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This is Heart!

 

Get in touch with your messages about Heart Norwich and Radio Broadland. Do you have any memories of the early days of the station? What do you think of the sound of Heart today?

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To leave your message, simply fill out the form below. All I need is your name and your message! Then check back to Goodbye Radio Broadland soon to see your message online.

 

Your Name:

Your Message:

Martin Catrick's Message:

It's so sad that Radio Broadland is now no more. It's been poor for so long and lacks any entertainment value! I used to love this station which has been killed. It's bred some great DJ's and happy memories but alas it's now died. RIP Broadland Radio! I now listen to Nick Conrad, Steven Bumphrey, David Clayton et all on Radio Norfolk, at least it's live and entertaining and from Norwich. I wonder what the greats who have graced those corridors would make of it now?


Terry B's Message:

We've been heart attacked and it won't get any better. Broadland used to be such a free and friendly sounding station back in the day when I think the jocks had much more freedom to say and play what they wanted and believed in. There was real HEART back in the early days.

 

Some old names I have never seen mentioned here: the late Julian Smith (friendliest man in the Golden Star next door to the studios), Melinda Kirkbride from Pizza1 Pancakes2 doing her sexily voiced classical music show (honest!) - mother of Stash Kirkbride from Future Radio I think - Tom Payne doing a very free-form rock/indie programme, and I will tip my hat to Paul Thompson who is mentioned below but deserves another shout.

 

I don't think I'll be remembering any of the Heart crew so fondly 25 years on. But when I used to turn on the radio to original Broadland, those weren't just voices, they were friends doing what they enjoyed with a real passion. Long gone.


Matt's Message:

I used to listen to broadland during the early days along with  laser558 (charlie wolf fever pitch). I loved john warwick, I really miss him. I also loved the original name check jingles, dave brown, rob chandler nick risby, etc. Does anyone know if they can be purchased? I've bought other packages in the past. where's chris lee now?


Graham's Message:

Just heard that Heart is now to be Heart East Anglia, which means they are shutting down the Ipswich studio with job losses... So Norwich will now look after the Whole of Suffolk now.


Iain's Message:

Rob Chandler was with Radio Orwell (now Heart Ipswich), prior to joining Radio Broadland at the start in 1984. He would obviously be ideal for both areas. However, he also does a lunchtime programme on Saturdays for BBC Radio Suffolk and I am sure this couldn't continue, should he remain on Heart.

Defiantly sad news for the people of Ipswich, who will loose the last remains of their local station, which was the first one in East Anglia when it started broadcasting from Electric House in Lloyds Avenue during 1975.

I wonder whether it will prompt Tindle Radio to merge their station in Colchester with Radio Ipswich or get them to merge the Beach with Radio Norwich, like they've just done with North Norfolk Radio.

Bad news all round and defiantly bad news for the listener. Global are destroying local radio in this country and where will it all end!


Mark's Message:

With Heart Norfolk becoming Heart East Anglia -who will stay... Will be sad if we lose Rob and Chrissie and Chris at drive , not forgetting Ange.


Rick's Message:

As a listener to Radio Broadland since day one, I have never bothered to try any other stations over the years because I didn't need to. They played the songs I like, had interesting people on the air and kept me entertained. Then Heart came along and it all changed for me. As i'm not a woman, I obviously have no interest in winning the "girly night out" of the week and there's only so many times i can hear the likes of Abba and Michael Buble in a day before I get bored of it. So, after all these years I have to admit to straying to Radio 2 and I haven't looked back. I love the fact that they play a real mixture of songs, the presenters are great fun and have the chance to say things worth hearing and there is no obvious sway towards one sex or the other. It really is goodbye Radio Broadland for me.


Iain's Message

Another person from Radio Broadland was David Hoffman. Not a local boy and not one of the original line-up. He seems to however have been working in local radio in East Anglia for years and years. First of all at Electric House in Lloyds Avenue, Ipswich and the long gone "Saxon Radio" from Bury St Edmunds.

Then he appeared on Radio Broadland and can't even think he swapped Norfolk to Suffolk and then back again.

Remember sitting watching Dave doing the afternoon stint one Friday afternoon at Colegate. Actually we'd just been to the BBC in the Forum and had an appointment with the engineers at Radio Broadland!

Several years later saw him again at a conference and he was doing the radio stints on the Tindle owned stations throughout East Anglia, when not working for Barrcode in Harleston. Nice bloke and great to have a chat with about radio.

After all we're all anoraks and that includes those who work in the business. But who pretend not to be such things!


Iain's Message

Nice to see Paul Thompson replied to my original message.

