Sunday, September 10, 2017

My DX Archive: Summer 1992

WELCOME to the second visit to My DX Archive - Read the first post here. Following the February 1992 logs in that previous post, this post looks at logs from July, August and September 1992, including some QSL verifications from those early years. Enjoy.
[Housekeeping notes: Times in UTC (GMT), frequencies in kiloHertz (kHz), MegaHertz (MHz) and/or metrebands (m). Logs transcribed from the original notes.]

  • 11 July [1992]: 1905 - 1921 UTC: 49m / 6 MHz : Radio Australia - Melbourne "News headlines, followed by 'Sports Roundup', Aussie rules football, Tasmanian football, rugby results, New South Wales league results, Barcelona Olympics - Yugoslavian athletes, Basketball - Republic of China, general sports news from China.
  • 12 July: 1230 - 1330 UTC: 5955 kHz / 49m band: Radio Netherlands (International) "Happy Station" Music from Acker Bilk, Tom Meyer (host) and Pete Myers (co-host) talk of Pete's broken leg. Terry Cooper of Scunthorpe wrote to Pete. Celebrity birthdays. Tom Meyer is leaving "Happy Station".
  • 12 July: 1900 UTC: 5 MHz - 6 MHz / 49m band: Radio Czechoslovakia "(Broadcasting in Spanish)"
  • 12 July: 1923 UTC: 6 MHz / 49m band: Voice of America "Newsline"
  • 12 July: 1937 UTC: 6 MHz / 49m band: Polish Radio - Warsaw "Music request programme".
  • 12 July: 2000 UTC: 6 MHz / 49m band: BBC World Service - London


August 1992
  • 5 August: 1925 UTC: 6 MHz: BBC World Service "Multitrack 2 featuring Genesis: Phil Collins, Tony Banks and Mike Rutherford"
  • 5 August: 20 UTC: 9 MHz: Radio Exterior de EspaΓ±a "Madrid 28080 Spain"
  • 5 August: 21 UTC: 15665 kHz: Christian Science Monitor "WCSN, Scotts Corners, Maine, USA"
  • 5 August: 2151 UTC: 19m band: KOL Israel Radio, Jerusalem "Israel, The Vatican, Jews & Catholics"
  • 5 August: 2207 UTC: 12 MHz: Radio Sofia, Bulgaria "News & Aspects in co-operation re: Business course"

Radio Sofia QSL, 1992
September 1992
  • 15 September: 1842 UTC: 5 MHz / 49m band: Radio Moscow "Africa As We See It (Soccer results!) Radio Moscow News at 8pm [19 UTC]."
  • 15 September: 1905 UTC: 6045 kHz: BBC World Service "Outlook. News; A Captain of the Canadian Army discusses his new book"
  • 15 September: 2029 UTC: 9920 kHz: Radio Beijing "Current Affairs".
  • 15 September: 21 UTC: 15000 kHz: Voice of America "World Report"
  • 15 September: 2130 UTC: 15610 kHz: WCSN (Christian Science Monitor)
  • 15 September: 2134 UTC: 17-18 MHz: Radio Havana Cuba "DXers Unlimited".
Radio Havana Cuba QSL, September 1992
That concludes the logs from the Summer of 1992. Until the next time, good DX!

πŸ“»

Wednesday, August 30, 2017

Season 2017/18: The Season So Far - Part 1

REPORTING From The Fox Tower introduced you to the 2017/18 Season with the 'Are You Ready?' post in July, now I can bring you the first set of results for August 2017:

Saturday 5th: Sky Bet League Two: United 1 - Swindon Town 2
Tuesday 8th: Football League (EFL / Carabao) Cup: Fleetwood Town 1 - United 2
Saturday 12th: Sky Bet League Two: Cambridge United 1 - United 2
Saturday 19th: Sky Bet League Two: United 3 - Cheltenham Town 0
Tuesday 22nd: Football League (EFL / Carabao) Cup: United 1 - Sunderland 2
Saturday 26th: Sky Bet League Two: Lincoln City 4 - United 1
Tuesday 29th: Football League (EFL / Checkatrade) Trophy: Morecambe 0 - United 2


A reminder that the fixtures for September 2017 are as follows:
Saturday 2nd: Sky Bet League Two: United v Mansfield Town (3pm)
Saturday 9th: Sky Bet League Two: Accrington Stanley v United (3pm)
Tuesday 12th: Sky Bet League Two: Coventry City v United (7:45pm)
Saturday 16th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Barnet (3pm)
Saturday 23rd: Sky Bet League Two: Crewe Alexandra v United (3pm)
Tuesday 26th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Stevenage (7:45pm)
Saturday 30th: Sky Bet League Two: Crawley Town v United (3pm)


COME ON YOU BLUES!


