Broadcasting live from Butetown, Radio Cardiff is Cardiff’s award-winning local radio station – offering listeners a diversity of music styles, local & national news and community interest programmes, every day.
Each week, over 26,000 people tune in to the listener-supported, volunteer-run station which covers many events in and around the city. The programmes go out 24 hours a day, and a schedule for a typical day lists more than 100 different features.
The only community radio station in the city, Radio Cardiff first went on air in October 2007, and is part of VCS Cymru a charity which has been serving Cardiff with volunteering and social action initiatives since 1964.
Radio Cardiff’s Drive Time programme is under way.
Much of Radio Cardiff programming is also available to download from Mixcloud for listeners worldwide to enjoy at their leisure. These include programmes such as Sweet Company, Soul Of The Blues. The Reel Experience, The Jazz Train and the weekly theatre arts programme/podcast The Stage Door.
I recently discovered The Stage Door, after listening to one of my favourite Radio Cardiff programmes Sweet Company one Sunday evening.
Radio Cardiff’s Sweet Company presenters Rachel Lewis and Jeremy Rees
Presented by Elin Edwards, The Stage Door focuses on theatre in Cardiff and the surrounding areas with lively interviews, guests, previews and reviews. It was therefore a real thrill recently to be invited to appear on the programme by Elin in order for me to discuss Entertainment South Wales as guest co-present the show with her.
I visited the studios on Thursday evening to record the programme . As I had arrived early, it was fabulous to meet Rachel Lewis and Jeremy Rees who present the music nostalgia show, Sweet Company.
A regular fixture of my Sunday evenings, Sweet Company has a delightful mixture of nostalgic music and lively chat between Rachel and Jeremy.
Studio technician Johnny (pictured left) with some of the Radio Cardiff interns who help put some of the stations programmes together.
Rachel gave me a tour of the Sweet Company studio, home to Radio Cardiff’s piano of which she brings to life each week with beautiful renditions of popular standards.
Rachel’s Sweet Company co presenter Jeremy also gave me a further tour of Radio Cardiff’s Studio 1 where the live drive time show was taking place. Jeremy’s passion as a broadcaster is equally as enthusiastic as his in-depth knowledge of blues music as he introduces me to several fellow presenters, behind the scenes workers and interns who help get the programmes on the air.
Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama students perform for The Stage Door on Radio Cardiff
Elin Edwards then arrives and soon I am briefed on our guests for The Stage Door. Elin commences the programme by conducting an interview with myself discussing entertainmentsouthwales.com This is quite an unusual experience for me as I’m usually the one who has to conduct interviews. Thankfully, I’m not stuck for too many answers and forget the microphone is there after a while!
We then welcome the first of our guests, representatives from The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama get into position to perform the hymn, I Vow to Thee, My Country Of which they will perform at The National Museum Wales on Remembrance Sunday.
Osian and Pip from Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama appearing on The Stage Door.
The track features Flora on Viola, Chloe on Violin and Oma on the fabulous double bass, while composer Pip and singer Osian give Elin and myself an insightful interview into the music they have been preparing for the Remembrance commemoration.
Another interview quickly follows with Gavin Porter, the Director of the Butetown based play Bricks and Mortar which will be performed as part of the Tiger Bay Fringe Programme.
Stage Door presenter Elin Edwards interviews Bricks and Mortar director Gavin Porter.
My visit to Radio Cardiff was both insightful and a lot of fun. It was great to meet some of the people who put a lot of hard work into producing informative and entertaining programmes and podcasts while bringing together a wide variety of tastes and cultural interests within the local community for daily programming.
- For further details on Radio Cardiff and their programming, check out radiocardiff.org