1983 in British radio
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This is a list of events in British radio during 1983.
January
- 4 January – BBC Radio 2 revives Music While You Work.
- 17 January – BBC Local Radio comes to south west England with the launches of BBC Radio Devon and BBC Radio Cornwall.
February
- 12 February – Sounds of the 60s is broadcast for the first time on BBC Radio 2.
March
- No events.
April
- 18 April – Prior to the launch of a commercial station covering Gwent, the BBC launches BBC Radio Gwent. It broadcasts at peak time, opting out of BBC Radio Wales. The station broadcasts on VHF/FM and therefore becomes the only part of Wales where English-language radio programming for Wales can be heard on VHF/FM.[1]
May
- May – The first Birmingham Walkathon is staged by Birmingham's BRMB to raise money for charity, and takes place around the city's Outer Circle bus route.[2]
June
- 13 June – Gwent Broadcasting becomes the first station in the UK to occupy the newly released 102.2 to 104.5Mhz part of the VHF/FM waveband.[3]
July
- 2 July – BBC Radio Medway is expanded to cover all of the county of Kent and is renamed accordingly.
August
- 19 August – "Pirate" radio station Radio Caroline resumes broadcasting to Britain in an album-oriented rock format from MV Ross Revenge anchored in the Knock Deep outside UK territorial waters off the Thames Estuary.[4]
September
- No events.
October
- 6 October – Centre Radio stops broadcasting after running into financial difficulties. A take-over bid is rejected by the IBA and the station goes off air at 5.30pm.[5][6]
- 22 October – BBC Radio Brighton is expanded to cover all of the county of Sussex and is accordingly renamed BBC Radio Sussex.
November
- No events.
December
- 12 December – BBC Radio Bury launches as a trial community radio station. It opts out on MW from BBC Radio Manchester for a few hours each day. It is the first of five such trial stations, each operating in various parts of the Manchester area. Each station is on air for a few weeks.[7]
- 18 December – Sounds of Jazz is broadcast on BBC Radio 1 for the final time. The show is transferred to Radio 2 in the new year.
- December – Kenny Everett leaves BBC Radio 2 a couple of weeks after he made a risqué on-air joke about Margaret Thatcher.[8]
Station debuts
- 17 January –
- 4 April – County Sound
- 11 April – BBC Radio Tweed
- 16 April – BBC Radio Solway
- 18 April – BBC Radio Gwent
- 13 June – Gwent Broadcasting
- 4 July – BBC Radio York
- 29 August – Southern Sound Radio[9]
- 5 September –
- Unknown – Bridgend Hospital Radio[11]
Programme debuts
- 1 February – In Business on BBC Radio 4 (1983–Present)
- 12 February – Sounds of the 60s on BBC Radio 2 (1983–Present)
Continuing radio programmes
1940s
- Sunday Half Hour (1940–2018)
- Desert Island Discs (1942–Present)
- Down Your Way (1946–1992)
- Letter from America (1946–2004)
- Woman's Hour (1946–Present)
- A Book at Bedtime (1949–Present)
1950s
- The Archers (1950–Present)
- The Today Programme (1957–Present)
- Sing Something Simple (1959–2001)
- Your Hundred Best Tunes (1959–2007)
1960s
- Farming Today (1960–Present)
- In Touch (1961–Present)
- The World at One (1965–Present)
- The Official Chart (1967–Present)
- Just a Minute (1967–Present)
- The Living World (1968–Present)
- The Organist Entertains (1969–2018)
1970s
- PM (1970–Present)
- Start the Week (1970–Present)
- Week Ending (1970–1998)
- You and Yours (1970–Present)
- I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue (1972–Present)
- Good Morning Scotland (1973–Present)
- Kaleidoscope (1973–1998)
- Newsbeat (1973–Present)
- The News Huddlines (1975–2001)
- File on 4 (1977–Present)
- Money Box (1977–Present)
- The News Quiz (1977–Present)
- Breakaway (1979–1998)
- Feedback (1979–Present)
- The Food Programme (1979–Present)
- Science in Action (1979–Present)
1980s
- Radio Active (1980–1987)
Closing this year
- 6 October – Centre Radio (1981–1983)
Births
- 19 January – MistaJam, born Peter Dalton, DJ
- 19 July – Helen Skelton, broadcast presenter
- 6 August
- Kayper, DJ
- Lloyd Langford, Welsh comedian
- 16 August – Colin Griffiths, TV presenter and DJ