Radio station turns off medium wave after 30 years

Muff Murfin, who created the theme tune for Gladiators, is the chairman at Sunshine Radio

A radio station that is more than 30 years old is to stop broadcasting on medium wave.

Sunshine Radio, which has listeners in Herefordshire, Monmouthshire and Ludlow, said the decision was due to the high maintenance costs of the AM transmitter.

It added that switching off the transmitter would only affect a small number of people because not many of them access the station on medium wave.

Ofcom accepted the proposal, which will take effect from Friday, and said it did not receive any complaints about the move.

The regulator said listeners who did not have access to FM or DAB could reach the service online, providing minimal impact for listeners.

AM, which stands for Amplitude Modulation, is the oldest radio broadcasting system in the UK.

Sunshine said it received no complaints about the AM frequency in 2021, despite a storm forcing it temporarily off air.

The station, which is chaired by Muff Murfin - who among other things composed the theme music for the original Gladiators TV series - will continue to broadcast on FM.