BBC Radio Cumbria

BBC Radio Cumbria is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Cumbria and broadcasts from studios in Carlisle.

Radio Cumbria claims to be listened to by one third of the county's population. In order to address the challenge of broadcasting to a county which is sparsely populated and predominantly rural, it regularly makes outside broadcasts from a bus to maintain direct contact with its audience. Most programming has a similar format to that of other BBC local radio stations, although one unique feature is the Lamb Bank - a short daily programme which carries announcements from farmers wishing to exchange livestock.

Until late 2005, evening programmes had been shared with the BBC local radio stations in the north east, Radio Newcastle and Radio Cleveland. The station is now on air between 5am and 1am every day. The station cracks open the broadcasting bubbly each morning at 5am with Richard Corrie. The Breakfast Show from 7 - 10am is hosted by Gordon Swindlehurst & Helen Skelton. From 10am - 1pm is Val Armstrong. The Tony James Show is from 1 - 4pm. Devon-bred Richard Nankivell has drivetime from 4 - 7pm. Late-night broadcasting cocoa and slippers is provided by Paul Braithwaite from 10pm - 1am. Between 1 and 5 am Radio Cumbria transmits BBC Radio 5 Live's Up All Night programme., usually presented by Rhod Sharp, Dotun Adebayo, or Russell Fuller.

Radio Cumbria is unusual among BBC local radio stations in that its coverage area does not correspond exactly with a BBC television "region". Due mainly to considerations of terrain, northern parts of Cumbria receive television from Caldbeck, which broadcasts regional news from studios in Newcastle upon Tyne, directed at the "North East and Cumbria" region. Southern Cumbria receives regional news from Manchester via the Winter Hill TV Mast. Earlier attempts by the BBC to transmit the Manchester-produced bulletins to northern Cumbria all proved unpopular, because viewers objected to coverage of Derbyshire and Cheshire at the expense of their own locality. For these reasons, Radio Cumbria fulfils an important role in providing a unified news service to the whole county.

On FM, Radio Cumbria broadcasts to northern Cumbria on 95.6 MHz (Sandale) - suitable for drivers on the M6 north of Penrith - and to the south of the county on 96.1 MHz (Morecambe Bay), with lower-powered relays on 95.2 MHz (Kendal), 104.1 MHz (Whitehaven) and 104.2 MHz (Windermere). It also broadcasts on medium wave: 756 kHz (Brisco - Carlisle), 837 kHz (Barrow-in-Furness) and 1458 kHz (Whitehaven). It is the only BBC local radio station in the north without DAB.

History of Radio Cumbria

Radio Cumbria began service on 1973-11-24 as BBC Radio Carlisle and adopted its current name shortly before its tenth anniversary. Interestingly, the county of Cumbria was not created until 1974.

Between 1982-05-25 and 1991, an opt-out service, BBC Radio Furness operated in the south of the county at peak times, covering the Furness area which encompasses the Lake District and what is now the south coast of Cumbria. Its programmes were produced in Barrow-in-Furness and used 96.1 MHz and 837 kHz. Radio Furness closed as a result of budgetary constraints, after which the whole county once again received a single programme.

Former presenters

* Richard Hammond

See also

* The Bay - independent radio station covering north Lancashire and southern Cumbria
* CFM (Carlisle), CFM (West Cumbria)

External links

* BBC Radio Cumbria
* Media UK - BBC Radio Cumbria
* History of local radio in Cumbria.
* Barrow transmitter
* Carlisle (Brisco) transmitter
* Kendal transmitter.
* Morecambe Bay transmitter.
* Sandale transmitter (including coverage map).
* Whitehaven transmitter.
* Windermere tranmitter.