102.7 Mercury FM
Encyclopedia
This article is about the former Mercury FM in Crawley and Horsham. For the former Mercury FM in Hertfordshire, see Heart Hertfordshire; for the former Mercury FM in Medway, see KMFM Medway
, and for the former Mercury FM in West Kent, see KMFM West Kent
.
Mercury FM was a radio station in the Surrey
and Sussex
area of the United Kingdom
that was founded on 20 October 1984 and closed on 25 July 2010. The station broadcast on FM
102.7 MHz to Reigate
and Crawley
, and 97.5 MHz around Horsham
and later merged with Heart Sussex to form Heart Sussex and Surrey
.
, until the Classic Gold Network
took over the AM licence of 1521 kHz. Mercury was renamed "Mercury FM" after the takeover of the group by GWR, later GCap Media. Before that Mercury lost the County Sound region again, and Eagle Radio took the Surrey 96.4fm transmitter, and County Sound returned to 1476am. The station was incorporated into GCap's "One Network" of stations, until the merger between GCap and Chrysalis Radio, forming Global Radio. As part of this merger, many of the former One Network stations have been or are in the process of being rebranded and reformatted under the "Heart" network. However it was decided that given the proximity of Mercury's coverage area to the existing Heart 106.2 station, it would retain its identity and be formatted as a "Hit Music
" station.
. The newly merged Heart Sussex and Surrey
launched on Monday 26 July 2010 with the very last Mercury FM programme broadcast the day beforehand. Currently, sales operations continue to be run from Crawley.
, Ed Stewart
, Russ Williams
, Ian Davidson, Geoff Aspel, Jon Scragg, John Calvert, Steve Hyland and Tony Myatt. More recently presenters have included Paul Bunker, Steve Knight (now BBC), Steve Allen (Hertbeat), Adam O'Neill (now Capital FM) Mark Dodson (now 107 Meridian FM)
Presenters which broadcast shows right up until the closure included Gary Wilson (Breakfast), Chris Oxlade (Saturday Breakfast), Luke Smith (Weekday Drive - now at Capital) and Simon Hardwick (Sunday Breakfast).
KMFM Medway
KMFM Medway is an Independent Local Radio serving the Medway Towns and the surrounding areas in Kent, South East England. It is part of the KMFM group of radio stations in the county, which are part of the KM Group.-History:...
, and for the former Mercury FM in West Kent, see KMFM West Kent
KMFM West Kent
KMFM West Kent is an Independent Local Radio serving the towns of Sevenoaks, Tonbridge, Royal Tunbridge Wells and the surrounding areas in Kent, South East England...
.
Mercury FM was a radio station in the Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
and Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
area of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
that was founded on 20 October 1984 and closed on 25 July 2010. The station broadcast on FM
FM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
102.7 MHz to Reigate
Reigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...
and Crawley
Crawley
Crawley is a town and local government district with Borough status in West Sussex, England. It is south of Charing Cross, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town of Chichester, covers an area of and had a population of 99,744 at the time of the 2001 Census.The area has...
, and 97.5 MHz around Horsham
Horsham
Horsham is a market town with a population of 55,657 on the upper reaches of the River Arun in the centre of the Weald, West Sussex, in the historic County of Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester...
and later merged with Heart Sussex to form Heart Sussex and Surrey
Heart Sussex and Surrey
Heart Sussex and Surrey is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Sussex and Surrey from studios in the Portslade area of Brighton. The station began broadcasting on Monday 26 July 2010 as a result of a merger between Heart Sussex and Mercury FM.-History:The regional station originally...
.
History
Radio Mercury began airing on 20 October, 1984, on 103.6 FM and 1521 AM. A year later, the FM frequency changed to 102.7 and 97.5 in Horsham. In 1991 the station merged with County Sound Radio in Guildford to form the Allied Radio Group. Mercury then went from playing a broad mix of music to being mainly a Top 40 station, County Sound was later renamed "Extra AM" and then again was shortly renamed to "Mercury Extra AM" to make the connection between the two stations better known. It also became known as The BreezeThe Breeze (radio station)
The Breeze was the name of two easy listening radio stations in Essex and Surrey. The stations are today part of the Gold network.-Breeze Essex:...
, until the Classic Gold Network
Classic Gold Digital Network
Classic Gold Digital Network was one of the biggest 'gold' formatted radio networks in the United Kingdom, with a potential audience of 47 million. Classic Gold was broadcast on analogue and DAB digital platforms, as well as Sky channel 0189.-History:...
took over the AM licence of 1521 kHz. Mercury was renamed "Mercury FM" after the takeover of the group by GWR, later GCap Media. Before that Mercury lost the County Sound region again, and Eagle Radio took the Surrey 96.4fm transmitter, and County Sound returned to 1476am. The station was incorporated into GCap's "One Network" of stations, until the merger between GCap and Chrysalis Radio, forming Global Radio. As part of this merger, many of the former One Network stations have been or are in the process of being rebranded and reformatted under the "Heart" network. However it was decided that given the proximity of Mercury's coverage area to the existing Heart 106.2 station, it would retain its identity and be formatted as a "Hit Music
The Hit Music Network
The Hit Music Network was a collection of five Independent Local Radio stations operating in the United Kingdom and owned by Global Radio. Created in September 2008, the stations were formerly owned by GCap Media prior to its takeover by Global and, with the exception of 95.8 Capital FM, were all...
" station.
Closure
It was announced , that Mercury FM would become part of the Heart NetworkHeart Network
Heart is a radio network of 17 adult contemporary independent local radio stations in central & southern England and north Wales. Each station broadcasts local breakfast and drive time shows and simulcasts network programming at all other times...
. The newly merged Heart Sussex and Surrey
Heart Sussex and Surrey
Heart Sussex and Surrey is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Sussex and Surrey from studios in the Portslade area of Brighton. The station began broadcasting on Monday 26 July 2010 as a result of a merger between Heart Sussex and Mercury FM.-History:The regional station originally...
launched on Monday 26 July 2010 with the very last Mercury FM programme broadcast the day beforehand. Currently, sales operations continue to be run from Crawley.
Presenters
The station had (over the years) employed some of the top personalities in British radio. These include Pat SharpPat Sharp
Pat Sharp is a British radio and television presenter and disc jockey. In the UK, he is known mainly for his work on the children's television programme Fun House, his former mullet and his radio shows as well as his support of Arsenal...
, Ed Stewart
Ed Stewart
Ed Stewart is a radio broadcaster from England. His real name is Edward Mainwaring but he is known by the nickname Ed Stewpot Stewart.-Early life and career:...
, Russ Williams
Russ Williams
Russell "Russ" Williams is an English radio DJ from Blackpool, primarily known for his long-running shows on Virgin Radio , and since 2008 on Absolute Radio, the re-launched version of Virgin Radio.-Biography:...
, Ian Davidson, Geoff Aspel, Jon Scragg, John Calvert, Steve Hyland and Tony Myatt. More recently presenters have included Paul Bunker, Steve Knight (now BBC), Steve Allen (Hertbeat), Adam O'Neill (now Capital FM) Mark Dodson (now 107 Meridian FM)
Presenters which broadcast shows right up until the closure included Gary Wilson (Breakfast), Chris Oxlade (Saturday Breakfast), Luke Smith (Weekday Drive - now at Capital) and Simon Hardwick (Sunday Breakfast).