KL.FM 96.7
Encyclopedia
KLFM 96.7 is an independent local radio station
located in King's Lynn
, Norfolk
, England
. Its name is an abbreviation of King's Lynn FM, followed by its broadcasting frequency, 96.7.
It broadcasts from 18 Blackfriars Street in King's Lynn
, Norfolk
, England
, previously the location of a small bank. The station uses the former BBC Radio Norfolk
frequency of 96.7 MHz FM
. The station's current Managing Director is Pam Lawton and Programme Controller is Tim Lewis.
The station broadcasts to approximately 135,000 people aged over 15 years old in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk
district.
Limited identified King's Lynn and West Norfolk
as an area poorly served by the broadcast media.
An application to the Independent Broadcasting Authority
for a relay transmitter
to serve this area was turned down. Discussions were then opened with the West Norfolk MP
, Henry Bellingham, who then wrote to the Home Office
and the IBA supporting the concept of a station serving the area.
On 4 October 1990 the IBA announce that King's Lynn is one of the areas to be advertised in the first phase of local radio licences by the new Radio Authority who take over responsibility for licensing and regulating commercial radio in the UK on 1 January 1991.
On 4 June 1991 the licence was formally advertised, with a closing date of 24 September 1991 at 2 pm. Potential applicants had 16 weeks to put their proposals on paper and send them back. On 25 September—they announced that three applicants had applied for the licence—King's Lynn FM (Mid-Anglia Radio plc), X-Cel FM (X-Cel FM Ltd) and one other.
The original licence was issued for a period of 8 years.
The original working title for KLFM was King's Lynn Radio.
In December (about 12 weeks after the closing date for application forms to be sent), it was announced that Mid-Anglia Radio plc (trading as King's Lynn FM) had won the licence to provide the area with its own independent local commercial radio station. Two weeks of test transmissions followed commencing on 16 June 1992. Two kilowatts
of power was originally used to broadcast from a transmitter at the Great Massingham
transmission site. It was later increased to 3 kilowatts.
s and commercials
, Technics
CD players and an Audionics mixing desk. The original audio processor was an Inovonics FM 250 model. In the Summer of 2004 the old studio equipment was taken apart after 12 years of continuous use and new equipment and furniture installed. This included a Sonifex Sovereign mixing desk and a new digital playout system (RCS Master Control).
After Mid-Anglia Radio PLC was sold to the GWR Group in 1994 KLFM's on-air name was changed to "Greatest Hits 96.7 The New KLFM"! This 'new' service played more music and had less chat.
In November/December 1996, displeased with the new format, Dave King, Paul Baker and a number of other presenters left the station and set up a 28 day Restricted Service Licence
trial service. They called the station "King's Lynn Radio 105.4" and the station's tag line was "All That LOCAL Radio Should Be".
In March 1997, GWR sold a number of local commercial stations, including KLFM, as part of a planned disposal programme following the acquisition of Classic FM
. Dawe Media of Cambridge
bought KLFM for £1.1 million. Stewart Francis once again became involved with the station by becoming the new Chairman. It was while Dawe Media owned the station that some equipment changes were made, including the installation of a computerised playout system (the Enco DAD).
In December 1999, Dawe Media sold KLFM to the UKRD Group
, who still own the station today.
. The original jingles (July 1992-September 1993) were re-sings of Century 21's 'Madison Avenue' package. Between September 1993 and August 1994 the station used TM Century re-sings of a WPLJ
package. The 1997-2002 jingle package was a re-sing of Jams 'Ultimate One' package (originally created for BBC Radio 1
). A recent package (the '...And Now' package) was originally produced by Jam for KIMN
in Denver, Colorado
and re-sung for KLFM 96.7, although these were never used on air by KLFM. Most of KLFM's on air branding (jingles, promotions, etc.) is now produced in-house at UKRD's production department in Bristol.
was the first official voice on KLFM. At 8am on Wednesday the 1 July 1992 he opened the station with the words "It's 8 o'clock on Wednesday the 1st of July 1992. This is your very first independent radio station, broadcasting from studios in Blackfriars Street, King's Lynn - KLFM!"
