Chris's blog

Waiheke got its first taste of community radio the Saturday of Labour Weekend when Waiheke Radio was officially launched. Following on from the fantastic Saturday Breakfast with Simon and El the launch took place on an extended Island Life show featuring interviews with locals, Waiheke musicians, live reports from island events and a focus on all things Waiheke. Dozens of locals also added their voice to the station recording promos and IDs. They are already in the programme, so tune in to check them out.

The opening ceremony was conducted by Hauraki Gulf Islands Councillor, and good friend of the station, Denise Roche, who cut the ribbon and declared Waiheke Radio open.

The launch gave Waiheke a pretty indication of what community radio is all about. Our focus is giving locals the opportunity not only to hear about local perspectives and events but to be involved with creating radio programmes and that just what we delivered. You just don't get that on a big commercial Auckland station.

After a year of hard work we have reached the point of officially launching the station. We're very proud of what we have achieved - raising funds, building a studio, buying and setting-up equipment, training on-air announcers, developing content and more.

The launch will start with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 10am followed by a showcase of some of the shows and content the station will broadcast. There will also be interviews with locals and live performances by Waiheke musicians.

And in keeping with being a community station, locals are invited to join in with the launch and add their voice to the station. Our back room production suite is all set up so that anyone who visits will be able to record a station ID message that will be used in the station's programme.

We invite everyone to tune in on Saturday 25th from 8am or pop into the studio in the Artworks courtyard to check out what we have achieved.

The official Waiheke Radio launch has been set for Labour Weekend, Sat 25 October. Right now we are busy training volunteers and developing shows and content. Over the coming weeks you will hear more and more great radio shows introduced to our schedule.

Already you can hear the Blackpool Boys, Bill and Trevor, present their folk show, Country Meets Celtic, on Mondays nights at 8pm. They're followed at 9pm by Noise Music Noise, hard-edged rock and interviews with local musicans presented by Bede Taylor. On Wednesdays at 8pm and Saturday at 3pm listen out for Counting The Beat, featuring NZ music obscurities, rarities and new releases.

As well as locally produced shows we are also broadcasting Upload, a NZ music and current issues show on Saturdays at 2pm and Mondays at 7pm, and Te Puutake, a youth show featuring interviews with top Māori and Pacific sportspeople, achievers and artists, talking about today's hot topics, on Tuesdays at 4pm and Thursdays at 7pm.

Keep tuned to 88.3 or 107.4 as more shows are being introduced all the time.  A schedule is also now available here.

If you would like to play a role in community radio you're invited to an open-day at Waiheke Radio this Saturday 9 August between 9am – 2pm.

We're holding the day to give people the opportunity to discuss ideas for radio shows and content and learn what is involved with participating in the radio station. You'll also be able to get behind the microphone and to try out the station equipment.

Lots of groups and people from the community have already come forward with ideas for radio shows. A wide range of ideas have been proposed including sport, local politics, drama, satire and music. We are planning a very broad programme so anyone with an idea or interest in radio should come along for a chat on Saturday.

The station is currently broadcasting music on 88.3 and 107.4fm. The introduction of live shows and local content will begin as soon as show ideas are developed and volunteers can be trained.

Waiheke Radio is back on air following the toppling of one of our transmission aerials in the big storm of Saturday 26 July. While re-erecting the pole we took the opportunity to tweak the signal a little. Those listening in on 88.3fm (Ostend, Onetangi, Palm Beach) should notice a real improvement.

We are currently seeking donations towards the purchase of digital signal transfer equipemnt that will help improve the signal qaulity even further. If you can help with this please contact us.