihou River and Ohinemuri River, and is approximately 20 k ...

- 98.0 FM *

Tauranga Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...

- 100.6 FM *

Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty ( mi, Te Moana-a-Toi) is a region of New Zealand, situated around a bight of the same name in the northern coast of the North Island. The bight stretches 260 km from the Coromandel Peninsula in the west to Cape Runaw ...

- 1107 AM *

- 93.3 FM * Whakatane - 92.1 FM * Rotorua - 95.1 FM * Gisborne - 94.9 FM * Gisborne - 684 AM *

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region i ...

- 106.3 FM *

- 1368 AM *

Whanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whang ...

- 96.0 FM * Manawatu - 93.8 FM *

Kapiti Kapiti or Kāpiti may refer to: *Kapiti Island, an island a short distance off the New Zealand coast north of Wellington *Kapiti Coast District, the local government district which includes much of the Kapiti Coast *Kapiti Coast Airport, an airport ...

- 99.1 FM *

Upper Hutt Upper Hutt ( mi, Te Awa Kairangi ki Uta) is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. Geography The Upper Hutt city centre lies approximately 26 km north-e ...

- 98.9 FM *

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service ...

- 98.3 FM *

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

- 98.9 FM *

- 1233 AM * Blenheim - 95.3 FM *

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

- 96.0 FM * Picton - 92.3 FM * Westport - 90.1 FM * Kaikoura - 89.1 FM *

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

- 738 AM *

Timaru Timaru (; mi, Te Tihi-o-Maru) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to ...

- 105.9 FM * Mackenzie Country ( Tekapo and

Twizel Twizel () is the largest town in the Mackenzie District, in the Canterbury Region of the South Island of New Zealand. The town was founded in 1968 to house construction workers on the Upper Waitaki Hydroelectric Scheme. Today, Twizel is a se ...

) - 91.0 FM *

Oamaru Oamaru (; mi, Te Oha-a-Maru) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific coast; State Highway 1 and the rai ...

- 100.8 FM * Alexandra - 95.9 FM * Queenstown - 91.2 FM *

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

- 96.6 FM *

Southland Southland may refer to: Places Canada * Dunbar–Southlands, Vancouver, British Columbia New Zealand * Southland Region, a region of New Zealand * Southland County, a former New Zealand county * Southland District, part of the wider Southland Re ...

- 94.0 FM

References

External links

RadioLIVE Official Website

MediaWorks Information About RadioLIVE

Media Works notice of Launch for BSport
{{New Zealand radio networks