One particular memory I have of the Friday late show (10.0pm - Midnight). Radio Broadland closed down at 10.0pm every night during the week. But on a Friday night the station remained on-air for an extra two hours.

As I've already mentioned Paul had this 1 to 1 with his listener and in the days before e-mail's. He relied on letters, etc. One such letter asked whether he could remember all the Wombles? He mentioned he could name one... Wellington, as it was the name of the man who got him into radio at Radio Orwell in Ipswich.

John Wellington was later to go onto manage Essex Radio and later Radio Mercury in Surrey. I still have the cassettes of Paul also covering Adrian Finigan on the "Broadland Beat".

Adrian was of course later to do the same slot on Radio Norfolk and across the Eastern Counties. Whatever happened to Paul though. Did he go onto do 'The Beach' in Great Yarmouth and more importantly where is he today?


Stuart's Message

For me Heart is as strange mixture of good and bad. I find the mixture of music is a little better than Radio Broadland was in its last couple of years, but I find it so sad to hear the once great Rob, Chrissie and Chris reduced to formulaic (almost scripted sounding) banter and chat.

 

Just a few years ago I loved listening to Chris Marston on the afternoon show. The fun and jokes he shared with beat the queue Lou and the newsreaders was so endearing and natural. Now its a case of some "slick" hit and miss gags every fifteen minutes and no interaction with anyone else. Chris was great when he had someone to banter with. Sort it out Heart!! Even Rob and Chrissie's show sounds limp and lifeless when compared to the show of a few years ago. Everything is too rigid. The "highlight" clips through the day say it all.

 

I say keep the music but inject a bit more fun into the proceedings. All the faux optimism is fine in small doses to keep the vibe of the station going, but lets have a bit of real personality back. The presenters are oozing with it, just let it come out once in a while!!


Pete the Poet's Message:

Poem: Don't want to lose faith, to many hearts on the line, Do angels sleep as I'm running out of time, we are wise in what has been left unsaid, if you can not find an answer then it has been said. Never let a blue bleak past out of that head it can be painted from grey from beyond a head, that something that pulls me closer to the ground is overshadowed by a sunset sound.

P.A Wilde.

 

I know this is to deep for your show Rob and Chrissie I could not sleep and wrote to show you what I am capable of. I was thinking of the Santa runners to be honest. I love the show and continue to listen rather than bore you with my poetry but want you to know I am out here. Lots of love and Merry Christmas. Pete x


Pete the Poet's Message:

I wanted to say how Jason Donovan and Robbie Williams have matured into the good men they were always meant to be......Jase....love the show.......Robbie good to hear you sing good music again. Pete Wilde


Hannu Leppänen's Message:

I have fond memories of Radio Broadland from way back.  It was a chilly morning at around 4 a.m. in November 1987 in Finland.  I was fiddling with my radio and on 1152 kHz MW  I happened to hear Radio B!  And that started a chain of events which led to a couple of live phone interviews on the air, a station visit in 1989 and a lot of penpals for my primary school students.  I still have some of the original material left from that period (cassettes, a video, children's correspondence, stickers etc.)  Thanks to Nick Risby, Chrissie Jackson and Dick Hutchinson we got connected with  people in the Norwich area (without the help of Nokia phones!!)  and that wasn't very common in those days.


Nowadays it's very easy to tune into any radio station online from anywhere in the world.  But it just doesn't feel the same anymore.  And many of them seem to sound the same even here in Finland. I think that is a shame.  I'm sure many of you still remember listening to Radio Luxembourg when you were young.  But I'm afraid not very many will remember Heart Norwich after 20-30 years.  But then again, does anybody care?


I am going to put one of my Broadland stickers on my car window to remind me of the good times I had with the old Radio Broadland  back in the good old days of local broadcasting stations.  Times change, but not always for the better.


Richard Beardmore's Message:

I've only just realised that when I wrote the message about Rob and C.J. I only put Peppermint park in the 80's. Of course they were the originals of Broadland too apart from Tony Gillam and Nick Risby and I think John Warwick with Dave brown.
 

Well, that's me getting old for you! I know the only reason I got into Broadland was from Rob and James Hazell! Anyway all the best Heart! Love Rich Beardmore!


Paul Thompson's Message:

Iain - nice to see at least one person remembers me, it's most gratifying, thanks!

The early years seem so distant now, when presenters were pretty much allowed to use their own knowledge of music to fill a 'blank canvas'. What a shame that trust in the judgement of the individual has gone - and I'll bet that many of today's presenters would shudder at the thought of playing all the ads individually off separate carts and doing all the paperwork we had to do as we went along in those early years.

My luckiest break was in having worked with Tony Gillham prior to Broadland's launch and for him to put my name forward to do the Saturday chart show, which I got to do for the next ten years, and that turned out to be more or less the last decade that there was major public interest in pop charts. I still have all the printed lists from each week's show, with my timings and scribbled notes written whilst I was going along. Mind you, I never dared take a single week off in all those years for fear of someone else doing it better and getting the job permanently as a result!!


Claire Wood's Message:

Hey Richard, Gosh... I remember  you.. Used to listen to your show and bug the hell out of you all of the time...!! Do you remember me - Claire Woods (used to be from Brundall). Miss the days when you were on the radio. I remember having a coffee with you at Broadland before your show on a Saturday afternoon. 

Must admit I only listen to Radio 2 now. Can't stand any of the local stations.

Hope you are doing well.


Richard Beardmore's Message:

Well reading through comments it seems like there's no place like Broadland! However! Remember Rob and C.J. have not only taken you from Peppermint park in the 80's and 90's. They have won our audience in the millennium and bang up to date in 2009! Long live Rob and C.J... True Broadlanders will listen to Rob, Chrissie and Chris not matter who owns the station! It comes from the Heart! Or Peak (where i used to work)! Remember this, wear sunscreen and look out for them on telly next! Same goes for Jono Abel And Chris Marston!


WdW1's Message:

I miss radio broadland. I miss the playlist and i miss the local feel, i am addicted to the radio and have it on first thing in the morning, all during the day and on the car radio when driving home. Heart plays the same music and it has an over kill effect, i love barry white but not in the quantities. bring back the old music, embrace the new station. i used to be able to win the competitions, but now it seems that its a national competition, very wrong we want local competitions and more local prizes and when people win say where they are don't try and blag it its unfair, i want to know where these winning people are..


Iain's Message:

I used to listen to Radio Broadland from the beginning.. does anyone remember the 'Friday Late Show with Paul Thompson'. He made radio sound so personal and friendly. They were different and I suppose that is Norfolk... the weather before the news.

Nick Risby at breakfast (0600 - 0900), the late John Warwick (0900 - 1230), Dave Brown (1230 - 1530) and Rob Chandler (1530 - 1900). Half hour speech programme then the 'Broadland Beat' (1930 - 2200).

They were the great days of radio and then GWR came and destroyed it and Global did even more damage. Broadland was a shadow of its former self and like others local radio has gone for ever.


Triston Russell aka Tim Russell's Message:

I have very fond memories of Broadland in 1993/1994, especially as I got to present on the local station I listened to from the age of 8! Dave Brown convinced me to change my name as the Dallas jingle singers wouldn't be able to sing my name! As it turned out, I did only 3 months of freelance overnight shows, and I never did get my own jingle!! 

As bit of a techie-wannabe, I ended up causing Brian and Robert (the engineers) more than my fair share of agro!  I was pre-fading the travel jingle a few times during a show, which automatically kicked off the RDS TF flags (eek), and I also wondered into the racks room to have an anorak nose around at the Innovonics processors...which set-off the silent alarms!! Doh!

It was my first ever paid radio gig ("paid" being a arguable term!) - and I ended up travelling down to London to be a flying eye travel man and now running my own IT Consultancy business.

The whole team were very very welcoming.  So, to Stuart Davies, DaveB, Chris Marston, Rob and Chrissie, Richard Beardmore, Keith and Malcolm and all the others - thanks for the memories!


Rick's Message:

Really enjoy listening to Chris Marston's afternoon shows. I prefer his show to Rob and Chrissie personally. I find them a bit cringy at times but i'm sure there are plenty of people who still love them.


Michelle's Message:

In reply to simons comments about broadland and rob and crissy. If it were not for rob and crissy we would not listen to heart, you listen to them and it brigthens your morning they are like family, talking of which a family member works for a rival radio station and she knows that if she presented the breakfast show we would still listen to rob and crissy. After they finish their show we promptly switch stations as do a good many of our friends the only thing that's keeping the station going is them. Have you ever heard of sour grapes Simon!


Starlight Karaoke's Message:

Goodbye radio broadland another known station like vibe fm has been made redundant and been cremated..
long live radio broadland.
let the heart beat off
also bring back vibe 105 - 108 fm


Nikki's Message:

Would like to thank everyone for tuning in.  We've increased our listener numbers by 25 thousand in the last 3 months and have seen our best figures since 2005.


Chris' Message:

When Broadland first started their slogan was "We're all yours!" Well they certainly aren't now since Heart took over!  It's become the same day in day out rubbish with an emphasis on national rather than local broadcasting.  If I want national radio I'll tune to the BBC.  So looks like I'll have to switch to '103.4 The Beach' in future.


