Midnight on January 1, 1975 was one of a very few times in the past 40 years that I wasn't behind a microphone bringing in the New Year on local radio.
Instead, I was a keen listener, tuning in for the launch of BBC Radio Ulster on 224 metres medium wave, so today's anniversary is an appropriate time to reflect on its evolution.
The genesis of the station was driven by two factors; the need for more local broadcasting was made very clear during the UWC strike in 1974, and as elsewhere in the BBC, the prospect of imminent commercial competition.
In the early months, Radio Ulster was a mishmash of slightly more home-grown output sandwiched between bits of Radio 4, Radio 2 and even Radio 3.
I recall the 'Belfast Telegraph' carrying a full page (broadsheet, remember) of letters complaining bitterly about this approach, and soon after Radio 4 became the sustaining network again.
In March 1976, Downtown Radio was launched, and while being dismissed sniffily by some in Broadcasting House, the fast and frequent news service, along with a range of programmes and presenters that entertained, informed and involved the listeners throughout the day, made it an immediate success, enjoyed by 70% of the population each week.
Downtown's first Programme Controller, Don Anderson, moved to Radio Ulster in 1977 to lead the station's response and development, and over time the hours devoted to local content were expanded.
The established news and current affairs output, a cornerstone of public service broadcasting, was supplemented with presenter-led music and magazine style programmes with varying degrees of success.
In the last decade, the arrival of Stephen Nolan, who had won 5 Sony Gold Awards for his evening phone-in show on Citybeat, was a smart move by both parties and has given mid morning the edge and profile it has today.
So what of the future? Radio Ulster has almost twice the income of all its local commercial rivals added together, according to the Ofcom Communications Market Report 2014, and costs a quarter of the all-speech Radio 4. With that level of funding, the public is entitled to expect programmes of quality that are distinctive.
Radio Ulster has come a long way in the past 40 years, and as on that first night, I'll be listening as the next year unfolds.
Instead, I was a keen listener, tuning in for the launch of BBC Radio Ulster on 224 metres medium wave, so today's anniversary is an appropriate time to reflect on its evolution.
The genesis of the station was driven by two factors; the need for more local broadcasting was made very clear during the UWC strike in 1974, and as elsewhere in the BBC, the prospect of imminent commercial competition.
In the early months, Radio Ulster was a mishmash of slightly more home-grown output sandwiched between bits of Radio 4, Radio 2 and even Radio 3.
I recall the 'Belfast Telegraph' carrying a full page (broadsheet, remember) of letters complaining bitterly about this approach, and soon after Radio 4 became the sustaining network again.
In March 1976, Downtown Radio was launched, and while being dismissed sniffily by some in Broadcasting House, the fast and frequent news service, along with a range of programmes and presenters that entertained, informed and involved the listeners throughout the day, made it an immediate success, enjoyed by 70% of the population each week.
Downtown's first Programme Controller, Don Anderson, moved to Radio Ulster in 1977 to lead the station's response and development, and over time the hours devoted to local content were expanded.
The established news and current affairs output, a cornerstone of public service broadcasting, was supplemented with presenter-led music and magazine style programmes with varying degrees of success.
In the last decade, the arrival of Stephen Nolan, who had won 5 Sony Gold Awards for his evening phone-in show on Citybeat, was a smart move by both parties and has given mid morning the edge and profile it has today.
So what of the future? Radio Ulster has almost twice the income of all its local commercial rivals added together, according to the Ofcom Communications Market Report 2014, and costs a quarter of the all-speech Radio 4. With that level of funding, the public is entitled to expect programmes of quality that are distinctive.
Radio Ulster has come a long way in the past 40 years, and as on that first night, I'll be listening as the next year unfolds.
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