69-719: BRMB is a British radio station based in Aston , Birmingham, which is owned and operated by Murfin Music International . It broadcasts on 89.1FM in Aston and surrounding areas, on DAB throughout Birmingham, and online via the station's website and mobile apps. Originally launched on 19 February 1974, BRMB was one of the first Independent Local Radio stations to go on air in the UK. It was acquired by Capital Radio in 1993, and subsequently sold to Orion Media in 2008. Orion announced
138-656: A "vote-rigging factory" in a disused warehouse, stealing and intercepting hundreds and possibly thousands of ballot papers to achieve this. Three councillors, Mohammed Islam, Muhammad Afzal (later cleared of wrongdoing) and Mohammed Kazi were accused of voter fraud, with the elections having to be rerun. All three were barred from standing in the following election. Aston is part of the Birmingham Ladywood constituency, held by Labour since 1940 and represented by Labour MP Shabana Mahmood since 2010. The 2011 census found that 22,636 people were living in Aston. It
207-539: A BRMB relaunch, and hired Paul Ellery, Wyvern's Programme Director, to help facilitate the project. On 17 August 2023, it was announced that the UK's media regulator, Ofcom , had given Big City Radio , a community station in Birmingham, approval to rebrand as BRMB. The station, which relaunched on 4 September 2023 at 11.52am, broadcasts on Big City Radio's 89.1FM frequency, as well as on DAB in Birmingham, while Big City Radio continued as an online station. Andy Street ,
276-477: A Greek restaurant in Birmingham named Athens rather than the Greek capital, something Ofcom described as a "serious breach" of its broadcasting regulations. In 1998, BRMB moved from its Aston premises to studios at Brindleyplace near Broad Street In Birmingham City Centre. In September 2004, Capital Radio Group and GWR Group agreed a merger plan that would give them a 36% of the radio market. The deal, worth £700m,
345-455: A competition to marry a complete stranger. The event attracted criticism from church leaders, including The Rt Rev Mark Santer , the Bishop of Birmingham , who accused BRMB of "reducing a sacred decision to a media event". The winners, Greg Cordell and Carla Germaine, were married in a Registry Office ceremony at Birmingham's Hyatt Hotel , before embarking on an all-expenses paid honeymoon in
414-611: A distribution warehouse for East End Foods. Aston Manor Brewery (Now Aston Manor Cider ) was started in Thimble Mill Lane in 1982 by former employees of Ansell's after Ansells' Aston Brewery closed. From 1956 to 1969, Aston Cross was the Midlands base of Associated Television (ATV) which had its Alpha Studios on Aston Road North. The ATV office building later became the studios of radio stations BRMB and Xtra-AM . Although both stations moved to Birmingham's Broad Street in
483-535: A health centre; and helping more than 1300 people find work (more than the target of 400). Crime levels in Aston have remained stagnant in recent years. In December 2010, there were 369 reported crimes, the majority being for antisocial behaviour , while in December 2019, there were 328, mostly for violent offences. The crime rate in the ward is 10.35, which is higher than in other areas like Handsworth Wood (6.59) but lower than Nechells (16.6). The majority of
552-455: A huge success. BRMB were keen to hold other charity events after that, and in May 1983, staged the first Birmingham Walkathon. The walk, which took place around the city's Outer Circle bus route , saw around 24,000 participants raise £225,000 for Mencap . The Walkathon became an annual event until 1992, and has been staged sporadically since then. In 1988, as a response to government disapproval of
621-568: A notorious local gang known as the Burger Bar Boys, who had been trying to exact revenge on members of their rival gang the Johnson Crew: a notorious local gang originating in the mid-1980s. The Aston ward is represented by two Liberal Democrat councillors: Mumtaz Hussain and Ayoub Khan. In 2004, the ward saw a voter fraud scandal in which Labour councillors were accused of a systematic attempt to rig elections. They had set up
690-457: A popular Sunday afternoon show playing music from the 1970s). Jimmy Savile was also heard on the station, presenting a syndicated oldies show (also taken by a number of other commercial stations) based on his previous BBC Radio 1 show. Mike Hollis had been on BRMB before going to Radio Luxembourg and returned to Xtra AM after Luxembourg's English service closed. Capital Radio acquired Midlands Radio plc in 1993, and then decided to sell off
