BROADCASTS.com

In a community centre in inner city Bristol, next to the nursery, and the caf\xe9 and the hall for local meet-ups and yoga, sits a very special place. The BCfm \u2013 Bristol Community FM \u2013 radio station. From their studio next to Easton community centre\u2019s reception, 204 volunteer radio presenters broadcast to the city of Bristol and beyond. Dezzi Rankin (the resident Sunday morning reggae host), Shout Out (LGBTQ+), Silver Sound (for the older listener), Mid-Week Sports bar, Real Women \u2013 they\u2019re all here.

Pat Hart has been the station manager for ten years \u2013 and also the station\u2019s breakfast presenter. \u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s a single part of life in Bristol we don\u2019t represent.\u201d

It is always a struggle, but with grants drying up, the station has found itself living more and more of a hand to mouth existence. At the beginning of 2019 he found himself asking the council for more support, but nothing could prepare him for what was around the corner. \u201cIf I\u2019d have had a crystal ball, I might have run away at the beginning of 2019.\u201d

One fateful day in August at 11am, Tony Johnson launched his 50th Anniversary of the Moon landings special with Telstar. \u201cI plugged my MP3 stick into the usual slot\u2026 and then I smelt something strange. Looked to my left, and saw the smoke coming from somewhere behind the desk.\u201d He did his next link, alerted the receptionist to the need for a fire engine, and then as the studio filled with acrid smoke, he queued up an hour\u2019s worth of music. \u201cThe radio host\u2019s worst nightmare is dead air.\u201d

Pat arrived to find the studio completely destroyed, the insurance documents illegible from fire damage, and his thoughts turned to the listeners. The longer the station is off air, the more perilous their situation becomes.

Can Pat get the station back on air - and fast?

Produced by Polly Weston