The first song played was Bachman–Turner Overdrive's 1974 hit, "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet".
Paul Baker had originally been lined up for the job of weekday Breakfast presenter but management thought the West Norfolk area wouldn't understand his Scottish accent and so gave him a show at 8am on weekends.
Other presenters included Mandy Walker, Mervin J Futter, singer-songwriter Terry Mckenna, Warren Davies, Steve Allen, Craig Morris, Mick & Sarah-Jane, Chris Brown and Harry Giltrap. 'Networked' shows on the station included programmes featuring Jimmy Savile
, David Hamilton and Dave Lee Travis
whose syndicated programme was broadcast from 10 am on Sunday mornings from October 1993 via satellite radio station 'Quality Europe FM'. Another former national radio presenter is Gary King, formerly of Atlantic 252
and BBC Radio 1
, who presents 'Totally 80s' every Sunday, 2-4 pm until 25 February 2007.
Even Hospital Radio Lynn, the town's Hospital radio
service, linked up for 2 hours of requests on a Saturday evening.
Other members of the original team included Peter Robinson (news) and Sasha Twining (news and presentation), Paul Gardner, Richard Tree and Sarah Harding (all 3 in sales), Jim Warwick (engineer based at Hereward Radio
), and Amanda Wildman (on reception).
Independent Local Radio
Independent Local Radio is the collective name given to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. The same name is used for Independent Local Radio in Ireland.-Development of ILR:...
located in King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, 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...
. Its name is an abbreviation of King's Lynn FM, followed by its broadcasting frequency, 96.7.
It broadcasts from 18 Blackfriars Street in King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, 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...
, previously the location of a small bank. The station uses the former BBC Radio Norfolk
BBC Radio Norfolk
BBC Radio Norfolk is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Norfolk, broadcasting since 11 September 1980. It broadcasts from the studios of BBC East in The Forum, Norwich on 95.1 FM , 104.4 FM , 95.6 FM , 855 kHz AM/MW , 873 kHz AM/MW BBC Radio Norfolk is the BBC Local...
frequency of 96.7 MHz 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"...
. The station's current Managing Director is Pam Lawton and Programme Controller is Tim Lewis.
The station broadcasts to approximately 135,000 people aged over 15 years old in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk
King's Lynn and West Norfolk
King's Lynn and West Norfolk is a local government district and borough in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in the town of King's Lynn.-History:...
district.
Licence application
In 1987 Mid-Anglia RadioMid-Anglia Radio
Mid-Anglia Radio PLC, was a company that owned radio stations in the Norfolk and Cambridgeshire regions of the UK.The stations they owned were:* Hereward Radio, in Peterborough ....
Limited identified King's Lynn and West Norfolk
King's Lynn and West Norfolk
King's Lynn and West Norfolk is a local government district and borough in Norfolk, England. Its council is based in the town of King's Lynn.-History:...
as an area poorly served by the broadcast media.
An application to the Independent Broadcasting Authority
Independent Broadcasting Authority
The Independent Broadcasting Authority was the regulatory body in the United Kingdom for commercial television - and commercial/independent radio broadcasts...
for a relay transmitter
Transmitter
In electronics and telecommunications a transmitter or radio transmitter is an electronic device which, with the aid of an antenna, produces radio waves. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the antenna. When excited by this alternating...
to serve this area was turned down. Discussions were then opened with the West Norfolk MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, Henry Bellingham, who then wrote to the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
and the IBA supporting the concept of a station serving the area.
On 4 October 1990 the IBA announce that King's Lynn is one of the areas to be advertised in the first phase of local radio licences by the new Radio Authority who take over responsibility for licensing and regulating commercial radio in the UK on 1 January 1991.
On 4 June 1991 the licence was formally advertised, with a closing date of 24 September 1991 at 2 pm. Potential applicants had 16 weeks to put their proposals on paper and send them back. On 25 September—they announced that three applicants had applied for the licence—King's Lynn FM (Mid-Anglia Radio plc), X-Cel FM (X-Cel FM Ltd) and one other.
