GWR FM was a

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of three

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in the south west of

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broadcasting to Bristol, Bath, Wiltshire and surrounding areas. All three stations were rebranded and joined the

Heart Network Heart is a British radio network and brand of 13 adult contemporary local stations operated by Global throughout the United Kingdom, broadcasting a mix of local and networked programming. Ten of the Heart stations are owned by Global, while the ...

on 23 March 2009. The stations in the network were: *GWR FM Bristol which was launched in 1981 as Radio West. It relaunched as GWR in 1985 *GWR FM Bath - first broadcast as GWR Radio Bath in 1987, becoming the third station in the network and sharing some programming with the Bristol station *GWR FM Wiltshire which launched in 1982 as Wiltshire Radio. In 1985, Wiltshire Radio relaunched as GWR, to coincide with the re-launch of the Bristol station

GWR Name

The initials GWR have an association with the Great Western Railway especially in the South West of England, and there is a popular misconception with listeners that the station stands for Great Western Radio. Indeed, neighbouring GWR Wiltshire was called Wiltshire Radio (WR) before its merger with Radio West. However, according to group management, the letters GWR did not stand for anything. In fact the station management at the time did try to secure the name Great Western Radio, however it was already the trading name of a Bristol electronics shop, who refused to relinquish the title.

History

The GWR Radio brand started life in 1985 when Swindon-based Wiltshire Radio joined with Bristol's Radio West.

The Mix Network

In 1992 a re-launch of the station saw The New GWR-FM become the hub of what was The Mix Network, a network of radio stations owned by the GWR Group (later GCap Media ) covering southern England and Wales. The radio station created a tightly formatted sound where popular Top 40 chart hits were blended with older hits. This led to its "Better Music Mix" format which was then utilised on other radio stations within the GWR Group, including Essex FM, Trent FM and Beacon Radio, creating a mini national network. Each station within the Mix Network played a centrally produced playlist. Songs were broadcast almost at the same time as neighbouring group stations and each station adopted the "Better Music Mix" tagline which was announced by local presenters in between the music. Following the introduction of the Mix Network some programming, such as Late Night Love and The Request Fest, was syndicated across the whole network from the GWR Bristol studios.

Notable Presenters

*Roo Green *Louisa Lewis *Howard Taylor *Jez Clarke *Andy Styles *Andy Henly *Steve Fountain * Scott Mills *Tim Smith *Mark Franklin *Julia Simpson *

Peter Rowell Peter Rowell (born 17 June 1958) is an English former radio and television presenter. Rowell spent much of his career working in the West of England. In March 2012, he was jailed for six years after admitting 12 charges of indecent sexual ass ...

Ralph Bernard Ralph Mitchell Bernard (born 11 February 1953) is a British journalist, and a former chief executive of commercial radio group GCap Media. Early life He attended Caterham High School in north-east London. Career He started his career as a journa ...

*Simon Cooper * Alan Burston *Sue Carter *Matt Rogers *Henrietta Creasey *Shaun Skinner *Steve Colman *Neil Carter *Paul Webber *Ian Timms *Dave Barrett *Steve Orchard *Sandy Martin *Shaun Hodgetts *Vic Morgan *Stuart Mac *

Charlie Wolf Stephen Linsky (born 12 April 1959) better known as Charlie Wolf, is a British-based American radio talk show host, disc jockey and political commentator, and formerly the Communications Director of Republicans Abroad UK. Wolf previously pres ...

*Andy Westgate *Gary Vincent *Lucy Matthews *

Graham Torrington Graham Torrington (born 1960) is a British radio presenter and broadcaster. Radio work Romantica After starting out as a hospital radio presenter, Torrington joined Birmingham's BRMB in the 1980s to cover an overnight programme for Steve Denn ...

*Susannah Batemen *Clive Fisher *Tony Wright *Matt Lisack *Rob Smith *Mel Everett *Trevor Fry *Mark Seaman *

Johnnie Walker Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch whisky now owned by Diageo that originated in the Scottish burgh of Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire. The brand was first established by grocer John Walker. It is the most widely distributed brand of blended Sc ...

*Paris Troy *Andy Bush *Paulina Guilispe *Phil Phear

References

Heart (radio network) Radio stations in England {{UK-radio-station-stub