Community radio goes live on air (From Gazette Series)

Community radio goes live on air

CAM fm, the community radio station broadcasting to Cam and Dursley will be on the air again next week.

The radio station, run by local enthusiasts and involving lots of people from the communities of Cam and Dursley, goes on air on Friday, October 22 (7.30pm). It will broadcast daily until midnight on Monday, October 25.

"This is the fifth year that we have broadcast and each year our output gets more polished and professional," said Cam fm chairman John Groves.

"We will be broadcasting a wide range of programmes from popular, classical, old time, country and western and gospel music to interviews with local people and magazine programmes with far reaching appeal."

Scores of people have been involved in making programmes over recent months in preparation for broadcasting.

For the third year, the Cam fm studio will be based at Kingshill House, which provides an excellent signal transmission "footprint" covering around 86,000 people in an area of more than 300 square miles.

"Our signal should be available to people in the Berkeley Vale from south of Berkeley to north of Frampton-on-Severn," Mr Groves added.

"We are always in need of helpers to make programmes or work behind the scenes, greeting guests to the studio, arranging the administration or just making the coffee."

Among programmes which have proved popular over the years are those compiled by the Rhythmsisters aided and abetted by jokester Graham Steele.

Su Chard from Cam hosts the Democracy Show on Friday (4-6pm) when the emphasis will be on National Democracy Week. Her guests will include Gloucestershire County Council staff involved in providing services for the community and subjects discussed will include information about becoming a school governor and the support the departments give to schools. Trading standards, health education and school meals are also under the spotlight.

Su's programme on Saturday (10am-12.30pm) will have a Window on the World theme with world music and local guests with a wider view on the world.

Alan McVicar will present programmes of Romanian music and monologues while Allan Guy has eight half-hour spots in the morning and afternoon in which he will talk to many local people including Henry Berkeley on the hunting issue. His programmes also feature cooking, gardening, Dursley Rugby Club, Frocester Beer Festival and the phoenix story of Cattle Country, near Berkeley.

Listeners may find reception is best on simple transistor radios rather than sophisticated hi-fi's when they tune in to 106.7 on the fm waveband.