The online radio station announced the news earlier today (3 May).
Bristol’s 1020 Radio is closing its studio and ceasing broadcasting at the end of the month, citing the pandemic and the ongoing cost of living crisis as leading factors behind the “difficult decision”. The station’s last day of broadcasting will be 28 May, after almost eight years on air.
In a statement shared to its Instagram account, the station’s team elaborated on the upcoming closure. “As many of you know, the last few years have been very difficult for many small businesses, and unfortunately we are another casualty of Covid and ongoing rising costs,” they explained. “May 28 2023 will be our final day of broadcasting. Over the next month, there will be a bunch of shows to send off the station and a closing party that you are all welcome to (more info to come!)”.
“From all the team at 1020 Radio it has been a pleasure and an incredible experience for us over the last eight years. We are truly gutted to be informing you all of this news,” continues the statement, which also thanks “everyone who’s contributed, listened, supported, and partied” with the team for their support.
1020 Radio, which opened in 2015, has hosted regular shows from the likes of Alya L, Kareem, ELEANOR and more. Earlier this year, 1020 Radio founder Sean McGovern spoke to Mixmag about shifts in audience behaviour following the pandemic. “Last year, there was a big shift in people’s behaviour,” he told the website. “As the world went back to some sort of normal, everybody’s priorities changed as they booked up holidays or festivals every weekend. Radio became less of a priority.”
On the station’s success with funding and grants, he added: “We haven’t had much… It takes up a lot of time and energy for such a tiny operation like ours when we’re just trying to run the day-to-day of the business and keep everything going.”
Read the team’s statement in full below.
View this post on Instagram
Last autumn, another Bristol-based station, SWU.FM, announced its closure due to rising costs. Last month, Rinse FM announced it had acquired the community station, which came off air in September 2022.