759-400: A presenter, producer, Head of Music, and Deputy Programme Controller; he was also Head of Creative Services for ten years and went on to launch Saga 105.7FM in 2001. An infamous row between Savin and Tony Butler led to Butler being sacked from the station in 1984 after he was alleged to have grabbed Savin around the neck during the argument. Jenny Wilkes joined BRMB from university to present
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#1732801861628828-515: A rebrand of BRMB and its sister stations to Free Radio in 2012, and the BRMB name disappeared in March 2012 when it became Free Radio Birmingham . On 17 August 2023, Ofcom gave approval for Big City Radio , a Birmingham based community station to relaunch as BRMB on 4 September 2023; Paul Young 's " Come Back and Stay " was the first song to be played following the relaunch, and Jimmy Franks presented
897-523: A slated roof. Other industry that was located in Aston include the Premier Motor Works which produced cars during the early 20th century. The works were situated at the junction of Aston Road and Dartmouth Street. On Miller Street was a tramcar depot which had a storage capacity of 104 tramcars. It opened in 1904 latterly being operated by the City of Birmingham Tramways Company Ltd on behalf of
966-571: A television presenter. BRMB also launched the Birmingham Walkathon, an event first staged in 1983 to raise money for charity, and which continues to be held to the present day. BRMB was first launched on 19 February 1974, on 261 metres medium wave , (1152 kHz ) and 94.8 MHz FM , and was based in Aston Road North at Radio House, a building previously used as television studios by ATV and ABC Weekend Television . BRMB
1035-530: A well liked and respected broadcaster in the region, when Ross left BRMB to move to Xtra AM, he took many of his listeners with him. He remained with the station for four years, before making a return to BRMB following a programming shake-up in 1993. As well as playing what it termed 'classic hits', Xtra AM also carried a mini playlist of 12 songs from the current Top 40 which were deemed to fit with its music profile. Regional news, weather, events and community information, as well as local advertising were separate for
1104-472: A youth magazine programme, before moving to BBC WM in 1982, where she presented a long-running Soul and Motown show, as well as working on Midlands Today . Graham Torrington joined BRMB in the 1980s, and went on to present shows at a number of other radio stations, mostly as a late night presenter playing love songs. Andy Hollins and Brendan Kearney presented a Sunday morning show during the early 1990s. The programme made news headlines in December 1991 after
1173-779: Is 35% less than the average income (£18,788) in England as a whole. There are three secondary schools in Aston: Broadway Academy , refurbished and opened by the Duke of Kent in 2011, King Edward VI Aston , the only grammar school in the constituency, and Aston Manor School . There are seven primary schools: Aston Tower Community Primary School, Birchfield Community School, Manor Park Primary Academy, Mansfield Green E-ACT Academy, Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Prince Albert Primary School, and Yew Tree Community School. Aston Library and Birchfield Library are within
1242-544: Is the sixth most populous ward in the city. It is a very ethnically diverse community, with 44% of the population born outside the United Kingdom. The largest ethnic group was Asian at 69.1%. More specifically, the Pakistani ethnic group was the largest at 30.9% of all Asians. Black British was the second largest ethnic group at 16.4%. White British was the third largest ethnic group at 7.8%. The ethnic makeup of
1311-680: The Job Centre in Erdington . The campaign won the support of John Goulding , the Minister for Employment at the time. In 1981, BRMB was approached by the spina bifida charity ASBAH and invited to join ATV in hosting a fundraising event in Birmingham's Chamberlain Square . The event, which featured appearances by Jasper Carrott and Noel Gordon , raised £82,000, and was considered to have been
1380-730: The Mayor of the West Midlands , took part in BRMB's first show following its relaunch, appearing alongside Les Ross. The opening programme was presented by Jimmy Franks, with the first song to be played following the relaunch being "Come Back and Stay" by Paul Young. In February 2024, Jimmy Franks also presented a special programme to mark the 50th anniversary of BRMB's original launch. He was joined by former breakfast show presenter Suzi Becker. Presenters such as Les Ross , Tony Butler , Ed Doolan , Graham Torrington , Jeremy Kyle , Phil Upton, Caroline Martin and Elliott Webb became regulars on
