Stag Radio

Stag Radio

Guildford United Kingdom
Broadcast area	University of Surrey Stag Hill Campus
Frequency	1350 AM
Programming
Format	Campus radio
Ownership
Owner	University of Surrey Students Union
History
First air date	1972 (2013 as Stag Radio)
Call sign meaning	University Mascot
Technical information
Power	1 W
Links
Webcast	Listen
Website	https://stagradio.com/ [1][2]

Stag Radio is the radio station run by the students of the University of Surrey in Guildford, Surrey, England,^[3] which broadcasts on 1350AM^[4] during term-time. It is a long term Restricted Service Licensed broadcaster operating under a Low-power AM licence.^[4]

History

The radio station started out as University Radio Surrey in 1972, before being rebranded as Guildford Campus Radio (GCR) in 1990. In 2001 the radio station was renamed GU2 after the postcode prefix of the area surrounding the University campus.^[5][6] Following the rebranding GU2 won the title of "Best Station" at the 2002 SRA Awards reflecting the pursuit of an innovative format featuring favourites such as The J-Team,^[7] Ben Lander, Gareth Davies, Pinal Gandhi ("P") with The Vibe and a fair smattering of Greek language and religious content overnight. GU2 also won the award for "Best Interview" at the 2010 SRA awards. James Alexander won the award for his interview with Sue Doughty, member of the Liberal Democrats and most recently Adam Read and Olivia Jones took Silver in Student Radio Chart Show 2013.

In 2004 the radio station was visited by the Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex as part of his trip to the University.^[8] Also in that year GU2, along with many other UK student radio stations, faced a crisis when the Student Broadcast Network (SBN) closed down. SBN had not only been providing the station with a source of income, but also providing news and music programmes to fill gaps in the schedule.^[3]

Other notable visitors include Cliff Richard who was interviewed by the station.^[9] In more recent times, members have conducted interviews with We Are Scientists, Wheatus, Alter Bridge, Glasvegas, The Twang, The Commitments, Venga Boys, Dan Le Sac Vs. Scroobius Pip, Empire of the Sun, Ivyrise, Anberlin, Faithless and White Lies.

In 2010, the station featured in national newspaper, The Guardian, in an article by Lucy Tobin, about the importance of extra-curricular activities to give employability.^[10]

In 2013, the station was re-branded to Stag Radio; the most recent and current radio name that has been taken on by Surrey Student Union.

Organisation

Stag Radio is a society and is run by a committee elected at annual general meetings held at the university. All students of the university are eligible to stand and vote in these elections. Stag Radio society has a constitution based on that of its parent body- the University of Surrey Students' Union.

The current committee structure has three signatories: Station Manager, Vice President, and Treasurer. Underneath these positions are the various Heads of vital aspects in the running of Stag Radio. The other roles within the station include the Tech manager, Music Interviews manager and Events Manager [1]

As of the 2023-24 academic year, the current committee is occupied in the following positions:

Current Committee

Position	Name
Station Manager	Adam Gorry
Vice President	Oscar Ovenden
Treasurer	Risper Atieno Okello

References

1. "Stag Radio". stagradio.co.uk. Archived from the original on 30 August 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
2. "Stag Radio – Your Music, Your Station". stagradio.com. Archived from the original on 27 June 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
3. "BBC News:Student radio faces cash crisis". 11 August 2004. Retrieved 3 May 2007.
4. "OFCOM Website: UK Radio Licensees". Retrieved 3 May 2007.
5. "UOSSnaps University Radio Surrey". Retrieved 8 March 2007.
6. "Potted history of Guildford Campus Radio". Retrieved 3 May 2007.
7. "The J-Team Classic". 20 June 2008. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
8. "M2 Presswire: The Earl of Wessex unveils statue of Alan Turing". 28 October 2004. Archived from the original on 16 May 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2007.
9. Pick, Christopher (2002). Understanding the Real World (PDF). p. 91. ISBN 1-85237-246-X.
10. Tobin, Lucy (20 April 2010). "Students look to extra-curricular activities to give them employability". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 October 2012.

51°16′13.44″N 0°40′21.25″W