There we were, Chris Evans and I, having dinner on Monday evening.
Normal start-of-the-week sort of stuff for a good-time gal like me.
Oh we had a fine fun time, the whole table (for I confess it was not
dinner a deux). But was it old carrot-top who made the party go with a
swing, or was it that dusty organ, the Radio Authority?
You see it was not (just) because I’m such wonderful company that I had
the pleasure of breathing the same air as Mr Evans. For he is the
figurehead of a consortium bidding for the next London FM licence and is
keen, for once, to court the media.
But Evans and his colleagues can take heart from last week’s news about
Viva! Radio. It seems that you can cobble together any old tripe in a
radio bid document and still win first prize as long as you manage to
convince the authority that you’re extending choice.
Viva!, we hear, is to be relaunched as 963 Liberty with a whole new
sound - ‘a lifestyle station aimed at everybody and with a wide remit’.
Even if you never listened (don’t worry, you’re not alone) you must
remember Viva! - the London radio station intended to serve that niche
audience - women. How we smirked when ‘Beaver’ talked about its special
remit, epitomised by Lynne Franks. A radio station for us ladies, with
our own special news bulletins and serious items on jumpers of the
season.
Who ever thought this would work? Well, the Radio Authority for one. But
from the speed with which the station was sold on you might well wonder
how much faith the original bidders had in the formula.
Now we have another licence up for grabs, isn’t it time for the Radio
Authority to give listeners and advertisers what they want - another
mainstream station but with just a bit of a twist. Mind you, that could
upset some of the giants who already dominate the London radio market,
couldn’t it?
