THE Cat radio, which has been entertaining audiences in Crewe and Nantwich in previous years, is back on the air for a 28-day Restricted Service Licence (RSL) broadcast [from November 23].   

   Paul Simpson, who is an occasional contributor to "A Dabber's Nantwich", e-mailed me to say: "We have moved and built a new studio at Frederick House, one of the old Barony Hospital buildings.

   "We will be broadcasting on 87.7 FM. Full program details are available on our web site with a listen live feature at www.thisisthecat.com.

   "We have been very well supported this time by many local companies and have sold all our advertising slots."

   The Cat is staffed by a group of amateur broadcasters and this is their third RSL licence.

   Even when the 28 days are up you will still be able to hear their broadcasts via the website. 

   There's a studiocam feeding a live picture of the presenters to The Cat website.

 

I SPENT a happy two hours at the studio as a guest of Paul, telling the listening audience about "A Dabber's Nantwich" website, Nantwich Players and the extension to the theatre building - and getting a "plug" in for the new video about curiosities in Cheshire, "More Cheshire Curiosities", that I and two amateur colleagues have made.

   [Visit the Jonboro Videos website for more details of the video.]

   Partly because I wanted to get the picture above, and partly because I had turned down Paul's invitation to appear on his show when the studios were in Crewe, I went along to Frederick House.

   Without wishing to make it sound too easy (which it definitely is not), presenting the show is a mixture of introducing a variety of records, giving information about local events, taking a feed of news bulletins from Sky News, and interviewing any guests.

   This means that everything has to run to a tight schedule -particularly finishing a record in good time - without simply fading it out - to receive the news bulletin which goes out at a set time. There's no asking "Can you wait a second?"

   True, the computer plays a big part in this, but - particularly when there is a guest to be interviewed - the presenter can override the running schedule "on the fly" - that is, as he or she goes along. Omitting a record from the list, or substituting another one. But even the bits the computer takes care of have to be loaded by a human being - i.e. Paul - before it can play the music, the adverts, the jingles, and short items "advertising" forthcoming programmes.  

   Paul normally co-presents with Julie Lewis (pictured with him, above right, in a picture from The Cat website) but she was sunning herself abroad on the morning I called in. That didn't let her off appearing on air, though. Paul called her in her hotel and they had a live chat as part of his programme.

   "I've got a guest this morning," he told her. "Yes," she said, "I can see the back of his head on the studiocam picture." My bald spot there for all to see!

   Speaking on air involves being up close and personal with the microphone - nose-to-nose, one might say; if microphones had noses - and speaking into the underside! This is not easy and so I kept getting frantic waves from Paul to get closer to the microphone. But I think I was getting the hang of it towards the end of the broadcast.

   All The Cat staff - on air and off it - are amateur broadcasters with jobs to fit their radio duties around.

   Anyone who knows me will know I am a "background person", preferring to be backstage or behind a camera, but I thoroughly enjoyed my brief time of fame via The Cat. Thanks for persisting, Paul.