Dune FM
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| Dune FM | |
| Broadcast area | Southport |
|---|---|
| First air date | 12 October 1997 |
| Frequency | 107.9 MHz |
| Format | Contemporary |
| Power | 100 watts |
| Owner | The Local Radio Company |
| Website | www.dunefm.co.uk |
Dune FM is the Independent Local Radio station for Southport, England. It originally broadcast from makeshift studios in Southport's Floral Hall complex, serving only the town on an RSL. After widening the net to neighbouring West Lancashire and North Sefton, they broadcast a couple of RSLs as "Magic Dune" before the Radio Authority advertised the licence area.
Up against competition from Marcher Radio Group's Diamond station amongst others, the group secured a Sallie licence with an area roughly between Chorley, Bootle, Wigan and Southport. The studios have been on the seaside of the town for the entirety of their professional era, at an old substation building on Victoria Way.
Past presenters include: John Cooper, Derek Webster, Erica Hughes, Kenni James, Dave Shearer, Mark Jones, Derek Marks, Richard Bond, Jonathan Dean, Laura Penn, Carlo Fiorentino, Ian Sharpe, Jon Jessop, Brent Williams, Phil Hilton and Ron Ellis.
The station was originally owned by local shareholders, including Steve Dickson (now head of the local Chamber of Commerce), John Cooper, The Scarisbrick Hotel and local radio businessman David Maker. The station was sold to Forward Media in 1999, a new company set up by radio executives and backed by venture capital finance. It was during this period of ownership that the station went from strength to strength consistently being the most popular local station in the area (source RAJAR 1999-2004). This was largely due to its successful local programming and broad music appeal. In 2004 the station was bought by The Local Radio Company Plc who drastically changed the format and most of the presenters, introducing networked programming (originating mainly from the south). At the end of 2006 Dune FM had less listeners than it did when it launched in 1997 (Source RAJAR Q4/2006)
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