Connemara Community Radio 3.48

Welcome to the home of Ireland's Award Winning Radio Station Connemara Community Radio.

Possibly the most interesting radio station you will ever tune into. Find out more about our programming, our plans and our aims. If you have news or a story you think would be of interest to us here in Connemara, please let us know. Missing home?, Why not send greetings to friends and family.

Connemara Community Radio is a community-based and run radio station broadcasting for 10 hours per day throughout the north-west Connemara region of Ireland. We have being broadcasting since July 1st 1995. We broadcast six hours of live radio 11.00 AM - 12.00 PM and 4.00 PM - 9.00 PM and 4 hours of the previous evenings programme from 12.00 AM - 4.00 PM.

It's the smallest radio station operating in Ireland with a possible audience within a franchise area of 10,500 people. The management and operation of the station is undertaken on a voluntary basis assisted by a small core staff.

Involved with the station we have a core of 85 volunteers who contribute each week to the station as presenters, technicians, correspondents, etc. We have enjoyed strong commitment by the 85 volunteers in the past ten years and believe we can continue to rely on this level of voluntary activity into the future.

Awards:

Connemara Community Radio winner of The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland's Best Programming Award 2003 for its Note Worthies programmes. Note Worthies contained almost ten hours of music documentaries produced by volunteers with Connemara Community Radio and supervised by broadcaster and record producer PJ Curtis.
In announcing the winners for 2003, the adjudicating panel made the rather unusual decision to grant the award to two stations, Connemara Community Radio and Clare FM.

For six months in late 2002, eleven station volunteers were engaged in developing music documentaries for the community station which broadcasts throughout north Connemara.
The documentaries cover a wide range of music forms, from Delia Murphy to punk, from early Irish recordings on 78rpms to Zydeco, and from '60s showbands to the well-known Connemara music family the Mark Coyne's.

"Winning this award provides recognition of the dedicated work done by volunteers at Connemara Community Radio. It clearly demonstrates that we have within our volunteer body very highly talented and creative programme-makers " said Mary Ruddy, co-ordinator of the documentary project.

The series of music documentaries has been supported by the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI). It is regarded as an opportunity by Connemara Community Radio to both provide quality programming to its listenership but also to provide an opportunity to its volunteers to produce high-quality programmes under the supervision and guidance of an experienced broadcaster and music producer, PJ Curtis.

"We are delighted with the progress made by our volunteers in putting together such innovative and creative programmes. Having somebody of the calibre of PJ Curtis on board enables us to up-grade the level of skills within the station and we hope that this will be reflected in all future programmes" said Linda O'Malley, former manager of Connemara Community Radio.

This is the fourth time the BAI, formerly the BCI & IRTC, has supported the development of programme ideas under its New Adventures in Broadcasting Scheme. As well as providing financial assistance, the BAI appoint a panel to judge the supported programmes and provide an overall award for best programme broadcast on commercial or community radio in Ireland. Connemara Community Radio has been the recipient of the overall award on three of the previous four occasions.