The original licence was issued for a period of 8 years.
The original working title for KLFM was King's Lynn Radio.
In December (about 12 weeks after the closing date for application forms to be sent), it was announced that Mid-Anglia Radio plc (trading as King's Lynn FM) had won the licence to provide the area with its own independent local commercial radio station. Two weeks of test transmissions followed commencing on 16 June 1992. Two kilowatts
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
of power was originally used to broadcast from a transmitter at the Great Massingham
Great Massingham
Great Massingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.It has a primary school , a village shop, a pub , a village hall and a church . It is also notable for the number of ponds in the village - two large ones in the village centre and more in the outskirts...
transmission site. It was later increased to 3 kilowatts.
Equipment
Studio equipment included DAT players, an ENCO DADpro computer playout system for jingleJingle
A jingle is a short tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. The jingle contains one or more hooks and lyrics that explicitly promote the product being advertised, usually through the use of one or more advertising slogans. Ad buyers use jingles in radio and television...
s and commercials
Radio commercial
Commercial radio stations make most of their revenue selling “airtime” to advertisers. Of total media expenditures, radio accounts for 6.9%. Radio advertisements or “spots” are available when a business or service provides valuable consideration, usually cash, in exchange for the station airing...
, Technics
Technics (brand)
1960s:*SX-601 Electronic Organ — an origin of Technics SX keyboard series, the result of cooperative works of National Electronic Organ Company and Ace Tone...
CD players and an Audionics mixing desk. The original audio processor was an Inovonics FM 250 model. In the Summer of 2004 the old studio equipment was taken apart after 12 years of continuous use and new equipment and furniture installed. This included a Sonifex Sovereign mixing desk and a new digital playout system (RCS Master Control).
Management
Stewart Francis was the first Managing Director of the station, with Peter Kingham holding the post of Station Manager and Dave King was Programme Controller. Other people on the Board Of Directors were Martin George (Chairman), Dr Mary Archer MA, David Ball, Jean Barker OBE, David Cocks, Tony Durham MA, William Gibbs, Harry Giltrap, Patrick Sharman & Richard Winfrey.After Mid-Anglia Radio PLC was sold to the GWR Group in 1994 KLFM's on-air name was changed to "Greatest Hits 96.7 The New KLFM"! This 'new' service played more music and had less chat.
In November/December 1996, displeased with the new format, Dave King, Paul Baker and a number of other presenters left the station and set up a 28 day Restricted Service Licence
Restricted Service Licence
A UK Restricted Service Licence , is typically granted to radio stations and television stations broadcasting within the UK to serve a local community or a special event...
trial service. They called the station "King's Lynn Radio 105.4" and the station's tag line was "All That LOCAL Radio Should Be".
In March 1997, GWR sold a number of local commercial stations, including KLFM, as part of a planned disposal programme following the acquisition of Classic FM
Classic FM (UK)
Classic FM, one of the United Kingdom's three Independent National Radio stations, broadcasts classical music in a popular and accessible style.-Overview:...
. Dawe Media of Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
bought KLFM for £1.1 million. Stewart Francis once again became involved with the station by becoming the new Chairman. It was while Dawe Media owned the station that some equipment changes were made, including the installation of a computerised playout system (the Enco DAD).
In December 1999, Dawe Media sold KLFM to the UKRD Group
UKRD Group
The UKRD Group Ltd is a British media company which owns 16 commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. The name originates from UK Radio Developments.-History:...
, who still own the station today.
Branding
On air imaging has come from mainly Century 21 and Jam Creative ProductionsJAM Creative Productions
JAM Creative Productions, Inc., is an American company that produces radio jingles, promo music for television, and commercial jingles for advertisers. It has made more radio jingles than any other jingle company and has become part of American pop culture....
