Tony Gillham

I wasn’t even a teenager when I first heard offshore radio in the early 60s. Radio Veronica played non-stop music all day, and even though the DJs spoke Dutch, it was exciting and unlike anything else on the dial. That’s when I knew my destiny was set.

A few years later, my family moved to Essex. I could hear a host of stations from the North Sea, like Caroline on 199 and Wonderful Radio London, which introduced me to Top 40 radio with jingles. At 15 and still at school, I wasn’t going to let that stop me. I set up possibly the UK’s first community station — linking my neighbours’ houses with a cable to beam music and chat into their living rooms, even the local chip shop!

The local paper caught wind of my project, which helped launch my career. I started presenting a weekly record review on hospital radio in 1966 — and a recording still exists! Later, I visited Wonderful Radio London on the MV Galaxy, a moment that changed my life. From then on, nothing was going to stop me.

Fast forward through a career spanning biscuit factory radio, commercial stations, and BBC local radio, and in 2007 I helped launch Black Cat Radio from my home. In 2017, we went 24/7. Starting community radio as a teenager and returning 50 years later feels like coming full circle. Here’s to many more years on air!

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