1449-552: The Radio Authority over a suicide caller hoax on his late night show, when he appeared to leave the studio in order to talk the caller out of jumping from a bridge. In August 2001, four participants in a competition where contestants were invited to sit on blocks of dry ice to win tickets to a music festival were taken to hospital with burns. Three of them were required to undergo skin graft surgery and have prolonged hospital stays. BRMB's parent company, Capital Media Group,
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#17328018616281518-650: The 1970s to be rebuilt at the top of Park Lane in 1979. The original hall had a seating capacity of 73. Another meeting place was the Ellen Knox Memorial Hall which was next door to the Midland Vinegar Brewery. The brewery was owned by the Midland Brewery Company was built around 1877. It was located on Upper Thomas Street. The brewery was a three-storey brick building with rounded corners, semi-circular windows and
1587-531: The 2000s, but was sacked in December 2009 after interrupting the broadcast of that year's Queen's Speech to tell listeners "Two words: Bor-ing". Among the presenters to appear on the relaunched BRMB is former BBC presenter Bob Brolly , who joined in October 2023 to present Bob Brolly's Irish Show on Sunday afternoons. During the same month it was also announced BRMB planned to hire a number of other former BBC Local Radio presenters, including Jimmy Franks, once
1656-509: The BRMB's "flying eye" traffic reporter who later worked at BBC WM , who would join initially to present a show on Saturday lunchtimes, and Ryan Kennedy, a former Beacon Radio breakfast presenter who later worked for BBC Radio Shropshire , who would join the weekend presenting team. Birmingham actor Andre Stewart Daniel would also join to present a soul vibes and R&B show on Friday and Saturday evenings. In August 2024, BRMB announced that Les Ross would relaunch his breakfast show, Les Ross in
1725-463: The Bahamas, and being given a year's free use of a car and luxury apartment on their return to the UK. The couple separated three months later. Germaine later met and married Jeremy Kyle , then a BRMB disc jockey. BRMB ran the competition again in 2006. Craig Cooper and Rebecca Duffy, the couple chosen to get married, separated four months later. In April 2001, presenter Tim Shaw was investigated by
1794-520: The Birmingham and Coventry areas, but programming was simulcast in both areas. BRMB's well respected sports coverage was moved over to the new station, where Tom Ross continued to cover the region's sports events. Presenters on the station included many who were already established personalities in the West Midlands region. During Xtra AM's nine years on air, besides Ross, these included Annie Othen , Ted Elliott, Tony Butler , Adrian Stewart, Dave Hickman, Mick Wright, Guy Jogoo and Noddy Holder (who hosted
1863-549: The Birmingham average of 20.8%. Moreover, 15.6% do not speak English as their main language and cannot speak it well, well above the national average of 1.9%. Aston has one of the highest rates of unemployment in the city, with 57.8% of residents classed as economically active compared to the city average of 69.3% and national average of 77%. It is the 11th most deprived ward in the city. The majority of employed residents (56%) work in lower skilled occupations, such as caring, leisure and sales. The average income in Aston (£12,033)
1932-407: The Birmingham station continued until 1998 when it was replaced by Capital Gold. The station was launched on the morning of 4 April 1989, as a response to government disapproval of the simulcasting of programming on FM and medium wave . Xtra AM became a 'gold' station and targeted listeners in the 35 to 50 age range, while BRMB and Mercia both began to cater for a younger audience. The new AM service
2001-511: The Morning , on weekdays from late September. On 1 November 2024, Prince Akwasi, a former radio personality from Ghana, joined BRMB to present a soul and R'n'B show on Friday nights, having secured the job after visiting the station and expressing his admiration for Les Ross. In October 2024, BRMB produced A Space to Speak Your Mind , a programme for broadcast on 10 October to coincide with World Mental Health Day . The programme, which highlights
