Hospital radio marks 50 years of entertainment

Nigel Gray has been chairman of Radio Redhill since 1981

A radio service that has been entertaining patients and staff at the East Surrey Hospital has marked its 50th anniversary.

The first experimental broadcast took place on Christmas Day 1974 at the former Redhill General Hospital, with regular programmes starting the following year.

The station acquired a studio in the then new East Surrey Hospital, with Jean Metcalfe, host of the BBC radio show Two Way Family Favourites, performing the opening ceremony in February 1985.

A week of programmes to mark the anniversary will begin on 13 April.

The station uses the latest technology to broadcast

Nigel Gray, who joined in 1981 and became chairman three years later, said: "We'll be having live programmes all day, lots of studio guests and also repeating some archive interviews, with people like Dame Judi Dench and Nicholas Owen."

The station became a 24-hour operation in 1988.

In the early years, patients would listen on an in-house intercom system but, in 2000, the station began broadcasting on AM medium wave.

It can also be heard now on FM, online and via smart speakers.

The station said it was always on the look-out for new volunteers to work either side of the microphone

The service is staffed entirely by volunteers from a variety of ages and backgrounds.

They collect requests and dedications by visiting patients on the wards, receiving about 8,000 requests each year.

"We're always keen to hear from people who are keen to join us", said Mr Gray.

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