107 JACK fm Berkshire was an

Independent Local Radio Independent Local Radio is the collective name given to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. As a result of the buyouts and mergers permitted by the Broadcasting Act 1990, and deregulation resulting from the Communications Act 2 ...

station in the English town of

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

. The station was based at studios in the

Madejski Stadium The Madejski Stadium (), currently known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Reading, Berkshire, England. It is the home of Reading Football Club, who play in EFL League One. It also provides the ...

, home of

Reading F.C. Reading Football Club ( ) is a professional football club based in Reading, Berkshire, England. They compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. They play their home matches at the Select Car Leasing Sta ...

and

London Irish London Irish RFC is a professional rugby union club that most recently competed in the Premiership Rugby, Premiership, the top division of rugby union in England. The club also participated in the European Rugby Champions Cup, European Champion ...

. The station's transmitter is located on the

Tilehurst Water Tower Tilehurst Water Tower, is a distinctive water tower in Tilehurst, a suburb of the English town of Reading. People from Reading know they are near home when they are coming eastbound along the M4 and they can see the top of the tower. Although in r ...

. In August 2017, it was rebranded as The Breeze (Reading). The DAB version of the station was then rebranded as SAM FM shortly afterwards.

On air

Like all other

Jack FM Jack FM is a radio network brand that is licensed by Sparknet Communications, with the exception of the European Union where it is licensed by Oxis Media. It plays an adult hits radio format, format, in most cases not using disc jockey, DJs. F ...

stations in the United Kingdom, the radio station was mostly an automated service with

Paul Darrow Paul Darrow (born Paul Valentine Birkby; 2 May 1941 – 3 June 2019) was an English actor and writer. He became best known for playing Kerr Avon in the BBC science fiction television series ''Blake's 7'' between 1978 and 1981. His many te ...

providing topical one-liners in between songs as the voice of Jack, plus there was a weekday breakfast show "Jack's Morning Glory" with Robin Banks, and there's also the "Sunday Roast" on Sunday lunchtime with Sir John Madejski who interviewed notable local people.

History

The consortium behind Reading 107 FM submitted its bid for a local commercial radio station in September 2001 and the licence was awarded by

Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, internet, telecommunications and mail, postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-rang ...

in March 2002. Reading 107 first broadcast at 8am on 22 October 2002. The first presenter was launch programme controller

Tim Grundy Timothy Grundy (4 July 1958 – 1 February 2009) was an English television and radio presenter. He was born in Manchester, Lancashire. Biography Grundy was born to a Scottish mother and Bill Grundy, the broadcaster remembered for his expletiv ...

and the first song was "Listen to the Music" by

The Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in San Jose, California in 1970. Known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies, the band has been active for over five decades, with their greate ...

. In August 2005,

Guardian Media Group Guardian Media Group plc (GMG) is a British-based mass media company owning various media operations including ''The Guardian'', and formerly ''The Observer''. The group is wholly owned by the Scott Trust Limited, which exists to secure the fin ...

(GMG) increased its shareholding in Reading 107 FM from 37.8% to a controlling stake of 60.3% when Milestone Radio Group decided to sell; the remaining shareholding being owned by the Goodhead Group plc, a company controlled by Reading Football club chairman Sir John Madejski. In December 2005, Reading 107 FM changed control again, this time from GMG to Madejski Communications Limited. Reading 107 flipped format to 107 JACK FM Berkshire on 2 March 2014.

References

External links

107 JACK FM Berkshire website

Listen Live
{{Authority control Radio stations in Berkshire Culture in Reading, Berkshire Radio stations established in 2002 Radio stations disestablished in 2017 2002 establishments in England 2017 disestablishments in England Defunct radio stations in the United Kingdom Jack FM stations