Wednesday, August 23, 2017

Taylor Swift presents Reputation.


AFTER a week of social media blackouts, a 'blank space' on her website and teases which included video snippets, Taylor Swift has posted details of new music - The first was the above image of a new single to be released late Thursday / early Friday, wherever in the world you are at the time of release. Then came the next image . . .


. . . The image of the sleeve of Reputation, the sixth studio album by Taylor.
The third image released by Taylor confirms the album:


#TS6 - Reputation - is here!

🎢

Monday, August 21, 2017

20 Years: Be Here Now.


IT was twenty years ago today - Oasis released their third album
Be Here Now


. . . Which featured this BELTER of a track 'D'You Know What I Mean?'


Enjoy the memories.

🎢

Sunday, August 20, 2017

31 metres, August 2017

WELCOME to another collection of radio broadcast logs, here on Reporting From The Fox Tower.
The title of this post, 31 metres, refers to the 31 metreband on short wave radio, where you will find transmissions of 9000 kHz / 9 MHz onwards. 31 metres is also the length of each wave released on a 9 MHz frequency.

On to the logs of broadcasts received August 2017. Housekeeping notes: Times in UTC (GMT), frequencies in kiloHertz (kHz) and transmission powers in watts or KiloWatts (kW).
A log of broadcasts received on the Short Wave band of the Roberts R881, Wednesday 16 August 2017:

Snapshot of the Bible Voice Broadcasting website.

  • 16 August: 1740 UTC: 9400 kHz: Bible Voice Broadcasting, Canada. Strong to moderate reception, 100 kW via Kostinbrod, Sofia (Bulgaria) [Spaceline]. Male speech, Persian, music. Female speech, email address, off air at 1759 UTC.
  • 16 August: 1804 UTC: 9400 kHz: Overcomer Ministry, USA. Moderate to poor reception, 100 kW via Kostinbrod, Sofia (Bulgaria) [Spaceline]. Brother R G Stair, speech with music. To 1812 UTC.
  • 16 August: 1813 UTC: 9410 kHz: BBC World Service, UK. Good to moderate reception, 250 kW via Al Dhabbaya, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. English to East and South Africa. Male speech, studio and on location, female speech with a report regarding trade deals that the United States has, looking at the deal the US has with Canada. Male speech, speaking of a writer? Noise disturbance. UK borders with Republic of Ireland after Brexit. To 1827 UTC.
  • 16 August: 1905 UTC: 9410 kHz: BBC World Service, UK. Strong to moderate reception. English to East and South Africa via Al Dhabbaya, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. 250 kW. Top of the hour news bulletin comes to an end with news from India, the feature programme is looking at the affairs of Eastern Africa. Focus moves to South Africa, with the impact of Manchester United Football Club expanding their brand into South Africa. Female reporter speaks to African women about how they feel about their safety, following some high profile crimes. How women use the internet in Africa. To 1935 UTC.
  • 16 August: 1942 UTC: 9420 kHz: Voice of Greece [ERT / Helliniki Radiophonia], Greece. Strong to good reception, 170 kW via Avlis, Greece. [Best reception conditions of the night!] Continual music: Female vocalists. Male vocalist, male and female vocal group. Instrumental in the style of Jazz. Speech from a male, Greek, ID. To 1953 UTC.
  • 16 August: 2016 UTC: 9440 kHz: China Radio International, China. Strong to moderate reception, English to Europe, Middle East, Africa via Kunming, China, 500 kW. China Radio International appears to have branched off into an audio 'soap' - Male, appears to be on a night out with 'Barbie / Miss Lee', he steps on her foot and she ends up in hospital, then in a taxi to go home... To 2024 UTC.
  • 16 August: 2040 UTC: 9600 kHz: China Radio International, China. Strong to good reception, English to Europe, Middle East, Africa via Kashi, China, 500 kW. Narration of a literature; Narrator is named Ian [Sounds British]. This is a celebration of Chinese literature. Butcher Li Ang [with a West Country accent] deals with an agitated customer, who calls him a 'pig fucker'! The customer kills him... To 2049 UTC.
  • 16 August: 2053 UTC: 9610 kHz: Radio Romania International, Romania. Strong to good reception, English to Europe, America via Tiganesti, Saftica, Romania, 300 kW. Tourists visiting the UNESCO heritage site in Romania, Moldovan Ministries and caves, tourists like to visit music festivals. Programme identifies as 'This is Romania'. Male has transmission details for Western Europe and North America. Also listen online. Email address. Close of broadcast at 2056 UTC; Interval signal. Transmitter off at 2057 UTC.
  • 16 August: 2105 UTC: 9620 kHz: Voice of Turkey, Turkey. Strong to moderate reception, English to Asia, Australasia via Emirler, Turkey, 500 kW. Female speech, male speech, music. Female speech with frequencies, times, contact details, 'Questions of note'. Music: Male and female vocals. Female and male speech, speaking over the music. ID by male: "You have been listening to the Voice of Turkey English Service..." with details of forthcoming transmissions on short wave - Announcement made at 2122 UTC - Also listen online. Music. Off air at 2129 UTC.
  • 16 August: 2141 UTC: 9730 kHz: Voice of Vietnam, Vietnam. Good to poor reception, English to Europe via Hanoi-Santay, 100 kW. Music, followed by female speech: "You are listening to the Voice of Vietnam". Result of an election: President celebrates victory. Other news: Ministers hold an emergency meeting. News update from Latin America. Speech from male and female - Speech from male includes details of programme schedules. Deterioration of signal. To 2150 UTC.
Voice of Vietnam QSL, April 1993.
That concludes the log of short wave broadcasts for August 2017. Thank you for visiting Reporting From The Fox Tower and please feel free to leave any comments below this post!