2070-540: The Park " and moved to the city's Cofton Park . It would later move to Cannon Hill Park and finally Alexander Stadium . "Party in the Park" would feature many well known singers and groups of the day, including the Spice Girls , Eternal , East 17 , Hear'Say and Westlife . The 1998 event, titled "People's Party", was held on 16 May to coincide with the 24th G8 summit , which was held in Birmingham that year. Acts at
2139-452: The People's Party included Lionel Richie , All Saints , Louise and 5ive . A concert was also held on the same day at Symphony Hall to entertain world leaders, and broadcast to Cannon Hill Park via satellite link. The concert featured Mick Hucknall , Chris Rea and Jools Holland . In January 1999, BRMB staged its " Two Strangers and a Wedding " competition in which contestants entered
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2208-624: The Urban District Council before formally passing to Birmingham Corporation Tramways on 1 January 1912. Aston underwent large scale redevelopment following the Second World War . South Aston was designated a renewal area involving comprehensive redevelopment of the traditional area known as "Aston New Town". The area, was more commonly called simply " Newtown " and is a large estate consisting of sixteen tower blocks, five of which have since been demolished. The project
2277-449: The West Midlands (and in other areas). On 8 August 2008, Global announced that BRMB would be sold along with other West Midlands owned GCap/Global stations Mercia FM , Wyvern FM , Heart 106 and Beacon Radio . In May 2009, the station was sold officially to a company backed by Lloyds Development Capital and Phil Riley , himself a former BRMB presenter during the 1980s who later became chief executive of Chrysalis Radio . Riley's company
2346-482: The West Midlands area: "All radio is free, this is not newspapers or subscription digital TV...This feels very much like a decision made by a committee." The BRMB brand, together with neighbouring stations Mercia, Beacon and Wyvern, were phased out on Wednesday 21 March 2012 in preparation for the rebrand, which took place at 7pm on Monday 26 March 2012. At the time of its rebrand, RAJAR estimated that BRMB reached an average weekly audience of 359,000 listeners. Orion Media
2415-588: The area drastically changed in the 1950s and 1960s with immigration from the Commonwealth . Most of the immigrants were from the Indian subcontinent most notably from Pakistan , though a significant number were also from the Caribbean . Aston is a young ward, with 33.5% of the population under 18, compared to the Birmingham average of 25.5%. 31.7% of residents in Aston have no qualifications, higher than
2484-512: The breakfast show in 2010, and continued to present the show following the rebrand to Free Radio. Giuliano left Free Radio Breakfast in May 2016, and Foxy in November 2016. Robin Valk was the station's head of music. He and John Slater presented programmes on BRMB, in which they promoted local music. Sports broadcaster Tony Butler was regarded as the inventor of the football phone-in , presenting
2553-573: The crime is of the nature of violence, antisocial behaviour, vehicle crime, and robbery. On 2 January 2003, gunmen shot at three innocent teenage girls who were celebrating the New Year in the Birchfield area near Aston. Two of the girls were killed and another was seriously injured. More than 18 bullets were fired from at least two weapons. Four men were later tried and found guilty of murder in March 2005. Marcus Ellis (the half-brother of one of
2622-474: The early 1990s, the building is still called Radio House. Launching in February 1974, BRMB was the UK's fourth Independent Local Radio station and, while in Aston, was the most listened to radio station in the West Midlands. Xtra AM Xtra AM was an Independent Local Radio station which was on the air between 1989 and 1998. It was broadcast to much of Birmingham , Coventry and Warwickshire and
2691-608: The expansion of the County Borough of Birmingham in 1911, and a further part, Saltley was added in 1911. In 1911 the civil parish had a population of 219,082. On 1 April 1912 the parish was abolished and merged with Birmingham. Old buildings which became popular within Aston included the Aston Hippodrome and the Bartons Arms public house . Gospel Hall on Park Lane was opened in 1892 and demolished in
