Wireless Group To Bid For Manchester Radio Licence
Kelvin MacKenzie’s Wireless Group has announced its intention to bid for Manchester’s last remaining radio licence, with proposals for a talk-based local radio station chaired by ex Manchester Police boss and TV presenter, John Stalker.
The speech station, to be called allTALK FM, would build on TWG’s experience running national speech radio station talkSPORT and would expand the company’s portfolio of 16 local radio stations across Britain.
Stalker, who is chairman of the radio venture, has carved out successful new careers in commerce and the media since leaving the Manchester Police Force and is now a director of a large security company, runs his own consultancy and advisory group, is an acclaimed author, speaker and TV and radio presenter.
The Manchester licence bid follows applications by TWG for licences in the West Midlands and, more recently, for the Edinburgh FM licence. If successful, the bid will give the broadcaster access to around 1.3 million adults in the Manchester area and, in conjunction with its bid for the Blackburn licence, could boost the company’s presence in the North (see Wireless Group Enters Race For Edinburgh Licence).
Commenting on the Manchester bid, TWG’s business development director Calum Macaulay said: “We are delighted to have John Stalker on board. He has an unrivalled knowledge of the area and shares our passion for creating compelling speech-based radio. John also understands media and broadcasting inside out and has a real involvement in the shaping of our proposals as well as an ongoing role if allTALK FM is awarded the licence.”
Competition for the Manchester Licence is expected to be fierce, with Capital Radio, Emap and Guardian Media Group all lining up bids for the region. Both Capital and Emap are planning music-based offerings, with Xfm and Kerrang! being put forward respectively (see Kerrang Joins Race For Manchester Radio Licence).
Elsewhere, GMG’s proposals may provide TWG with its fiercest competition, as they too have proposed a 24-hour speech and news station for the region, capitalising on their existing operations to pool journalists and presenters from the Manchester Evening News and Channel M Television, already based in the city (see GMG Plans Round The Clock Talk Radio For Manchester).
Wireless Group: 020 7269 7180
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