Frequently Asked Questions
Below we’ve compiled some of the most frequently asked questions about Bishop FM. If yours isn’t answered, or you’d like to know more, please get in touch.
Where can I hear Bishop FM?
Bishop FM launched on Saturday, 31st October and is available on 105.9FM throughout Bishop Auckland, Crook, Shildon and villages in between.
What does Bishop FM sound like?
Bishop FM sounds like most radio stations – we have programmes with presenters, play a variety of music, some adverts, and there’ll be news every hour. We have a commitment that 40% of our output will be speech based, whilst the other 60% will be music led.
What music will you play?
Like most community radio stations, we’ll play a mixture of music. During the day most of the music you hear will be ‘mainstream’ from the last four decades, and this makes up around 65 hours a week.
In the evenings and at weekends our programmes will feature more specialist music, including programmes dedicated to certain genres. These come to 36 hours, or just over 20% of the station’s output.
Will you play the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players or Talib Kweli?
Yes – there’s a good chance. During the evening and at weekends our music programmes could feature almost any artist.
Will you do local news?
Local news is very important to Bishop FM. If you listened to it all at once, one day a week of our output would be just local news and current affairs. This sounds like quite a lot, so we’re thinking very carefully about how and when you hear local news, and are looking to have a number of community reporters out and about.
Will you cover local sport?
From our first broadcast in October 2007 we’ve known how important local sport is to listeners and clubs. We’ll feature local and national sport in our news bulletins, on the website and there’ll be a live sport programme every Saturday afternoon.
Who runs Bishop FM?
Bishop FM is a company limited by guarantee, with charitable aims. There’s a board of directors, an Executive Committee who run the station on a day-to-day basis, and a group of members (or shareholders). There’s an AGM every year, and members can be elected to join the committee or board.
Can I be involved?
Absolutely. Bishop FM is a fantastic place to enter radio, learn new skills and meet new people. The station is staffed entirely by volunteers who want to contribute something to the community through the station.
We often place details of volunteer opportunities online, and have more information in our Volunteers section.
How is Bishop FM funded?
Most community radio stations in the UK can receive no more than 50% of their funding from any one source, such as advertising. This regulation is set out by Ofcom (our regulator). We apply for funding from grant holders, sell advertising, hold events, provide commercial services and receive donations.
Will you read our event out on-air?
Of course. If the event is for a good cause, or a family day out, we’ll mention it for free on-air. If you’re promoting a gig or something bigger we have a range of affordable and flexible options for getting your ad guaranteed placement on the radio and website.
I’m in a band – where can we send our CD? Will you play it?
At Bishop FM we really like new, local music. We can’t play every CD we receive (and are unable to return any), but our specialist music presenters are always looking for new bands in South West Durham and the North East. Send your CD to our music team, or take a look at our MySpace page for more details.
I’d like to make a suggestion or provide some feedback. How can I do this?
We’re accountable to our audience and the community we serve, and we really want to receive feedback from you. You can contact us, write to us, visit and post a comment on our blog or come and see us at our next listener event. We read all feedback we receive.
Do you have an industrial metal rock programme? Can I present one?
All of our presenters are volunteers, and each programme is made up of a team including a producer, presenter and sometimes a broadcast assistant. To ensure that you receive a great experience at Bishop FM, including training and acquiring new skills, we insist that members complete a training programme and volunteer at the station before presenting a programme.
We evaluate our schedule once a quarter, and where we can accommodate a new programme we look to do so. All of our programmes contribute towards our goals and objectives, and our Programme Controller will look forward to working with you on working with these.
Can I listen to Bishop FM online?
We’re constantly looking at live online streaming, but currently have no plans to make Bishop FM available to listen to live online.
However, as much of our content as possible will be made available to listen to again. We’ve chosen this method as it’s on demand and available to listen to on any device which will play an MP3 (such as an iPod, mobile phone, computer, etc).
Unfortunately we can’t reproduce the programmes exactly as they are on air due to music licensing, but we’re hopeful that the online content and podcasts will enable you to catch up if you missed a programme.
