I have recently become involved in a media company called Special Media Projects, and was invited to Bridgwater YMCA with them to run a radio station.
The event had a 3 day RSL, to broadcast the Royal opening of the YMCA throughout the whole of Bridgwater. We were broadcasting on 87.9fm, with Access All Areas News.
We arrived in Bridgwater at 9am, and started setting up the studio, and taking care of potential safety issues, such as loose wires. I was introduced to the Chief Executive of the YMCA, Martin Hodgson, who invited the team out for dinner in the evening.
Soon after, a group of school children arrived to help run the radio station. We showed them how to use the equipment, and sent them off to interview members of staff.
Much of the first day was setting up ready for our live broadcast. The jingles had already been made, and the station was just running a playlist of music and jingles.
Once everything was set up for the next day, and the children had gone back to school, we went for a tour of the YMCA building, and had a briefing on what was happening for the Royal opening. We were issued badges, so that we would be allowed in the building the next day.
We found our hotel and spent the free time before dinner writing the news bulletin for the live broadcast. We used Sky Radio News and IRN to look for potential stories, and chose the ones that were positive, fluffy stories, to keep the right mood for the following day.
We met some of the YMCA staff for dinner and drinks, before heading back to the hotel.
The next day, we were up at 7am, for a full english breakfast, before heading off to start the live broadcast. The attire was smart wear, with the men in lounge suits, and me in a waistcoat and smart trousers. We prepared all the pre-recorded material, and then started the live broadcast when the other member of the team, Steve Cross, arrived.
There were 2 different news scripts prepared, one for odd hours (9,11,1,3) and one for even hours (10,12,2).
There was a good mixture of live conversation, interviews and music, with a very relaxed feel to the show. I was sent out as a roving reporter to talk to groups of school children that had been invited to the event, and was asked to climb a rock wall, live on the radio.
I also interviewed the carnival club, and we spoke to people who support the YMCA, and also the police and fire services.
The group of school children from Otterhampton Primary School arrived, and we let them run the radio show, except for the news bulletins. They introduced interviews and songs, and played their favourite music. We found out that our Royal Guest was about to arrive, and so I was sent to the front entrance, to reveal him live.
The presenter introduced me, and I broadcast that a helicopter had been heard overhead, and it has landed nearby, and so our Royal guest would be arriving soon. I answered some questions from the presenter about the atmosphere while our guest was being driven to the YMCA, and explained what was going on outside when he arrived. As the car pulled up, I revealed to Access All Areas 87.9fm that the Duke of Kent was outside the building and would be opening the Bridgwater YMCA later in the afternoon.
After our live broadcast, we edited the recordings so that we could do a repeat of the days show the next day. We had to edit them to make the cuts flow smoothly, as there is a 30 second overlap between each recording.
We set the recordings into the playlist, and played them on a loop, so that the whole show would be played on repeat, for anyone who has missed it.
I found this was an absolutely amazing experience, and I learnt a lot about how to run a radio station, and how to create a radio show. I also found it really enjoyable, and it is definitely something I would want to do again, and a possible career choice.
I can take the things I have learnt over the last 2 days and use them to improve the WINOL radio bulletin.
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