In August 1974 in Exeter, a group of radio enthusiasts was brought together by local police officer Terry Roberts (who had hospital radio experience in Plymouth) to look into starting a radio station at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (RD&E). The idea of providing a service aimed at making patients’ stay at the hospital more pleasant and less of an ordeal did not initially convince the Health Authority at the time but Terry and his team were not to be deterred and a few months later permission was granted and Hospital Radio Exeter (HRE, as it fondly came to be known) came into being.
Immediately a concerted fundraising drive was initiated and, with a generous donation from the League of Friends, a mixing desk was purchased and HRE hit the airwaves on 22nd December 1974. To begin with, HRE was transmitted from a “broom closet” studio in the old Wonford Hospital using BT landlines to the RD&E sites in Wonford and Heavitree; then the Exeter Eye Infirmary and the Princess Elizabeth Orthopaedic Hospitals were added to the coverage. Initially, just five hours of programming over two days a week were possible but over the years this was increased to the 24/7 output HRE provides today.
When the new hospital was built in the early 90s and most of RD&E’s facilities were consolidated into one site in Wonford, HRE moved to its current location on the new site in April 1994 and was provided with space for two studios, an office, racks room, music library and a reception area. And, starting in 2020, HRE went global and, in addition to patient access via their bedside consoles, it can now be listened to on the internet, via its App and even on Alexa!
HRE is a registered charity (no 275044), staffed entirely by volunteers. As such, apart from generating a modest amount of regular income each year from volunteers’ subscriptions, it relies very heavily on public donations and external fundraising to enable it to continue to provide this much-appreciated service for patients at the RD&E. Anyone interested in supporting HRE in any way is invited to visit the website www.hospitalradioexeter.com for more details on how you can help.
Malcolm Mardon, HRE Chairman (and founding member), comments:
“Hospital Radio Exeter became a part of my life 50 years ago and how very special it has been. Over the years I’ve met so many lovely people and some have gone on to great jobs in the industry, from the BBC to Times Radio; from ITV to careers in journalism. But I never joined it with those ambitions! I just wanted to make patients’ stay in hospital just a bit more comfortable.”
Words of appreciation: “Hospital Radio Exeter is such a great tonic. Their presenters are so professional. And playing proper music. The shows are really good and interesting. Hats off to Exeter!” Grateful patient in 2021 “Thanks so much to you all at Hospital Radio. Your wonderful work is a lifeline!” Bob
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