πŸ“»

Sunday, August 13, 2017

My DX Archive: February 1992

EVERY month, here on Reporting From The Fox Tower, I bring you a log of broadcasts heard on Short Wave or Medium Wave. This post is different. I'm taking you back to the very beginning of my time listening to the radio, to my very first logs. Taking you back to February 13, 1992. Enjoy.
Housekeeping notes: Times in UTC (GMT), frequencies in kiloHertz (kHz), MegaHertz (MHz) and/or metrebands (m). Logs transcribed from the original notes.



  • 13 February [1992]: 2023 UTC: 31m / 9655 kHz: Radio Sweden International "S 105-10 Stockholm Sweden".
  • 13 February: 2034 UTC: 25mband: Radio Roma ; Swiss Radio International (Switzerland) 12035 kHz - 25m band (Based in Berne).
  • 13 February: 2053 UTC: Radio Canada International - Including Canadian Newspapers.
  • 13 February: 2102 UTC: 13700 kHz / 19m / 22m band: Radio Netherlands International "Media Network" Programme.
  • 13 February: 2114 UTC: 15 MHz / 19mband: Voice of Algeria "(Or is it Voice of America?)"
  • 13 February: 2116 UTC: 15 MHz / 19mband: Radio Portugal International "Broadcasting from Lisbon, Frequency news, 'Portugal Past & Present'".
A more recent logo from "Radio Portugal International"
  • 13 February: 2124 UTC: 15566 kHz / 19m or 17750 kHz / 16m: Family Radio (WYFR) "- I think!".
  • 13 February: 2152 UTC: 19mband: Voice of America - "Winter Olympics news, logo for '96 Summer Olympics unveiled in Atlanta, Georgia".
  • 13 February: 2200 UTC: 19mband: World Harvest Radio "PO Box 12, INDIANA 46624 USA".
  • 13 February: 2210 UTC: 17875 kHz / 19mband: C B C (Radio Canada International?) - News.
  • 13 February: 2216 UTC: 12095 kHz / 25 m band: B B C World Service : London.
  • 13 February: 2227 UTC: 9950 kHz / 31 m band: All India Radio "Open University information (1845 - 2230 UTC)".
All India Radio logo

That concludes the logs from February 1992. The DX Archive may become a regular feature, I am not sure yet. I hope to bring you DX logs for August 2017 in the coming days, so please stay tuned for that. Good DX!

πŸ“»

Sunday, July 30, 2017

Season 2017/18: Are You Ready?


Reporting From The Fox Tower
supporting

THE 2017/18 football season starts Saturday 5th August - And as with previous seasons, Reporting From The Fox Tower will be keeping you up to date with Carlisle United - The Blues - Bringing you the fixtures and results, starting right here, with the fixtures for August through to the end of October.


