BBC Dorset FM
Encyclopedia
BBC Dorset FM was a BBC Local Radio
station based in Dorchester, covering the county of Dorset
in England
which broadcast from 1993 to 1996. It was the last BBC Local Radio station to launch which covered a previously unserved area. It operated as an opt-out station from BBC Radio Devon
for around 23 hours a week.
The station produced just three-and-a-half hours of its own programming each weekday - Good Morning Dorset from 0630-0900, and Dorset Newshour from 1200-1300. In addition there were three hours of programmes on Saturday and two hours on Sunday. The remainder of the station's output was relayed from BBC Radio Devon
.
In early 1996 BBC Dorset FM closed, and was replaced on 103.8 FM by a relay of BBC Radio Solent
, albeit with a news and information service tailored to rural Dorset. The Dorchester studio became a district office of Radio Solent.
BBC Local Radio
BBC Local Radio is the BBC's regional radio service for England and the Channel Islands, consisting of 40 stations. They cover a variety of areas with some serving a city and surrounding areas, for example BBC Radio Manchester; a county, for example BBC Radio Norfolk; an administrative region for...
station based in Dorchester, covering the county of Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
which broadcast from 1993 to 1996. It was the last BBC Local Radio station to launch which covered a previously unserved area. It operated as an opt-out station from BBC Radio Devon
BBC Radio Devon
BBC Radio Devon is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Devon. It began transmissions on 17 January 1983, replacing a previous breakfast show for Devon and Cornwall broadcast on the local frequencies of Radio 4....
for around 23 hours a week.
History
BBC Dorset FM emerged after plans for a full-time station for Dorset were cancelled in 1990, as part of a series of measures designed to save £3 million. Dorset FM opened on 26 April 1993, broadcasting to west and central Dorset on 103.8 FM from its transmitter on Bincombe Hill.The station produced just three-and-a-half hours of its own programming each weekday - Good Morning Dorset from 0630-0900, and Dorset Newshour from 1200-1300. In addition there were three hours of programmes on Saturday and two hours on Sunday. The remainder of the station's output was relayed from BBC Radio Devon
BBC Radio Devon
BBC Radio Devon is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Devon. It began transmissions on 17 January 1983, replacing a previous breakfast show for Devon and Cornwall broadcast on the local frequencies of Radio 4....
.
In early 1996 BBC Dorset FM closed, and was replaced on 103.8 FM by a relay of BBC Radio Solent
BBC Radio Solent
BBC Radio Solent is the BBC Local Radio service for the Isle of Wight and the English counties of Hampshire and Dorset. Its studios are located in Southampton, in the same purpose-built office block in Havelock Road as the BBC South Today news studios, and there are district offices in Portsmouth,...
, albeit with a news and information service tailored to rural Dorset. The Dorchester studio became a district office of Radio Solent.