Behind The Scenes At Radio Maelor

Wrexham.com was invited for a tour round the studios of Radio Maelor, Wrexham Maelor Hospital’s very own radio station last week.

We were greeted by presenter Catherine Ollier who has been a presenter on the station since she was 19 and is part of a dedicated team of 15 volunteers who present shows for patients at the hospital.

Radio Maelor was originally set up in 1976 by the hospital’s League of Friends and the current studios used for the station have been there since 2000.

The station has recently undergone something of a revamp in the past 12 months with a brand new logo designed by children from St Christopher’s school, new polo shirts so presenters can be identified round the hospitals and with plans in the pipeline for a website created by media students at Yale College and their lecturer Tony Pugh.

Radio Maelor has also linked up with Radio Ysbyty Glan Clwyd in a move which has seen the two stations meeting up for various activities to work together and exchange ideas.

Catherine presents the Join Our Gang show, sponsored by Sainsburys, on Wednesday evenings where she plays a range of music from traditional music right up to the modern day with a healthy dose of 80s music, her particular favourite.

Her passion for 80s classics even Catherine her play tunes from the era for 12 hours sporting a Tina Turner wig during a radiothon which raised over £100 for the station.

Catherine explained the main reason behind the revamp at the station: “We wanted to make it more interesting for the patients” she said “Some don’t want to be left alone and some don’t know we’re here. Music is a good way of helping people recover and cheering them up.”

“We’re looking for new people to present show and we want them to really commit themselves to the station. We’re particularly looking to fill slots in the afternoon.”

Catherine tries to visit the Maelor’s wards as regularly as possible to take patients requests and they can also request songs via Facebook, e-mail or the hospital’s internal phone line.

Presenters also go round the children’s ward and to St Christopher’s School every Christmas to hand out presents, an experience Catherine describes as particularly rewarding.

Another key member of the Radio Maelor team is Jimmy Smith, an expert on country music who presents his weekly shows “My Kind of Country” and “Oldies But Goodies” which features music from the 50s and 60s.

Jimmy has been part of the Radio Maelor team for ten years, he said: “I used to do discos for 18 years which gave me a good grounding where music’s concerned. I was also at Marcher Sound for a couple of years, now I’ve got my own show here and I find you have a lot more freedom.”

Jimmy Smith presenter of My Kind of Country

“I enjoy doing it as it gives the patients something to listen to. We want to provide a decent station and we hope that the service we provide is good for them.

The last year has seen the Radio Maelor team interview several notable local figures such as Tim Vincent, Ian Lucas, Stephanie Booth and town centre manager Isabel Watson.

Jimmy said: “I wasn’t really nervous interviewing Tim Vincent, but it was more nerve wracking interviewing Isobel Watson. I went round the markets to speak to people and gauge out questions.”

Wrexham.com isn’t immune from a grilling either as Ceri Jones from Radio Ysbyty Glan Clwyd puts us on the spot during Catherine’s show.

Ceri, a presenter at Glan Clwyd for 15 years, regularly pops in to help out at Radio Maelor and says he has seen big changes in technology since he first started out.

Radio Maelor’s ultimate goal is to get the station up to date and broadcasting online as patients currently rely on wires which run to the their beds to tune into the station.

If you are interested in becoming a part of the Radio Maelor team you can contact them via e-mail at [email protected] or by calling 07875628494.

They are also looking for local people to interview.

Radio Maelor can also be contacted via Facebook