2760-412: The first programme. The original 1974 station launched the careers of many presenters who went on to become household names, both in the Midlands and beyond. Past presenters on BRMB include Les Ross , Tony Butler , Ed Doolan , Graham Torrington , Jeremy Kyle , Phil Upton , Caroline Martin and Elliott Webb . Butler is regarded as the inventor of the football phone-in , while Kyle went on to become
2829-401: The format several years before it appeared on stations such as Talksport and BBC Radio 5 Live , while former heads of sport George Gavin and Tom Ross also found fame on the station when it began broadcasting live commentary of West Midlands football matches every Saturday afternoon. Ian Crocker was also involved in the coverage early on. Brian Savin had several roles at BRMB, including as
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2898-539: The help and support available for those experiencing mental health issues, was produced in association with Birmingham Mind , and also released as a podcast . Aston Aston is an area of inner Birmingham , in the county of the West Midlands , England. Located immediately to the north-west of Central Birmingham , Aston constitutes a ward within the metropolitan authority. It is approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from Birmingham City Centre . Aston
2967-446: The largest football grounds in England that has staged many notable matches at club and international level. The park has also hosted other sports and events including international level rugby league and rugby union . This is one of the main attractions in this town. Much of Aston consists of terraced houses that were built around the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Some of these houses were demolished in
3036-544: The late 1960s to make way for the Aston Expressway , which links Birmingham city centre to the M6 motorway . In the late 1950s, Aston was the location of the famous 'Venus Baby' case of Cynthia Appleton (87 Fentham Road). By the early 1980s, Aston was suffering from severe deprivation with many of the terraced houses being outdated for the requirements of the time. Many of them lacked bathrooms and indoor toilets, whilst
3105-579: The majority of the stations that belonged to the group. Capital retained BRMB, but Mercia FM was included in those to be sold. Consequently, the two Xtra AM frequencies experienced a parting of the ways. GWR Group purchased the Coventry station and as a result it was announced that Xtra AM in Coventry was to close, with the 1359 kHz frequency joining the Classic Gold Network . Xtra AM continued in Birmingham, however, on 1152 kHz, and
3174-591: The mid-1990s before the end finally came in April 1998. The majority of the Xtra AM team were made redundant, the station renamed Capital Gold Birmingham, and the bulk of programming was switched to London and simulcast from Capital Gold . The only local programming to remain was a four-hour afternoon show and Tom Ross's sports coverage. On 3 August 2007, the station, along with the rest of the Capital Gold network,
3243-458: The only survivors of the medieval building. The ancient parish of Aston (known as Aston juxta Birmingham) was large. It was separated from the parish of Birmingham by AB Row, which currently exists in the Eastside of the city at just 50 yards in length. Aston, as Aston Manor , was governed by a Local Board from 1869 and was created as an Urban District Council in 1903 before being absorbed in
3312-473: The other stations to the GWR Group whilst Capital kept hold of BRMB and Xtra AM. Xtra was on the air for nine years until the majority of its programming was switched to London , where it was simulcast with Capital Gold . On 30 August 1993, and shortly after its acquisition by Capital Radio Group , BRMB held "Party in the Square", an event featuring a music concert in Birmingham's Centenary Square , which
3381-412: The pair were heard to storm out of the studio following an on-air row which erupted during a review of the year. Margherita Taylor joined BRMB after winning a talent search for a new presenter. Television presenter Jeremy Kyle (known to listeners as Jezza) was also a disc jockey on BRMB, joining in 1997 to present a late night agony uncle -style phone-in after sending the station a demo tape . The show
3450-474: The presenters urged Coventry listeners to retune to that frequency; this contributed to GWR pulling the plug on Xtra AM using 1359, earlier than provisionally agreed. With the 1994 launch of 100.7 Heart FM , listeners were given greater choice, while the quality of broadcasting on the FM services was preferable to the poor reception often experienced on the mediumwave band. Ratings for Xtra AM gradually fell throughout
3519-514: The role of drivetime presenter on Virgin Radio by its then owner, Chris Evans . Comedian Graham Mack presented a show on BRMB, but walked out in 2001 following an on air argument with his producer, Adam Bridge, over the Eminem track " Stan ", which Mack did not want to play because the artist was on probation at the time for possession of a concealed weapon. Comedian Tom Binns worked for BRMB during
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#17328018616283588-424: The simulcasting of programming on both FM and mediumwave, a sister station was launched on the 1152 kHz frequency. Xtra AM became BRMB's 'gold' service, playing classic hits, while BRMB itself began to cater for a younger audience. At this stage, BRMB was part of Midlands Radio plc , which was bought out along with Radio Trent , Leicester Sound and Mercia Sound by Capital Radio in 1993. However, they sold
3657-677: The station. Les Ross was the UK's longest-serving breakfast show presenter, presenting BRMB's flagship weekday show from March 1976 to March 1989, followed by a second stint between August 1993 to September 2002. He was succeeded by Elliott Webb , who presented the show from 2002 to 2007. Webb was joined by Caroline Martin, who co-presented with him from 2006, then presented the show herself following his departure. Later breakfast show presenters included Jo Russell , who joined from Absolute Radio in late 2009 to present The Jo Show on weekday mornings, followed by John Fox and Giuliano Casadei, known as Foxy & Giuliano, who moved from drivetime to present
3726-463: The time, Riley cited the difficulty in promoting several individual radio stations as the reason for the name change, as well as the rebranding of rivals such as Heart and Smooth . The decision to rename the station, along with the choice of new name, were questioned by Dorothy Hobson, senior media lecturer at the University of Wolverhampton , who cited an almost 100% brand recognition for BRMB in
3795-442: The two dead girls), Nathan Martin and Michael Gregory were sentenced to life imprisonment with recommended minimum terms of 35 years on two charges of murder and three of attempted murder. A fourth man, Rodrigo Simms, received life with a recommended minimum of 27 years for the same crimes. A fifth defendant, Jermaine Carty, had walked free from court after being cleared of possessing a firearm. The four men convicted were members of
3864-578: The vast majority were suffering from decay as a result of a lack of maintenance. There was speculation that the homes would be demolished, but Birmingham City Council made money available to the homeowners for them to be brought up to modern standards. From 2001 to 2011, Aston underwent a £54 million Birmingham regeneration project named "Aston Pride", as part of the New Deal for Communities scheme in 2001. Many improvements were made, including reducing burglary, robbery and vehicle crime; spending £4 million on
3933-441: The ward. Birmingham City Council planned to permanently close Aston Library in 2017 to save money; however, the decision was reversed after public consultation, and it is now run by community organisations. Aston Cross was once the home of Ansells Brewery and HP Sauce . The six-acre Aston site was purchased by developer Chancerygate in 2007 at £800,000 per acre, but they subsequently sold it for half that price and it now houses
4002-489: Was a success and led to him presenting Jezza's Virgin Confessions , a similar programme airing throughout the UK on Virgin Radio . Phil Upton did two stints as a BRMB presenter, starting in the 1990s while studying at the University of Central England , then again in 2003 following some time with Heart . Harriet Scott , who co-presented Heart Breakfast for a decade, presented a show for BRMB before being offered
4071-542: Was acquired by Bauer Media in May 2016, while Phil Riley went on to launch Boom Radio in February 2021. In November 2021, Bauer announced that Free Radio Birmingham would be moving out of Brindleyplace to smaller studios at 54 Hagley Road . In January 2024, Bauer Media announced that Free Radio would rebrand to become part of the national Hits Radio network from April. Following the successful relaunch of Radio Wyvern in Worcester, producer Muff Murfin began planning
