City Port of Spain Slogan Inspirational Radio First air date 1947 | Broadcast area Trinidad and Tobago Frequency 730 kHz Last air date April 5, 2015 | |
Radio Trinidad was the oldest radio station in Trinidad and Tobago. It began broadcasting in 1947 at 11B Maraval Road in Port of Spain on the frequency 730 AM.
Over the years, the station successfully hosted a wide variety of programmes including soap operas, local and international news, educational documentaries such as the School Broadcasting Unit's show, which aired around 10a.m. on Mondays to Fridays when school was in session, and The Passing Parade hosted by John Doremus. The station's announcers included June Gonsalves, Barbara Assoon, Glen Antoine, Sam Ghany, Ken Laughlin, Hugh Blackman, Larry Heywood, Val Douglas, Russell Winston, Trevor McDonald, Holly Betaudier, Peter Minshall, Don Proudfoot, Bob Gittens and Raffie Knowles.
Two of the most popular programmes were:
Among other regular features were the Cook Caribbean Jazz programme (which took its name from a Trinidad recording company, Cook Caribbean, that originally produced 78rpm records and later continued with the 33 1⁄3 format), and The Indian Hour at 6 p.m. every day. There was also a programme for children called Tell Me a Story with Auntie Wendy, and a classical music show entitled Music of the Masters.
Radio Trinidad covered the many events linked with the thoroughbred horse breeding fostered by Trinidad and Tobago: horse races at the Queen's Park Savannah, in Port of Spain, at the Arima Race Track, at Union Park in San Fernando and at Shirvan Park on Tobago, and aired live commentary on races in Barbados. The main race and sporting commentator was Ralph Ellis Knowles, better known as Raffie Knowles, who was Head of Sports at the station for years. (When television came to Trinidad on Independence Day in 1962, he moonlighted there as Trinidad and Tobago Television's main sportscaster. Raffie's photographic memory enabled him to work without benefit of script or teleprompter, providing detailed scores, giving historical data and anecdotes on players and teams on a whole variety of sports and sporting personalities.)
A sister station at 95 FM was officially launched in 1976; prior to that 95 FM merely broadcast the same programming as Radio Trinidad.
The Radio Trinidad 730 AM frequency was dedicated to inspirational music and other church and religious broadcasting.
Radio Trinidad ceased broadcasting on the AM band on Easter Sunday, 5 April 2015. The format (inspirational music and Christian broadcasting) of the AM frequency has now been vested in a new station, operating at 99.5 FM. Like the old Radio Trinidad, the FM stations are currently located at the Guardian building in Port of Spain named Sky 99.5