27 MARCH 2010

HOSPITAL RADIO PERTH TURN COTTON INTO GOLD!

Hospital Radio Perth has once again struck gold in the annual National Hospital Broadcasting Awards winning the top prize for speech broadcasting with their audio tour of the 18th-century water mill complex at Stanley Mills.

Programme Controller John Watson was guided round the historic mill complex by manageress Kaye Finlay. Her enthusiasm and detailed knowledge ensured that what was intended to be a 5 - 10 minute piece became a 45 minute feature. (Our picture on the left shows Kaye and John with the trophy).

The awards are held annually and are open to nearly 250 stations and this is the second time that the PRI based station has won the speech broadcasting award.

The judges who included many national television and radio personalities stated that they loved the entry and that the good on-location atmosphere brought the piece to life. They enjoyed the interaction between the interviewer and the interviewee - one said they'd listened to it three times, it was so interesting.

"Everyone who has heard the piece has been fascinated by it," reported John, "Kaye's tour brings the place to life."

Kaye added, "Everyone at Stanley Mills is thrilled with the win. Historic Scotland has a great visitor attraction here which tells the stories of those who worked here and the products they made. Hopefully those who enjoy the programme will come along and visit us once they are out of hospital."

HRP were to find success with all three of their entries to the awards. They won third place in the Special Event category and were highly commended in the Station Of The Year award.

John added, "Hospital Radio Perth are by far the most successful station at these awards and it's gratifying to win gold with a visit to a local attraction."

24 MARCH 2010

ANOTHER GREAT NIGHT AT PSPC QUIZ

The ninth annual Perthshire Solicitors Property Centre Quiz Night held at the Salutation Hotel, has seen a new name on the trophy.

Wylie & Henderson - who have come close to winning in the past - won by two clear points. Quiz-master John Watson thanked all who attended and announced that after expenses around £450 had been raised.

Our picture shows John and the winning team collecting the trophy from Anne Begg, manager of Perthshire Solicitors Property Centre.

JUNE 2009

SOLTICE 28 HOUR PROGRAMME A HUGE SUCCESS!

Wow! What a weekend!

Hospital Radio Perth celebrated 20 years of broadcasting with a marathon event on the longest day - it started at 7pm on Saturday 20 June - and glided to a halt at 11pm on Sunday 21 June. We travelled the length and breadth of Perth and Kinross visiting events and interviewing interesting people.

Details on who won the competition will be available as soon as we have stopped sleeping and added up the mileage!

JUNE 2009

LONGEST DAY MARATHON APPROACHES - T IN THE PARK TICKETS TO BE WON!

Hospital Radio Perth is celebrating our 20 years of broadcasting with a marathon event on the longest day - it starts at 7pm on Saturday 20 June - but won't end until 11pm the next day!. We'll be travelling the length and breadth of Perth and Kinross visiting events and interviewing interesting people. We think it's the most ambitious programme ever attempted by a Scottish hospital radio station. We're raring to go - and hoping that our Outside Broadcast teams will still be awake at 11pm on the Sunday!

And you could help Hospital Radio Perth continue their award-winning service, while also having the chance to win two weekend passes to this year's T in the Park donated by Balado Park - Home of T in the Park!

All you have to do is click on the T In The Park logo, make a donation and tell us:-

* how many miles you think the Outside Broadcast teams will drive during the 28 hours, and
* how many songs will be played on-air during the programme.

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.

To help you out, we can reveal that the station's plans include a late evening walk in the Sidlaws above the Carse, visiting a wedding reception at the Lovat Hotel, helping a village newsagent put out the Sunday papers and visiting the hospital kitchens to find out what's for Sunday lunch. We'll be berry picking near Blairgowrie, enjoying a quick game of golf, an evening visit to a local fish and chip shop, and a visit to all the places pictured in this article.

The closing date for entries is Wednesday 17 June 2009 - so please get guessing!

Every donation will help Hospital Radio Perth continue to make bed-bound patients' stay that wee bit more bearable.

Just £1 could buy a paperback novel, which is a great prize for a patient phone-in quiz. And just £5 could pay for a good compilation CD for our song library.

This year's T in the Park is set to be the best yet, with sets by Lilly Allen, Blur, Franz Ferdinand, Razorlight, James, Squeeze and Lady Gaga to name just a few - so we're delighted to offer two weekend passes as our competition prize!

28 MAY 2009

65 YEARS OF SERVICE

Over 65 years of voluntary service to hospital broadcasting was celebrated at Perth Royal Infirmary on Thursday 28 May with certificates awarded to three members.

John Watson marked 25 years of volunteering. He came to Hospital Radio Perth in 1987 after 3 years with Victoria Radio Network, the Kirkcaldy hospital radio service, and was already a member of the Perth committee before the PRI station went on air in 1989. He was chairman of the organisation for 17 years and is currently the programme controller, responsible for the station output. He served 8 years on the committee of the national organisation, the Hospital Broadcasting Association and was their Chief Executive for two of these years. He was Perth's "Citizen Of The Year" in 1999 and was awarded an MBE in 2002.

Donna Lamont marked 20 years service to the organisation. Donna and John are the only current members to have been with the station since its launch. She has held several roles on the committee over the years and, having presented well over 1,000 programmes, has spent more hours broadcasting on the PRI service than any other presenter. She currently presents two specialist music programmes each week.

Alice Watson has also been 20 years with the organisation, having joined just after it launched. Alice has spent several years as secretary of the organisation and is primarily a ward visitor. One evening each week she visits patients at PRI to collect requests and to chat with those who might not have had a visitor.

The awards were presented by chairman Steven Robb who commented, "It's great to be congratulating those who have given so much of their time to a voluntary organisation like Hospital Radio Perth - it's a fantastic achievement. While they are our longest serving members, it's interesting to note that we have 26 members who have been over 5 years with the organisation."

Hospital Broadcasting Association Scottish Regional Representative, Jim Simpson, himself treasurer at Grampian Hospital Radio in Aberdeen added, "Congratulations to John, Donna and Alice. Hospital Radio Perth is a hugely successful station with a committed and dedicated staff. Anyone who might have a few hours to spare each week would be very welcome at their local hospital station."

2 MAY 2009

PERTH PATIENTS SHARE SAINTS JOY

9 MARCH 2009

8TH QUIZ A HUGE SUCCESS

The eight annual PerthshireSolicitors Property Centre Quiz night has been won for the third time by the team representing Neil Whittet solicitors. The event was another great success and raised over £450 for Hospital Radio Perth. Quiz-master John Watson revealed that the money raised had already been earmarked towards funding the installation of a new computer network at the UK's favourite hospital station. "Congratulations to Neil Whittet and our thanks to all who took part. The computer network will ensure that we can improve and upgrade our 'non-live' broadcasting, and provide a patient-focussed service to our listeners 24 hours a day."

Our picture shows three of the winning team collecting the trophy from Anne Begg, manager of Perthshire Solicitors Property Centre.

27 FEBRUARY 2009

PSPC QUIZ IS BACK

Due to popular demand and the fact that we may well raise a few bob in the process, Hospital Radio Perth have announced the 8th annual Perthshire Solicitors Property Centre quiz night at the Salutation Hotel in South Street, Perth on Monday 9 March 2009. The quiz night is open to teams of four and we have had a lot of interest so far.

The solicitors quiz night has become an eagerly awaited annual event and is an integral part of Hospital Radio Perth's annual fund-raising efforts.

The quiz has been won in the past by Miller Hendry (2002), Neil Whittet (2003 & 2004), The Procurator Fiscal's office (2006 & 2007) and the current champions Condies (2005 & 2008).

Saturday 21 February 2009 saw 23 of us get together at McDiarmid Park to celebrate Hospital Radio Perth being "on air" for 20 years.

We enjoyed a few beers and an excellent meal.

The only person missing from the main picture is Roland Smyth who took it! So we thought we'd look for a suitably embarrassing photo of Roland so that he didn't feel left out. Sorry girls but he's spoken for!

20 FEBRUARY 2009

HOSPITAL RADIO PERTH IS TWENTY

February 20th 2009 is the 20th anniversary of Hospital Radio Perth first going on air. At 7.30 on 20th February 1989, Stewart Kennedy launched the service with "Good evening PRI and welcome to Hospital Radio Perth." Believe it or not, we were all so excited we forgot to switch on the tape recorder - so no record of the evening exists!

From the start the organisation was determined that it would place as much emphasis on patient visiting as it did on programme broadcasting. Two programmes each week grew to four, then to five nights per week, then six, as more and more members joined. These days we broadcast 24 hours a day - seven days a week.

Over the years we have become one of the premiere hospital broadcasting organisations in the UK winning the coveted UK Station Of The Year Award a record 4 times.

We were delighted on Tuesday 17 February to welcome Provost John Hulbert and his wife to the studio. Provost Hulbert toured the studio, spoke live to the patients and cut a celebratory birthday cake.

FEBRUARY 2009

FIRST RECORDING AT THE A.K. BELL LIBRARY THEATRE

DECEMBER 2008

ANOTHER PROJECT APPROACHES COMPLETION

SEPTEMBER 2008

A BREATH OF FRESH AIR

When we refurbished our studios a couple of years ago, we dramatically improved our broadcast sound by installing sound absorbing panels on the studio walls. Unfortunately, there were unforseen consequences. The premises, which until then had been cool in all weathers, suddenly became stifflingly hot whenever the sun dared to peek from behind a cloud. Some evenings it was so warm that we were unable to broadcast programmes. It became apparent very quickly that the only answer was air conditioning.

After many months of fund-raising we have at last installed a system that will offer heat in the winter and cool air in the summer. It's already a great hit with our members and thanks are due to everyone at Specialist Mechanical Services from Dundee who provided a very professional system with no fuss and at a very competitive price.

JUNE 2008

WALKING THE WALK

Well we did it! On 1 June a hardy bunch staggered round Deuchny Wood. After over a fortnight of brilliant sunshine, it chose that day to rain. But nothing daunted we ploughed on regardless.

The rain did dampen our plans to have a barbeque at Quarrymill afterwards, so we took the barbie to the studio. While we sat inside, Cordon Bleu chef (well at least the air was blue) Dave Oswald cooked up a fine selection of listeria burgers and sausages that somehow managed to be both raw and burnt!

We have raised a healthy sum and expect to exceed our £1,000 target. On the left you can see how much we have made via JustGiving. We're keeping the JustGiving site open, so if you haven't sponsored us, then you can still do so by clicking on the DONATE button. The site is 100% secure and Hospital Radio Perth are able to reclaim Gift Aid on donations from UK-based taxpayers. That way we get more than if you fill in a traditional sponsor form!

APRIL 2008

WALKING THE WALK

Here at Hospital Radio Perth we're famed for talking the talk - however on Sunday 1 June 2008 we'll also be walking the walk.

Our members will be getting out and about on a sponsored walk in Deuchny Wood on the outskirts of Perth. It's a scenic 4 mile trek and the dafter members have already proposed to do a wider tour of the hill adding a further 2 miles.

Keeping our station on air and our ward-visiting efforts going costs money, and the charity walk is our main fundraiser for 2008.

If you'd like to support us in the charity walk, we'd be grateful if you could take a moment to visit www.justgiving.com/hrp and make a donation.

You can use the link above or click on the DONATE ONLINE graphics in this article or at the top of the page. The site is 100% secure and Hospital Radio Perth are able to reclaim Gift Aid on donations from UK-based taxpayers. That way we get more than if you fill in a traditional sponsor form!

So please help keep the show on the road - make your donation online and support Hospital Radio Perth - the UK's most successful hospital broadcasters.

APRIL 2008

YET MORE AWARDS!

Once again, Hospital Radio Perth have found success at the National Hospital Broadcasting Awards which took place at a gala dinner at the Queens Hotel in Leeds on Saturday 29th March 2008.

This year, the station had only one entry in front of the judges, a documentary by presenter and ward visitor Dalene Radin, about master organ builder Sandy Edmonstone. Sandy who lives near Perth Royal Infirmary led the listener through the process of building the organ and voicing the pipes. As Sandy trimmed the pipe we could hear how the pipe could be tuned and the volume adjusted. Sandy reckoned it was the first time such a process had ever been recorded for radio. The judges felt that the entry was both interesting and informative.

Pictured with the trophy, Dalene reports that both she and Sandy were thrilled to bits to hear that the entry had won first prize.

Hospital Radio Perth remain the most successful station ever at the National Hospital Radio Awards which are open to around 250 hospital stations across the UK.

MARCH 2008

ANOTHER GREAT PSPC QUIZ SUCCESS

The seventh annual PSPC / Hospital Radio Perth Quiz Night took place at the Salutation Hotel on Wednesday 19th March 2008. The winners were Condies who carried off the trophy for the second time - having been triumphant three years ago.

The event raised in excess of £800 for Hospital Radio Perth.

HRP Station Manager and Quizmaster John Watson reported that a record number of teams took part and competition was stronger than ever. That's Condies, The Procurator Fiscal's Office and Neil Whittet all won the trophy twice - who will be first to get a hat-trick of wins?

Our picture shows PSPC Manager Anne Begg handing over the trophy to the winning team and a cheque to Hospital Radio Perth.