I've just had a great weekend in Somerset, doing two shows on an event-based radio station and having a few laughs and beers with the other guys in the team. The van we used to transport the equipment didn't have a CD player, so on the long journey home last night all I had to amuse me was the radio. After tuning round a little, I remembered why I dislike the way radio has gone in this country.
At the risk of biting the hand that (occasionally) feeds me, I have to say that I think the vast majority of UK commercial radio is totally boring and unimaginative.
It's not the presenter' s fault, as all too often they are not allowed to express their personalities or use their creative abilities. Stations run by the bigger radio companies are the worst, those with a 'one size fits all' approach that makes their many radio stations sound almost identical, as I found on my long journey home.
The sad fact is that commercial radio stations exist solely to make money for their shareholders.
Most stations run on extremely tight budgets, but this in itself doesn't make bad radio. The problem is big radio company bosses who dictate minimalist formats because these are the cheapest to implement, and make the most money with the least risk. The result, as I have said, is boring radio.
Any radio professionals reading this would probably point out that these formats that I hate so much are the result of much market research, and are proven to maximise listenership. They would be correct of course..but is it the only way?
I wouldn't want to see the return of the cheesy radio DJs we suffered in the 70s (and I'm not old enough to remember the pirates of the 60s), but instead of bland presenters who only speak every 20 minutes or so, I'd love to see the return of more personality radio. The nearest thing we have to this is BBC Radio 2, (which is probably why it has the UKs fastest growing listener figures) but in my experience few towns are lucky enough to have a local equivalent.
