Spotlight On… Royston Radio, January Update
Royston Radio is a new community radio station based in Royston. Their goal is to provide a community-run media service to Royston and the surrounding villages. 
From the 1st January 2023, they’ll be based at Coombes Community Centre in Royston, and broadcasting from there.
Royston Radio will be available to listen to directly through their website or through a variety of internet radio directory apps. If you have an Alexa, you can say ‘Alexa enable the Royston Radio Skill’ and once enabled, any time you want to hear Royston Radio, all you need to do is say ’Alexa, Play Royston Radio’
Royston Radio plan to broadcast a diverse range of programming, offering the chance to the community to showcase new original ideas, and creating a station that will appeal to everyone. They also want to showcase local projects, events and organisations, giving them a voice and access to broadcast.
Anyone above the age of 18 is eligible to participate. You will not need any prior experience because training will be provided, and if presenting is not your thing, a variety of other opportunities are available. Keep a look out for Open Days on social media.
The community project is the brainchild of community radio expert Fonz Chamberlain, who approached Rob Inwood about how to make this happen.
We are delighted to share Fonz’ inspirational story here.
“My name is Fonz Chamberlain and the idea for Royston Radio goes back to 1999. My oldest son John was born with heart problems and underwent open heart surgery at just three days old at Great Ormond Street Hospital. It was a very hard time for me and I suffered a breakdown. I cut myself off from everyone and rarely left my house. On one rare occasion that I did venture out, I met a man named Karl Hartland. Karl was running a community radio station at the time in Cambridge called 209radio and he asked me to get involved. I decided it was worth giving it a try and having a keen interest in the history of Cambridge, I ended up making a show called ‘The Cambridge Time Traveller.’
Over the next few years, I ended up becoming more involved with radio and the Cambridge history scene where now I have my own my website and I currently have a book available on Amazon called Discover Cambridge: A Journey Through Time.
I never forgot the kindness and support given to me by Karl and the 209radio team, at such a tough point in my life, and the chances they gave me that grew into bigger things, not only within radio, but television and local history.
In 2012, I was working for a company called Envision Media and I originally suggested to them about a radio platform for Royston that not only benefited the community with news, events and information, but also to offer other people the opportunities I was given at 209radio. Envision liked the idea, but sadly they lost out to Cambridge Television for the city community television franchise, and Envision sadly closed.
Fast forward to 2021, and technological advances with radio becoming more of a online platform, and moving away from the cost-prohibitive FM and DAB platforms, I approached my good friend Rob Inwood about maybe looking back at my original plans and creating the station for Royston.
Rob loved the idea and during 2021 we looked at the costs involved and researched if it would still be a benefit for the community. We discovered there is now an even bigger need after COVID; just imagine what an important news outlet it would have been during the pandemic, in keeping our community connected. Local radio is needed more than ever to fill that void.
We have had support from many local companies and the list offering help continues to grow, and we are truly grateful to every single one of them.
Royston Radio are looking for people to get involved and become part of the station team. No experience is necessary because full training is given; this is the chance for you, the people of Royston and the surrounding villages, to produce your own programming and news platform.
The station is not governed by a higher media outlet, we are completely independent.
If you would like to get involved email the team at info@roystonradio.com
More information about the station can be found at www.roystonradio.com
Information on Fonz’ history work can be found at www.cambridgehistorian.co.uk
