Xtra AM
Encyclopedia
Xtra AM was a United Kingdom
radio station which was on the air between 1989 and 1998. It was broadcast to much of Birmingham
, Coventry
and Warwickshire
and was the 'oldies' station which took over the mediumwave frequencies of both BRMB
and Mercia FM
. The programming came from the BRMB studios based in Aston
, Birmingham
, and the signal was relayed from the Langley Mill
transmitter (Birmingham) and Shilton
(Coventry).
. 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 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. 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 demed to fit with its music profile. Regional news, weather, events and community information, as well as local advertising were separate for the Birmingham and Coventry areas, but programming was simulcast in both areas from Birmingham. BRMB's famous and well respected sports coverage was moved over to the new station, where Tom Ross continued to cover the region's sports events with his unique presenting style.
Presenters on the station included many who were already established personalities in the West Midlands region. During Xtra AM's nine years on air, these included Les Ross (as mentioned above), Annie Othen, Ted Elliott, Tony Butler
, Adrian Stewart, Guy Jogoo and Noddy Holder
(who hosted 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.
Capital Radio
acquired Midlands Radio Plc
in 1993, and then decided to sell off the majority of the stations that belonged to the group. Capital Radio
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 the presenters urged Coventry listeners to retune to 1152 kHz; this contributed to the GWR Group 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 better 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 the mid-1990s before the end finally came in April 1998. The majority of the Xtra AM team were sacked, 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, was replaced by a new network called simply Gold, the result of the merger of the Classic Gold
and Capital Gold
networks under one owner, GCap Media.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
radio station which was on the air between 1989 and 1998. It was broadcast to much of Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
and Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
and was the 'oldies' station which took over the mediumwave frequencies of both BRMB
Brmb
brmb is a local radio station based in Birmingham, UK, owned and operated by Orion Media. The station broadcasts on 96.4 FM, DAB Digital Radio in the West Midlands and online...
and Mercia FM
Mercia FM
Mercia is an Independent Local Radio station serving Coventry and Warwickshire. The station, owned and operated by Orion Media broadcasts from studios shared with BRMB at Broad Street in Birmingham.-History:...
. The programming came from the BRMB studios based in Aston
Aston
Aston is an area of the City of Birmingham, in the West Midlands of England. Lying to the north-east of the Birmingham city centre, Aston constitutes an electoral ward within the council constituency of Ladywood.-History:...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, and the signal was relayed from the Langley Mill
Langley Mill
Langley Mill is a small town in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. It is on the border of Nottinghamshire, and runs into the towns of Aldercar and Heanor . Across the River Erewash is the Nottinghamshire town of Eastwood. It is part of the Aldercar and Langley Mill parish....
transmitter (Birmingham) and Shilton
Shilton
Shilton may refer to:Places*Shilton, Oxfordshire, England*Shilton, Warwickshire, England**Shilton railway station*Earl Shilton, Leicestershire, EnglandPeople*Peter Shilton, football goalkeeper*Sam Shilton, football defender...
(Coventry).
History
The station was launched on the morning of 4 April 1989, and was launched as a response to government disapproval of the simulcasting of programming on FM and mediumwaveMediumwave
Medium wave is the part of the medium frequency radio band used mainly for AM radio broadcasting. For Europe the MW band ranges from 526.5 kHz to 1606.5 kHz...
. 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 was launched to much fanfare with its inaugural host, Les Ross
Les Ross
Les Ross MBE is a British disc jockey and long established personality in the West Midlands.-Early life and career:...
, conducting a spoof interview with Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
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. 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 demed to fit with its music profile. Regional news, weather, events and community information, as well as local advertising were separate for the Birmingham and Coventry areas, but programming was simulcast in both areas from Birmingham. BRMB's famous and well respected sports coverage was moved over to the new station, where Tom Ross continued to cover the region's sports events with his unique presenting style.
Presenters on the station included many who were already established personalities in the West Midlands region. During Xtra AM's nine years on air, these included Les Ross (as mentioned above), Annie Othen, Ted Elliott, Tony Butler
Tony Butler
Tony Butler is a Birmingham based UK sports broadcaster and one of the first stars of local radio in Britain, known for a distinctive local accent and sometimes controversial style. In 2007, he was honoured by the Sony Radio Academy with a Lifetime Achievement Award.-Early career:Tony Butler was...
, Adrian Stewart, Guy Jogoo and Noddy Holder
Noddy Holder
Neville John "Noddy" Holder MBE is an English musician and actor. He was the lead vocalist and guitarist with the rock band Slade....
(who hosted a popular Sunday afternoon show playing music from the 1970s). Jimmy Savile
Jimmy Savile
Sir James Wilson Vincent Savile, OBE, KCSG was an English disc jockey, television presenter and media personality, best known for his BBC television show Jim'll Fix It, and for being the first and last presenter of the long-running BBC music chart show Top of the Pops...
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
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
show.
Capital Radio
Capital Radio
Capital London is a London based radio station which launched on 16 October 1973 and is owned by Global Radio. On 3 January 2011 it formed part of the nine station Capital radio network.- Pre-launch :...
acquired Midlands Radio Plc
Midlands Radio plc
Midlands Radio plc was an independent radio operator, which operated seven radio licences in Birmingham, Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham and surrounding areas in the United Kingdom.-AM:*GEM AM - operated on the medium wave frequencies of Radio Trent....
in 1993, and then decided to sell off the majority of the stations that belonged to the group. Capital Radio
Capital Radio
Capital London is a London based radio station which launched on 16 October 1973 and is owned by Global Radio. On 3 January 2011 it formed part of the nine station Capital radio network.- Pre-launch :...
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 the presenters urged Coventry listeners to retune to 1152 kHz; this contributed to the GWR Group pulling the plug on Xtra AM using 1359 earlier than provisionally agreed.
With the 1994 launch of 100.7 Heart FM
100.7 Heart FM
Heart West Midlands is a radio station based in Birmingham, England, as part of the Heart Network, with a regional license to broadcast to the West Midlands...
, listeners were given greater choice, while the better 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 the mid-1990s before the end finally came in April 1998. The majority of the Xtra AM team were sacked, the station renamed Capital Gold Birmingham, and the bulk of programming was switched to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and simulcast from Capital Gold
Capital Gold
Gold is a network of oldies radio stations which was formed by the merger of the Capital Gold network and the Classic Gold Network in August 2007...
. 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
Capital Gold
Gold is a network of oldies radio stations which was formed by the merger of the Capital Gold network and the Classic Gold Network in August 2007...
network, was replaced by a new network called simply Gold, the result of the merger of the Classic Gold
Classic Gold Digital Network
Classic Gold Digital Network was one of the biggest 'gold' formatted radio networks in the United Kingdom, with a potential audience of 47 million. Classic Gold was broadcast on analogue and DAB digital platforms, as well as Sky channel 0189.-History:...
and Capital Gold
Capital Gold
Gold is a network of oldies radio stations which was formed by the merger of the Capital Gold network and the Classic Gold Network in August 2007...
networks under one owner, GCap Media.