| Broadcast area | West Somerset |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 102.4 MHz, 100.8 MHz |
| First air date | August 15, 1998 - 24 March 2010 |
| Format | Adult Contemporary |
| Owner | South West Radio Ltd |
TotalStar Somerset Formerly Quay West Radio a British radio station broadcasting in Watchet, Somerset, providing a Hit Music Format of radio to the area of West Somerset.
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The station was originally conceived by an ILR presenter Keri Jones, who ran the first RSL in 1995. Following a final RSL in December 1996 a County Councillor and local businessman, Phil Greatorex, created the financial structure necessary for Quay West Radio Ltd to apply for a full time licence. At the time it was the smallest full-time commercial Independent Local Radio station in the country. It went on air in August 1998. It was largely attributable to Greatorex's innovative financial structure and 'out of the box' thinking to previously unchallenged radio industry concepts that ensured the ongoing survival of such a small station.
In September 2008 it was suggested parent company Laser Broadcasting were in financial trouble [1] and posts on forums [2] suggested the company had failed to pay its staff for several months.
On 3 October 2008 it was announced that a petition to wind-up Laser had been published.[3]
Later that month, it was reported that Laser Broadcasting had volunteered to go into administration.[4] Then came the revelation that the stations would be run in the interim by Bridgwater Broadcasting Services (BBS) Ltd whilst administrators were appointed.[5] Both stations were then taken over along with 3 other stations by a new company, South West Radio Ltd. South West Radio Ltd went into administration in 2009 and the stations it owned were eventually bought by Your Media Group.
Communications Regulator OFCOM refused to transfer the licences to Your Media Group (YMC) [6] in December 2009 and again in 2010. The licences remain with the original Ltd companies and therefore effectively all 5 radio services, including the two Quaywest stations, remain in administration.
On 24 March 2010, the 5 YMC Ltd stations were closed by administrators after multiple refusals on the part of regulator OFCOM to transfer the licenses, following a number of financial issues at the stations following TLRC's sale.[7]
Jones left the station shortly after launch while Greatorex remained as Chairman until December 1999, during which time he sold the company to Radio Investments Limited (now The Local Radio Company). In 2001, Wayne Fitzgerald and David Mortimer purchased the station, though Fitzgerald sold his shares in 2002 and Mortimer in 2005 to The Choice Media Group (CMG), which also runs an Internet based media supplies business from West Somerset. During its period of ownership it acquired BCR FM in Bridgwater in an attempt to achieve economies of scale. In July 2006, both Quay West and BCR were sold by CMG to Laser Broadcasting, which also owned the Sunshine Radio brand of stations in Herefordshire & Worcestershire.
After Laser Broadcasting went into administration the two Quaywest stations were bought by South West Radio Ltd.
In 2009 South West Radio then too went into administration. A new company, Your Media Communications Group plc was formed and took over ownership of the assets of South West Radio, including nearby Bath FM & 3TR FM and Swindon-based Brunel FM.
Then came the revelation that Ofcom refused to transfer the broadcast licences to new owners Your Media Communications Group Plc [8]
Quaywest plus its 4 sister stations Brunel FM, 3TR FM, Bath FM and Quaywest 107.4 were eventually bought by who run TotalStar 107.5 in Gloucestershire and all stations were rebranded as TotalStar.[9]
Quaywest Online is the new version of Quaywest FM is now broadcasting online www.quaywestonline.co.uk with ex Quaywest FM presenters Dave Englefield, Mark Painter, David Mortimer, Brian Leaker, Nick Francis and Lisa Coombes and James Aldred.
In 2005 Quay West was re-branded 'Quay FM'. This was short lived and 'Quay West' was reinstated in 2006. Ten years after launch the studios are still located in the offices of a disused weighbridge which overlooks the marina - a good example of Greatorex's innovative thinking: he negotiated a peppercorn rent with the local council by occupying and renovating a disused building in what later became a desirable location and which, importantly from a cost standpoint, had line of sight to the transmitter.
The first jingles were made by Bespoke Music, and featured a chime melody based on the bells of Dunster's St. George's Church, which the station retained until 2001. A further ident package was produced by Steve England.
The original transmitter is located on North Hill, Minehead. The signal from the studios is beamed to the transmitter site by a microwave link. The original North Hill transmitter was 1 kW, but in March 2004, permission was granted to increase this to 4 kW from the same site, and a smaller relay was added to cover the area of Porlock which had previously not been able to receive the station. The frequency for this is 100.8 MHz.
Online streaming came in 2003, and was provided by Vivid London Limited. Sister station BCR FM began streaming shortly afterwards.
The station had never entered into RAJAR (the organization that measures audiences for radio) until 2005, where, in its first survey, out of a total potential audience of 28,000 adults (15+), the station's reach was 8,000 or 37% of the population per week.
One line-up starred breakfast presenter Drew Haddon, 'the bit in the middle' show host Steve Collins and for drivetime it was Mark Painter.
Previous presenters on the station include: Keri Jones, Scott Temple, Mike Anderson, Dave Moss, Jo Borthwick, Mike Taylor, David Mortimer, Ray King, Kyle Evans, Graham Philpott, Ray Fernihough, Ben Coates, Nigel Kay, Susie Mulhearn, Don Davis, Nick Burrett and Tony Temple, James Aldred and Andy Saunders
Quay West FM has been responsible for starting quite a few broadcasting careers. Many of the station's staff have gone on to bigger radio stations in the UK. A list follows - with dates they worked at the station: