Press-Release :- 8th June 1997.
OPEN LETTER TO THE EDITOR
A week of jubilation for some and deep desperation for others. Vast sums of money have been
gambled and lost, lives have been changed forever.
We are not talking about city share deals or betting coups at Epsom, we are talking about the
battle for Radio Broadcasting licences.
This week two groups were celebrating success in their bids for licences. One, Asia fm won
the licence for East London, the other was Essex Radio, the parent company behind the Vibe
fm bid for the regional licence of Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambs.
But there were far more losers, each of which had endured months of painstaking research,
spent thousands of pounds on technical and market surveys and the production of a two
hundred odd page document for the Radio Authority.
Not for them the realisation of their dreams and ambitions, but a stony silence on their chosen
frequency.
This month the Radio Authority is due to advertise a new local licence for Mid Essex and
one of the leading contenders for this licence is Mayflower fm. We know exactly what these
groups have been through over the past few months. We are a group with vast experience and
four extremely successful R.S.L. (restricted service licence) broadcasts behind us. We too will
have spent thousands of hours and thousands of pounds preparing for the day that our
application finally lands on the desk at the Radio Authority headquarters.
We will either know the ecstasy of total success or total failure for there is no middle ground.
After campaigning for many years to have the opportunity to broadcast, Mayflower fm is just
a few months away from the realisation of a long held dream. Our wait is almost over but still
the hardest part is to come. Once our bid has been submitted we will have to endure at least
three long months of questioning and probing by the authority into our programming,
finances and all aspects of the proposals which we put forward. Those months will seem like
an eternity and the tension and uncertainty is sure to be unbearable.
The dedication of those involved not only in Mayflower fm but also in all the other groups
bidding for a licence is admirable. But in the end there can be only one winner.
We at Mayflower fm would like to wish all those involved, good luck (but not too much), as
we know what lies ahead.
We are well prepared and have strong backing from the people and businesses of Basildon,
Billericay and Brentwood. Our hope is that by the end of 1997 we too will be able to
celebrate as Asia and Vibe have done this week and that the last four years work its successes
and frustrations as well as the money spent will not have been in vain.
Our greatest wish is that the first words uttered on the new Mid Essex frequency when it is
allocated will be;
‘’This is Mayflower fm, in the community for the community’’.
(Mayflower FM - 8th June 1997 )
There are a number of ways you can contact mayflower fm:-
