BBC Radio Berkshire
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Overview
BBC Radio Berkshire is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Berkshire. It broadcasts on 94.6 (Henley), 95.4 (Windsor), 104.1 (Hannington, north Hampshire) and 104.4 (Broad St Mall, Reading) FM from its studios at Caversham Park near Reading. The 104.1 FM signal is the strongest by far.
History
The station began on 26 January 1991, starting as a sister station of Radio Oxford, broadcasting for part of the weekday and weekend mornings, before joining BBC World Service programming. Due to financial cutbacks, BBC Director-General John Birt annoounced that it was to merge with BBC Radio Oxford on 9 April 1996 to become BBC Thames Valley FM and featured Martin Kelner, who now broadcasts irreverently on Radio Leeds. Separate breakfast shows for Reading and Oxford began. On 13 February 2000, the two stations became separate once again, although shared several programmes until September 2003.
Transmitters
The Hannington transmitter, on Cottington Hill (close to Watership Down) also carries television channels and 2-Ten FM on 102.9FM. The 104.1FM signal can be heard over most of Hampshire, certainly more than Radio Solent. The Broad St Mall transmitter carries 2-Ten FM on 97FM, and Radio Berkshire since 1991, although the BBC call it Fountain House, the name of the building it is fixed to. Henley broadcasts 2-Ten FM on 103.4FM.
The station essentially covers the M4 corridor, for better or (often) worse. The words 'M4' and 'hold-ups' or 'queues' go together like peaches and cream. And, appropriately, the breakfast show from 7am is hosted by Andrew Peach, who has conscientiously de-brummified his Birmingham twang. Peach can be heard on Radio 2 at the weekend as a continuity announcer and newsreader.
Current schedule
Maggie Philbin is the breakfast show co-presenter, often out and about in the BBC Radio Berkshire radio car. Portsmouth University-educated Jim Cathcart provides an early-morning show from 5am & Henry Kelly now presents the mid-morning show every Monday - Friday from 10am-1pm.
The station is quite Reading-centric, and covers much sporting action from Reading FC at the Madejski Stadium, also known as the 'Mad Stad'. Presenters Joel Hufford and Tim Dellor provide commentary on all Royal's matches throughout the season.
In the evening, after 7pm, all BBC radio stations in the South and South-East join up. The evening show used to be presented by Belfast-accented Sue Dougan, but now it's Charlie Crocker, and comes from Tunbridge Wells, home of Radio Kent.
Newsreaders on Radio Bristol have been known to pronounce Berkshire phonetically as Birkshire.