It was a venture launched on a shoestring budget at the start of the 1980s, but which has offered an invaluable service to thousands of patients in Aberdeen.
And Grampian Hospital Radio (GHR) has gone from strength to strength since it was officially opened by TV personality Donnie B MacLeod on January 10 1981 and the original programmes were transmitted from the basement of the Foresterhill Nurses Home.
Forty years after its inception and based in a renovated cottage in the grounds of the Foresterhill site, GHR’s dedicated team of volunteers, including mustard-keen enthusiast Andi Watson, is continuing to deliver a 24-hour daily radio schedule to the patients at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, the Maternity Hospital, the Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital and Roxburghe House via bedside entertainment units.
The initiative is completely free for listeners, with the station, which is a registered charity, remaining dependent on fundraising to continue its activities.
The volunteers do a terrific job
Yet that doesn’t mean its output is restricted to those in the wards or even the city. On the contrary, a new app was unveiled last year, which allows people who can’t currently listen to the network to tune in to GHR from every corner of the globe and offers them the opportunity to send in song requests and messages for patients.
Andi is proud of the work done by around 30 volunteers, including presenters, committee and request collectors. He’s at the microphone for what he described as the “imaginatively-named Andi in The Morning” show on Saturdays from 9-11am, but while he and his colleagues are radio buffs, they recognise the importance of their role.
That was obvious during the festive season when the team provided a wide range of programmes with the aim of satisfying every musical taste; the eclectic philosophy which has remained integral to their output ever since their early days on the airwaves.
And this is an environment which provided opportunities for a string of well-known names, including Craig Lumsden, Richard Gordon, Paul Harper and Derek Rae.
Covid has meant that the GHR collective have been unable to celebrate properly their 40th anniversary, but these individuals are simply proud to brighten up others’ lives.
As Andi said: “Hopefully, in 2023, we can recruit more volunteers and get some new shows on the air to complement our output which includes Charlie Allan on breakfast Monday to Friday, a nightly request show with various presenters, and a great mix of specialist shows with everything from musicals to country and jazz to classical.”
When they first took to the air, the DJs had handwritten cards which listed every song contained within their vast vinyl library. Nowadays, it’s a completely different world.
But their devotion hasn’t diminished and this is one station well worth a listen.
Further information is available at www.grampianhospitalradio.org
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