Debbie's Message:

I love heart, i bet every1 else loves it as well? I'm from trowse by the way.


Jamie's Message:

I miss radio Broadland Heart is so boring I listen to essex fm now because at least that is more local than London I hope Broadland comes back. Heart is ok but Broadland is better come back broadland everyone wants you to come back!


Simon Craig's Message:

Such as shame that radio broadland has gone forever, I remember the first frequency 97.6 fm & who could forget all the presenters & all those great jingles, I still have the radio broadland 7inch blue free plastic launch record, bring back radio broadland!


Simon's Message:

I think Heart sounds good, The music is better & as an ex-employee of the good old days at Radio Broadland I think the only thing letting the station down now is Rob & Chrissie, I have nothing against them but the station needs to move on if it wants to change its image! I tuned in for the re-launch & loved the new daytime show but breakfast made me turn off!

I don't think its an issue about local radio as its generally older people that want the localism & the older audience is not what they need for advertising. I don't think the younger audience care to much about Localisum! I think this is a fantastic move but people thinking its a different radio station will tune straight back out when they hear breakfast is just the same as it was 10 years ago!

Good Luck to Heart!


Gary's Message:

Not the real Gary Stevens but another Gary all the same. Sunday mornings is going to be rubbish with out you mate!

I don't think people will realise how much they liked Broadland till Heart has been on a few weeks. I'm not saying it was a fantastic station but the lack of local input now will make Heart an 'also ran'. In this day and age most people can listen to DAB and internet radio stations like Heart from around the world. Local stations should be local content based. Radio Norwich here I come...


Graham's Message:

Broadland has gone so downhill... morning show with rob and chrissie is same format day in day out and has been for years surprised that heart have kept it...but after listening to rob on bbc radio suffolk on sat lunch times he seems so more happier on their...be very surprised if he will stay with heart for long....radio broadland  R.I.P!!!!!!!!!!


Catherine's Message:

It sucks! :( Not just the final Heart takeover but ever since they got rid of a load of local programmes and Music Control. Shows like Club Classics don't appeal to me or, I would imagine, other teenagers like me, and there were enough 'classics' played during the day anyway! Bye-bye Broadland, you'll be missed!


Bill's Message:

George is right, you just heard the same records constantly repeated on Broadland. I hope Radio Norwich gets more listeners as at least they seem to have a mix of music as well as local news.


Julian's Message:

Shame to see Broadland go. I'm not from Norfolk, but went on holiday there as a child in 1989 and enjoyed listening to Broadland way back then. Since then, I've tuned in on several occasions while on board the Hull to Rotterdam ferry which passes close to the Norfolk coast around midnight! The network programming is nowhere near as entertaining as in years gone by. A sad day for Broadland's loyal listeners in Norfolk I think! Maybe Broadland will return (hopefully) in a few years, following another takeover!


Danielle's Message:

Heart - what a joke of a change! Broadland should be a Hit Music Network station like its sister station, 102.7 Mercury FM in Sussex. It's turned the station into a joke - I bet Radio Norwich will get the listening figures now!


Lee's Message:

I don't like this change, as it will be just like Heart 106.2 in London. Radio Broadland was more local and over the years it has gone down the pan! I have been listening to other stations, online and DAB more recently, and occasionally tuning back to hear Rob and Chrissie in the morning. Sad to see the Heritage Name Going :(


George's Message:

I do hope Heart will be better than Broadland - I have never heard a radio station play the same records OVER and OVER and OVER for so long anywhere in the world. And I hope the news becomes less sensationalist and mindless. Those two presenters in the morning who think they are so funny  - why don't they replace them with people who know what they are talking about ? I hope Heart provide some variety that has been totally lacking on Radio Boredland - pleaseeee !


Robert I's Message:

Shame about Broadland being replaced by Heart. Only other pity is at the time of the takeover they could have got rid of the Rob and Chris Breakfast show. Get rid of that and I might excuse you Heart.


James' Message:

What a shame to see an other heritage station close.  I have never, ever visited Norwich, or any part of Norfolk, but I have heard the original Radio Broadland jingles, and remember the original test transmissions in 1984.


Chris' Message:

Radio Broadland & SGR, 2 of the East's finest radio stations, gone to the dogs in place of heart. It won't be the same again on 96.4, 97.1 & 102.4 =( Goodbye Radio Broadland!


Mark's Message:

Will be missed, hope Heart is as good.


Robert's Message:

I can't believe Radio Broadland is going after so many years!