Peak FM (North Derbyshire)

Not to be confused with High Peak Radio.

Peak FM

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Broadcast area	North Derbyshire
Slogan	"I love this station"
Frequency	FM: 102.0, 107.4 MHz
First air date	7 October 1998
Format	Adult Contemporary
Audience share	25% (February 2014, )
Owner	UTV Radio
Website	www.peakfm.co.uk

Peak FM is a British independent local radio station in north Derbyshire, owned and operated by UTV Radio.

Coverage area

Towns

Based in Sheepbridge, Chesterfield, Peak FM's coverage area includes the towns of Alfreton, Bakewell, Bolsover, Clay Cross, Dronfield, Matlock, Pinxton, Ripley, Shirebrook, South Normanton and Staveley. Southern districts of the City of Sheffield are also included, though the topography of the area makes reception unreliable.

Frequencies

• 107.4 FM covers Chesterfield, south Sheffield, north Alfreton, north-eastern Derbyshire, Mansfield and Worksop from the Sheepbridge Transmitter).
• 102.0 FM covers Matlock, Bakewell, the Derbyshire Dales and central Alfreton from the Stanton Moor Transmitter.

Peak FM is now available as an audio stream on the Internet.

History

Peak FM began broadcasting to Chesterfield as 'Peak 107 FM' on 7 October 1998, at 8 am, with the Simple Minds song "Alive and Kicking". The Radio Authority had awarded Grand Central Broadcasting the licence earlier in the spring.

The station was launched by Dave Kilner, with the (then) Mayor and Mayoress of Chesterfield. Mark Burrows presented Breakfast after the launch, followed by Dave Kilner on mid-mornings, James Hilton on drive, Trev Parsons one hour of drive and the evening show and Richard Spinks on Late Night Love.

At the same time, the authority also awarded licenses for two other small stations, in nearby Bassetlaw and Mansfield.

Forever Broadcasting

In 2001, Forever Broadcasting bought Grand Central Broadcasting and Peak 107 was rebranded as 'The 50/50 Music Mix of Yesterday And Today', with an accompanying change in music policy.

Forever sold three of its stations in 2003: with three remaining- Peak, Tower FM in Bolton and Wolverhampton's 107.7 The Wolf. In early 2004, Forever Broadcasting was itself bought by The Wireless Group, run by former newspaper editor Kelvin MacKenzie.

Wireless Group

Under the new regime, the station changed its name to the shorter 'Peak FM' from 'Peak 107' in summer 2004. This was due to the station broadcasting on two frequences, 107.4FM and 102FM

Station output did not change dramatically after the takeover, but presenters were occasionally required to promote other stations and services offered by The Wireless Group, which was itself taken over by UTV Radio in June 2005.

In February 2014 it was announced that Sean Goldsmith and Becky Measures would leave Peak FM Breakfast after 12 years to host Viking FM Breakfast in Hull. Although both left the station, Measures quickly returned to co-host Breakfast with James Summers who had previously hosted the mid-morning slot.

Programming

Local programming is produced and broadcast from Peak FM's Chesterfield studios from 6am-7pm on weekdays, 6am-6pm on Saturdays and 8am-12pm on Sundays. Networked programming originates from UTV's Signal Radio studios in Stoke-on-Trent. The Vodafone Big Top 40 is produced by Global Radio at its Capital studios in London for broadcast on 145 commercial radio stations in the UK.

The station's local presenters are James Summers and Becky Measures (Peak FM Breakfast), Gavin Puszczalowskyi, Craig Bailey (The Home Run) and Tom Hilton.

News and Sport

Peak FM broadcasts local news bulletins hourly from 6am to 6pm on weekdays and from 8am to 12pm on weekends. Headlines are broadcast on the half hour during weekday breakfast and drivetime shows. The station also simulcasts hourly Sky News Radio bulletins at all other times.

The station also broadcasts a live sports programme on Saturday afternoons, including live match commentaries on Chesterfield FC league and cup matches during the football season.

External links

• Official website
• Peak FM on Media UK