Brunel FM - club now wants opinions

[sonic youth]

blaming brunel is pointless, it wasn't them who chose to sell the rights to another bidder without consulting the current licence holder. they've got this nice brand new toy on their lap, they're not entirely sure what to do with it and know they can't make a lot of people happy.

for what it's worth, i've listened to both brunel and radio swindon before and after matches and they both seem the same to me - some random bloke (or woman) talking occasionally about football with music interspersed between.

furthermore, with all the greatest due respect to yourself marie - ed hadwin is a professional journalist for the bbc, yourself and your colleagues work(ed) for a commercial radio station. no offence intended whatsoever but there's a pretty significant gulf there.

[HarryFleming]

As I understand it, although Brunel have worked hard to increase the coverage, the fans have got 50% less coverage in the end.

You see Marie, BBC Wilts covered from south of Salisbury to Bristol, to Ciren to Burford to Hungerford. I know as I travelled to these places often after a match whilst listening to post match interviews.

So can fans in Salisbury hear Town matches? No!
Can fans in S Oxon or S Glos here Town matches? No.

So there!  

Harry - as i said i'm not questioning why fans are unhappy. However, Brunel did what they could to increase the coverage (which looked unlikely for a long long while) but worked extremely hard to get the increased area.

I know for a fact that Brunel can't cover the area of BBC RS, i'd never say we can, but you cannot blame Brunel for this as they've done what they can, which i think should be appreciated.

Thanks for that Marie, and I don't really blame Brunel, though am cross about the whole thing. But the fact is I have a lesser service, and a lesser range than I could get, and to top it all my local teams (Bris City & Rovers) get supported by BBC a lot even on non-match days and majority of their fans are happy.

It's a mess, and the sooner BBC gets the service the better. Brunel I take it is a sister station to Original FM in Bristol I guess.

[Marie]

As I understand it, although Brunel have worked hard to increase the coverage, the fans have got 50% less coverage in the end.

You see Marie, BBC Wilts covered from south of Salisbury to Bristol, to Ciren to Burford to Hungerford. I know as I travelled to these places often after a match whilst listening to post match interviews.

So can fans in Salisbury hear Town matches? No!
Can fans in S Oxon or S Glos here Town matches? No.

So there!  

Harry - as i said i'm not questioning why fans are unhappy. However, Brunel did what they could to increase the coverage (which looked unlikely for a long long while) but worked extremely hard to get the increased area.

I know for a fact that Brunel can't cover the area of BBC RS, i'd never say we can, but you cannot blame Brunel for this as they've done what they can, which i think should be appreciated.

Thanks for that Marie, and I don't really blame Brunel, though am cross about the whole thing. But the fact is I have a lesser service, and a lesser range than I could get, and to top it all my local teams (Bris City & Rovers) get supported by BBC a lot even on non-match days and majority of their fans are happy.

It's a mess, and the sooner BBC gets the service the better. Brunel I take it is a sister station to Original FM in Bristol I guess.

Sonic - You know me, not a professional journalist by a long mile, and while i can only speak for myself, when i was employed by the station it was only for a 'different, and fan's perspective' and whilst alot of people critisiced brunel last seasonm i thought i portrayed that.  This season, there is no doubt you are correct and without getting into it, part of the reason i left.

Harry - again, see above. You are right BBC can offer due a wider service due to air time etc which is where STFC miss out with Brunel. Origional although they are 106.6 i believe which i close to us they aren't Brunel's sister station. I don't even think they are part of GCap (GWR), they too are a new station and i'm not too sure which network they are part of (possibly alongside Fox FM of Oxford).

[jonbd]

Really can't stand the coverage to be honest (on the odd occasion when I can get the bloody station!) Pre and post match stuff is a joke, Wiltshire Sound all the way for that, and the commentary is woeful compared to what we used to have. I can't even tell who's scored half the time, the fella sounds so underwhelmed it could be either team!

As far as i'm concerned it was so much better in every way last season, so fans have every right to complain that Brunel FM aren't up to the job.

[Marie]

Really can't stand the coverage to be honest (on the odd occasion when I can get the bloody station!) Pre and post match stuff is a joke, Wiltshire Sound all the way for that, and the commentary is woeful compared to what we used to have. I can't even tell who's scored half the time, the fella sounds so underwhelmed it could be either team!

As far as i'm concerned it was so much better in every way last season, so fans have every right to complain that Brunel FM aren't up to the job.

  it's not the same commentator every game - i'll take your comment as you think all of them are bad  

[jonbd]

Like I said, i've only listened to a few, they all sounded like the same fella to me!

[RobertT]

I'll ad my two penneth.

I can;t stand Brunel's coverage, but I don't blame them for getting the rights.  GWR did it in the 80's and used the clubs risein fortunes to build a brand image off the back (as well as being very agressive in the way it operated).  Not sure Brunel could ever hope to replicate that, but I can see why the brand guys would want to give it a shot.

Commentary is at times I'm sad to say laughable.  Not that BBC was always good, just that it reminds me of Arthur Hunt's Salisbury efforts at times on BBC back in the day.  He got a Swindon game once, shocking.

Unfortunately, Brunel's one big failing here was not having the knowledge to weighup the possible outcomes.  Anyone with an ounce of an idea of the general feeling around the club, the geographical range the fans come from etc would have realised their was a big risk of negative reactions being directed their way.  Guilty by association.

For the club, should you not have gained this type of valuable customer insight before approaching likely broadcasters and putting the contract out for tender (not just on price)?  Too late now I'm afraid, it's in Brunel's court now and it's up to them to either make it work for them or decide it's a dead duck and move resources into more profitable areas.

Have they had their RAJAR figures yet?

[Marie]

As far as i know no, but due at the end of September (could be wrong).

But its first year so i'm sure they aren't expecting them to be brilliant.

Fully agree with you - but if you were management of Brunel and you saw an opportunity to promote your new radio station within the area would you take the risk?

[Batch]

furthermore, with all the greatest due respect to yourself marie - ed hadwin is a professional journalist for the bbc, yourself and your colleagues work(ed) for a commercial radio station. no offence intended whatsoever but there's a pretty significant gulf there.

Being picky,but if you are paid by the station to do the job you are a professional journalist (that's not aimed at Marie in particular by the way). Brunel commentary team are not well meaning armatures, they are paid to do a job. They should be judge in the same light as the BBC counterparts.

I don't think we'll agree on standard of commentary. I genuinely think it's just about passable, but others have claimed it's a revelation. I guess it's subjective.

[deltaincline]

Sonic - You know me, not a professional journalist by a long mile, and while i can only speak for myself, when i was employed by the station it was only for a 'different, and fan's perspective' and whilst alot of people critisiced brunel last seasonm i thought i portrayed that.  This season, there is no doubt you are correct and without getting into it, part of the reason i left.

Harry - again, see above. You are right BBC can offer due a wider service due to air time etc which is where STFC miss out with Brunel. Origional although they are 106.6 i believe which i close to us they aren't Brunel's sister station. I don't even think they are part of GCap (GWR), they too are a new station and i'm not too sure which network they are part of (possibly alongside Fox FM of Oxford).

You say you used to work for Brunel, Marie. Why the fuck keep apologising for the company you used to work for then? Get over it, for fucks sake.

For what it's worth, I think Brunels commentary is OK. The pre and post-match content is rank fucking amateur though. We shouldn't have to listen to countless replays of shit 1980's bands in the hope that some small nugget of information about the match may get aired. Typical 'radio local, smashy & nicey' stuff after the action is not going to cut it for long.

[Simon Pieman]

Marie is right and we're all wrong  

Being serious for a second though I think comments from both angles seem fair enough. The only thing I don't agree with is that the fact Brunel extended their coverage justifies the lack of coverage that still occurs, but as others have said, this issue probably lies with the club themselves as they should have investigated the station's capabilites before selling the rights to them.

[Panda Paws]

From my personal opinion - and again i no longer work for the station, so an opinion that has no connection to Brunel at all, I think you're annoyed at the fact that you don't like the coverage, which is fair enough, but please dont criticise the fact we have extended the coverage as far as possible and within our limits tried to accomodate as many Swindon fans as possible.

Hi Marie, I'm sorry to point out you're totally wrong. I cannot criticise their on-air coverage because I haven't heard it.

It's great that the "suits" have extended the coverage as far as they can, but it isn't as far as it used to be. The simple fact of the matter is Brunel (and sister station) use two relatively low-powered transmitters whereas BBC Wiltshire/Swindon use six ... you do the maths.

I can't get it any more on the radio. I could never get it on the internet. I can't listen.

I'm well within my rights to moan about that.

[Panda Paws]

I know for a fact that Brunel can't cover the area of BBC RS, i'd never say we can, but you cannot blame Brunel for this as they've done what they can, which i think should be appreciated.

Done what they can? No they haven't. Get on DAB which would add coverage to Bristol and *then* they'll have done what they can.

[Panda Paws]

Brunel I take it is a sister station to Original FM in Bristol I guess.

No - different groups, Harry. Original is owned by Canadians.

[kevjoycreed]

So far this season have only had to rely on radio coverage for Northampton and Hartlepool. Northampton I thought was poor but gave the benefit of the doubt due to the fact it was the first game and would get better over time, Hartlepool I thought was downright shocking. The lack of passion from the commentator was dismal and the fact that he hardly seemed to know which player was which meant that following the game was a nightmare.
No point in commenting on the pre match build up as I've not heard any, post match I started another thread as I was unaware, until last saturday, that BBC Swindon were still broadcasting reaction and interviews after the game and from now on will tune to that instead of the poor 80's music.
Also living in Ciren I struggle to get a good reception, I can recive it if I sit in the garden (which bearing in mind the weather is getting worse is not good in the long term) but in the house is poor.