4140-415: Was approved in 1968. Three 20-storey tower blocks on the complex contained 354 flats alone. Today, Aston gives its name to Aston Villa F.C. and Aston University (the campus of which is not in Aston but about 1.3 miles to the south in Birmingham city centre). Aston University is one of four universities in Birmingham. Aston Villa have played at Villa Park since 1897, and it has traditionally been one of
4209-402: Was attended by 23,000 people. Acts who participated in the event included Belinda Carlisle , Rick Astley , Lulu and Bad Boys Inc , and at the time it was the largest ever pop music event to be staged in Birmingham. Although the event was deemed to be a success, police had concerns over safety, as well as the disruption closing the square would cause, so in 1995 the event was renamed " Party in
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#17328018616284278-527: Was fined £15,000 over the incident following a hearing at Birmingham Magistrates' Court in January 2003. In October 2007, BRMB was criticised by media watchdog Ofcom for running a competition "in a manner designed to obscure the true nature of the prize" after they had invited listeners to enter a contest to watch the 2007 UEFA Champions League final in Athens in May of that year. The venue had turned out to be
4347-461: Was first mentioned in the Domesday Book in 1086 as "Estone", having a mill, a priest and therefore probably a church, woodland and ploughland. The Church of Saints Peter and Paul was built in medieval times to replace an earlier church. The body of the church was rebuilt by J. A. Chatwin during the period 1879 to 1890; the 15th century tower and spire, which was partly rebuilt in 1776, being
4416-616: Was given approval by the Office of Fair Trading in December 2004. The matter was not referred to the Competition Commission after the newly created GCap Media agreed to sell Century 106 in Nottinghamshire. On 6 June 2008, GCap Media was acquired by Global Radio . The Office of Fair Trading subsequently referred the acquisition to the Competition Commission due to potential "conflict of interests" issues in
4485-428: Was launched to much fanfare with its inaugural host, Les Ross , conducting a spoof interview with Elvis Presley as part of its publicity. Xtra AM quickly became popular with its audience and was soon rivalling its FM counterparts. Despite this, however, BRMB maintained the larger proportion of the audience share. One of the key ingredients in this success was the appointment of Les Ross as the station's breakfast host:
4554-991: Was named Orion Media . Orion brought in Paul Kaye as programme director, who had previously held that post at Wyvern FM , and who helped to facilitate a refresh in 2010, bringing back some of the features BRMB listeners had enjoyed in the past, such as late night talk shows, football coverage and the BRMB Walkathon. In November 2010, the station held BRMB Live, a music concert at Birmingham's LG Arena at which 14 acts were featured, including The Script , The Saturdays , Olly Murs , Alexandra Burke , James Blunt and The Wanted . The event returned for November 2011, with acts including Cher Lloyd , Matt Cardle , Ed Sheeran , JLS , Pixie Lott , and Emeli Sande . On 9 January 2012, Orion Media announced that BRMB would be rebranded as Free Radio Birmingham , along with its sister West Midlands stations Beacon , Mercia and Wyvern . At
4623-443: Was not an initialism (contrary to popular belief – some believed it stood for Birmingham Radio, Midlands Broadcasting). Instead, the original company, Birmingham Broadcasting Ltd., wanted something that combined a US-style call-sign with the company name – e.g. Birmingham – (BRM) and broadcasting – (B); equalling BRMB. In January 1978, BRMB began to advertise job vacancies available in the Birmingham area, doing so in association with
4692-470: Was the ' oldies ' station which took over the mediumwave frequencies of both BRMB (serving Birmingham) and Mercia FM (Coventry and Warwickshire). The programming came from the BRMB studios in Aston , Birmingham, and the signal was relayed from the Langley Mill transmitter (Birmingham) and Shilton (Coventry). The Coventry station was acquired in 1993 by GWR Group and replaced by Classic Gold, while
4761-467: Was the fourth independent local commercial radio station to begin broadcasting in Britain, after LBC , Capital Radio and Radio Clyde . Broadcasting a mix of popular music with local news, live football coverage, information and specialist output, the station became popular amongst residents in Birmingham and later changed its main FM frequency from 94.8 to 96.4 in 1987. The original station name, BRMB,
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