Long distance radio stations picked up

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

Must have been Steve Wright's programme.

[amethyst]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I only have baths rather than showers, but I wouldn't have minded having one of those shower radios as well.

I remember once think it was radio 2 sometime in afternoon Tommy Walsh was talking about DIY lol

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I only have baths rather than showers, but I wouldn't have minded having one of those shower radios as well.

[amethyst]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I had one of those shower radios that I used to listen whilst bathing,think I bought it in Tesco going back 20 years

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

Went to Argos and got myself a brand new digital radio so that I can listen to stations when I am in the bath (I am sure that other people also do that as a way of relaxing).

I scanned the radio twice for stations (once on the front window still and again at the back) and picked up 78 radio stations. What amazed me was that I picked up BBC Radio Shropshire in Nottingham on 96.0 FM! I thought that BBC Radio Derby used that frequency, but I couldn't believe how far away it was!

I don't think there are any atmospheric conditions today as they are mostly a summer thing, but I think that it is down to it being a strong modern radio where signals can go further afield than old analogue radios can.

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I was in Plymouth travelling back to Nottingham (after travelling from Bournemouth there), and I took note of the radio stations I could pick up:

1) 103.4 - BBC Radio Devon
2) 95.5 - BBC Somerset
3) 94.9 - BBC Radio Bristol
4) 104.7 - BBC Radio Gloucestershire (I can understand why BBC Radio Lincolnshire also uses 94.9 and 104.7)
5) 104.0 - BBC Hereford and Worcester
6) 95.6 - BBC WM

Travelling down from Nottingham I could pick up BBC Radio Leicester until I saw the "Welcome to Oxfordshire" sign out of the window. Of course, as Leicester had the very first BBC local radio station in 1967, the fact that it has a strong transmitter is just a coincidence.

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I have always have had a mental note of most FM frequencies and so when travelling, I automatically know which radio station I am tuned to. Digital radio makes it even better.

[Mulletino]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I had a big long old wooden radio as a kid that i'd got from somewhere, it was old then and had a facia of buttons and the channel thingy which all lit up when used. I used to plug it in under my bed and pretend it was the control module of my spaceship with the LW transmissions being ground control.

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

If you are travelling north from London on the M1, have the Walkman on in the National Express coach, or are listening in the car on the motorway, these BBC local radio stations can be picked up on the radio:

1) 94.9 - BBC London
2) 104.5 - BBC Three Counties Radio
3) 104.2 - BBC Radio Northampton
4) 104.9 - BBC Radio Leicester
5) 103.8 - BBC Radio Nottingham (Nottingham)
6) 95.5 - BBC Radio Nottingham (Mansfield)
7) 94.7 - BBC Radio Sheffield (Chesterfield)
8) 88.6 - BBC Radio Sheffield (Sheffield)
9) 103.9 - BBC Radio Leeds (Leeds)

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

It reminds me of Mutiny on the Buses where Stan Butler and Jack Harper retuned the radio control transmitter so that it picked up police and aeroplane frequencies instead of the bus services.

"SB 17 - can you hear me?"

[Twocky61]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

Here in the UK; even nowadays, you are permitted to buy scanners that pick up emergency services & other government frequencies. Though, or course, the police have gone TETRA encrypted. As long as you don't listen to the messages, that is lol

Similar to emergency blue lights & sirens (as long as you don't use them)

So, what's the point in that then? lol

[George 1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I know that in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the 87.5 to 88 waveband, just before you get to Radio 2, I could even hear what sounded like police radio messages, one way of course on the radio. I assume that the emergency services use the waveband that is prior to the 87 MHz frequencies and that could be left over from that.

I used to see advertised in Sunday newspaper magazines special radios with strong aerials that had all the private wavebands which allowed one to "eavesdrop" into air force, military signals and all that, and even back then, it made me think whether a member of the public owning such an object was actually legal?

[Richard1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

This was the same here Richard when we passed certain buildings or whatever - this happened with Taxi Firms in our Car/s too!! A good call/memory you've brought me back here - thanks mate

This eventualy lead me to my love of CB Radio years later (not through Taxi's, but just the thrill of the Radio CB -Wise)

80sChav

One odd thing about them was you could normally only hear half the conversation, as I assume each part was on another frequency.

[80sChav]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I remember my Dad's car radio occasionally picked up taxi radios, back when the top end of FM radio (105-108MHz) was still used in the UK for 2 way radios.

This was the same here Richard when we passed certain buildings or whatever - this happened with Taxi Firms in our Car/s too!! A good call/memory you've brought me back here - thanks mate

This eventualy lead me to my love of CB Radio years later (not through Taxi's, but just the thrill of the Radio CB -Wise)

80sChav

[Richard1978]

Re: Long distance radio stations picked up

I remember my Dad's car radio occasionally picked up taxi radios, back when the top end of FM radio (105-108MHz) was still used in the UK for 2 way radios.