Phoenix FM, also known as Central Victorian Community Broadcasters Incorporated (CVCB), is an Australian

community radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial broadcasting, commercial and public broadcasting. Community broadcasting, Community stations serve geographic communities and communities o ...

station based in

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...

, Victoria.

History

The inaugural meeting of Phoenix FM was held on 10 April 2007. Phoenix FM was granted a temporary licence for two weeks of test broadcasting from 7 January 2008. It was granted a second test broadcast period for two weeks from 8 to 21 June 2008. It was then granted a third test broadcast from 6pm on 28 September to midnight on 6 October 2008. A further extension to this was granted from October 2008 to March 2009 in a time-share arrangement with 89.5 Fresh FM. This occurred after a battle with the

Australian Communications and Media Authority The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is an Australian government statutory authority within the Communications portfolio. ACMA was formed on 1 July 2005 with the merger of the Australian Broadcasting Authority and the Aus ...

(ACMA), who were proposing to use the frequency used by both Phoenix FM and Fresh FM for political broadcasts. Phoenix FM's first outside broadcast was a call of the Bendigo Pioneers game from Country Vet Oval,

Golden Square Golden Square, in Soho, the City of Westminster, London, is a mainly hardscaped garden square planted with a few mature trees and raised borders in Central London flanked by classical office buildings. Its four approach ways are north and so ...

."Phoenix FM to broadcast TAC Cup match during June test transmission"
''AustralianRulesFootball.com.au''. Retrieved 2 December 2011. Phoenix FM began to stream their shows over the Internet in mid-2008. Since June 2024, Phoenix FM's primary station, known as Studio One, broadcasts in FM analogue quality. The station decided to begin broadcasting using a digital desk from a $50000 handout from the Victorian state government. The station's second studio remains using an analogue system, and is currently being used for prerecording programs. The new digital studio was officially opened by Victorian premier

Jacinta Allan Jacinta Marie Allan (born 19 September 1973) is an Australian politician serving as the 49th and current premier of Victoria since 2023. She has been the leader of the Victorian branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) since 2023 and has been ...

in January 2025. Committee member and technical adviser Peter Williams stated that the station's demographic is designed to be "as wide as he stationcan possibly make it". The non-profit station, run by volunteers, currently has membership of more than one hundred people.

Presenters

Lewis Adams hosts "The New Local" with Stephen Wright. He also presents "Live History" Mark Noulton and Joseph Johnston present "Generous Servings of Soup". Noulton also presents "Batcat" Stephen Wright presents "The Shoe Draw Sideshow Funky Dance Time Hour".

References

Radio stations in Bendigo {{Australia-radio-station-stub