. The original jingles (July 1992-September 1993) were re-sings of Century 21's 'Madison Avenue' package. Between September 1993 and August 1994 the station used TM Century re-sings of a WPLJ
WPLJ
WPLJ is a radio station in New York City owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media. WPLJ shares studio facilities with sister station WABC inside 2 Penn Plaza in midtown Manhattan, and its transmitter is atop the Empire State Building. The station currently plays a Hot Adult...
package. The 1997-2002 jingle package was a re-sing of Jams 'Ultimate One' package (originally created for BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
). A recent package (the '...And Now' package) was originally produced by Jam for KIMN
KIMN
KIMN is a Hot Adult Contemporary radio station in Denver, Colorado. This station broadcasts at 100.3 MHz with an effective radiated power of 97 kW and is under ownership of Wilks Broadcasting, which has bought the entire Denver area cluster from CBS Radio.-History:The station signed on the air on...
in Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
and re-sung for KLFM 96.7, although these were never used on air by KLFM. Most of KLFM's on air branding (jingles, promotions, etc.) is now produced in-house at UKRD's production department in Bristol.
Presenters and staff
Tony West, formerly with Chiltern Radio and Atlantic 252Atlantic 252
Atlantic 252 was a long wave radio station broadcasting to Ireland and the United Kingdom on 252 kHz from its 1988 purpose built transmission site Clarkstown radio transmitter, which provided service to Atlantic 252 from 1989 until 2002. The station's studios were located just 12 km away in...
was the first official voice on KLFM. At 8am on Wednesday the 1 July 1992 he opened the station with the words "It's 8 o'clock on Wednesday the 1st of July 1992. This is your very first independent radio station, broadcasting from studios in Blackfriars Street, King's Lynn - KLFM!"
The first song played was Bachman–Turner Overdrive's 1974 hit, "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet".
Paul Baker had originally been lined up for the job of weekday Breakfast presenter but management thought the West Norfolk area wouldn't understand his Scottish accent and so gave him a show at 8am on weekends.
Other presenters included Mandy Walker, Mervin J Futter, singer-songwriter Terry Mckenna, Warren Davies, Steve Allen, Craig Morris, Mick & Sarah-Jane, Chris Brown and Harry Giltrap. 'Networked' shows on the station included programmes featuring Jimmy Savile
Jimmy Savile
Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile, OBE, KCSG was an English disc jockey, television presenter and media personality, best known for his BBC television show Jim'll Fix It, and for being the first and last presenter of the long-running BBC music chart show Top of the Pops...
, David Hamilton and Dave Lee Travis
Dave Lee Travis
Dave Lee Travis , also known professionally as DLT and the Hairy Cornflake, is a British radio presenter, best known for his career on BBC Radio 1.-Early life:...
whose syndicated programme was broadcast from 10 am on Sunday mornings from October 1993 via satellite radio station 'Quality Europe FM'. Another former national radio presenter is Gary King, formerly of Atlantic 252
Atlantic 252
Atlantic 252 was a long wave radio station broadcasting to Ireland and the United Kingdom on 252 kHz from its 1988 purpose built transmission site Clarkstown radio transmitter, which provided service to Atlantic 252 from 1989 until 2002. The station's studios were located just 12 km away in...
and BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
, who presents 'Totally 80s' every Sunday, 2-4 pm until 25 February 2007.
Even Hospital Radio Lynn, the town's Hospital radio
Hospital radio
Hospital radio is a form of audio broadcasting produced specifically for the in-patients of hospitals. It is primarily found in the United Kingdom.-History:...
service, linked up for 2 hours of requests on a Saturday evening.
Other members of the original team included Peter Robinson (news) and Sasha Twining (news and presentation), Paul Gardner, Richard Tree and Sarah Harding (all 3 in sales), Jim Warwick (engineer based at Hereward Radio
Hereward FM
102.7 Heart Peterborough was an Independent Local Radio station for Peterborough, Boston, King's Lynn, Cambridgeshire, south Lincolnshire and west Norfolk...
), and Amanda Wildman (on reception).
Sources
- KLFM 96.7 staff
- IBA, Radio Authority & OFCOM
- Eastern Daily Press
- Lynn News
- Hospital Radio Lynn
- Norfolk County Library Services
- KLFM Licence Application (dated: 19 September1991)
- KLFM & UKRD Websites
- radiorewind.co.uk
- Sound recordings
- Guinness World Records Ltd.