Broadcast area North Dorset First air date 25 June 1995 | Slogan "Tune In Feel Good" Format Hot AC | |
Frequency 96.6 & 97.4 MHz
RDS: Breeze_ Owner Celador Radio Broadcasting Ltd | ||
The Breeze (formerly Gold Radio, Vale FM and Midwest Radio) is a radio station which serves North Dorset, in the United Kingdom, and is owned and operated by Celador Radio and is part of The Breeze network of stations.
Contents
History
Launched on 25 June 1995 as Gold Radio then later became Vale FM when the station was acquired by TLRC. The station, along with sister station Ivel FM was formed as Midwest Radio when the two stations were acquired from TLRC and merged to form one station.
In July 2008, Radio industry regulator Ofcom approved plans for the two stations to share 20 hours of output per day, saying the distance between stations is such that the relevance of regionalised programming is a sensible move for both, and represents a way of allowing smaller stations to operate more effectively without adverse effects for listeners. Despite this, the two separate licences still broadcast different breakfast shows between 6 a.m. and 10 a.m. on weekdays.
In August 2010 the 2 stations finally merged to create a single Midwest station across south Somerset and north Dorset, broadcasting from studios in Yeovil and Shaftesbury.
In December 2011, The Midwest stations were sold to Celador Radio, after Midwest Radio Ltd decided not to contest with the Bridgwater licence.
Rebrand as The Breeze
After an approval request with Ofcom, both stations have relaunched as The Breeze at midnight on 25 June 2012, merging with The Breeze in Bridgwater.