AUGUST 2017
Saturday 5th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Swindon Town (3pm)
Tuesday 8th: Carabao [Football League] Cup: Fleetwood Town v United (7:45pm)
Saturday 12th: Sky Bet League Two: Cambridge United v United (3pm)
Saturday 19th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Cheltenham Town (3pm)
Saturday 26th: Sky Bet League Two: Lincoln City v United (3pm)
Tuesday 29th: Checkatrade [Football League] Trophy: Morecambe v United (TBC/7:45pm)


SEPTEMBER 2017
Saturday 2nd: Sky Bet League Two: United v Mansfield Town (3pm)
Saturday 9th: Sky Bet League Two: Accrington Stanley v United (3pm)
Tuesday 12th: Sky Bet League Two: Coventry City v United (7:45pm)
Saturday 16th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Barnet (3pm)
Saturday 23rd: Sky Bet League Two: Crewe Alexandra v United (3pm)
Tuesday 26th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Stevenage (7:45pm)
Saturday 30th: Sky Bet League Two: Crawley Town v United (3pm)


OCTOBER 2017
Tuesday 3rd: Checkatrade [Football League] Trophy: United v Leicester City U21 (TBC/7:45pm)
Saturday 7th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Exeter City (3pm)
Saturday 14th: Sky Bet League Two: Colchester United v United (3pm)
Tuesday 17th: Sky Bet League Two: United v Wycombe Wanderers (7:45pm)
Saturday 21st: Sky Bet League Two: United v Notts County (3pm)
Saturday 28th: Sky Bet League Two: Chesterfield v United (3pm)


I hope this preview has given you a flavour of what to expect over the course of the season and at this point, there is only one thing left to say -

COME ON YOU BLUES!


Images courtesy of Carlisle United Football Club.

Saturday, July 29, 2017

Happy Mondays at Kendal Calling

Watch live video from kendalcallingfestival on www.twitch.tv
THE 2017 Kendal Calling festival is well underway and this year, the performances have been streamed, including the Happy Mondays, presented by Amazon Music. Enjoy the magic of Shaun Ryder, Rowetta, Bez and co ☺

🎢

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Support the Sunflowers at Kendal Calling!


KENDAL Calling festival is getting underway and, amid all the festivities, you can support Hospice at Home Carlisle and North Lakeland by supporting their sunflower appeal, details of which you will have learned in the above video.

Enjoy the weekend and support the sunflowers!

🌻

Sunday, July 23, 2017

Wallpaper of the Week, 23 July 2017


WALLPAPER of the Week is a visit on the B6270 to Tailbridge Hill, Nateby, the view is to the northwest and to the fore is a stone cairn. This image was captured 20 September 2016 at 1330 in the early afternoon. To add what you can see in the distance: The town of Kirkby Stephen can be seen to the far right of the shot; The village of Nateby is centre, though slightly obscured by the peak of the cairn and to the left is the view towards Ravenstonedale. Further into the distance are the lakeland fells. Enjoy the image.

πŸ“·

Introducing Amy


INTRODUCING Amy Willerton to Reporting From The Fox Tower - Amy is a former Miss Great Britain and a Miss Universe Finalist (2013). Amy stepped into the national spotlight when she appeared on ITV's 'I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!' Amy then made the big step into television presentation, as well as modeling, with a move to the United States, where she became the presenter of 'Every Little Step', which reached seventy five million households in the United States.

Amy has also featured in the British television series 'The Jump' - Amy was the winning female of the series. Amy's modeling work continues, voted the fourteenth 'Sexiest Woman In The World' by FHM.

Keep up to date with Amy:
Visit her website
Follow Amy on Twitter
Amy on Facebook
Amy on Instagram
Amy on Pinterest
Amy on Tumblr

πŸ“·

And finalΓ©


CONGRATULATIONS Chris Froome, winning Le Tour de France for the fourth time!
Image courtesy of ITV.

🚴

Sunday, July 16, 2017

Midsummer Medium Wave, July 2017

JULY 2017 on the Medium Wave band began with an evening tuned to 1179 kHz, which, in days gone by, was home to Radio Sweden. Let's take a trip down memory lane with this 1991 QSL card!


A log of broadcasts received on the Medium Wave band of the Roberts R881, Tuesday 11 July 2017.
Housekeeping notes: Times in UTC (GMT), frequencies in kiloHertz (kHz) and transmission powers in watts or KiloWatts (kW).
  • 11 July: 1957 UTC: 1197 kHz: A trace of audio on this frequency, most likely to be Absolute Radio, UK [400 watts via Wallasey, Merseyside].
  • 11 July: 2006 UTC: 1215 kHz: Absolute Radio, UK. Strong to good reception, up to 200 kW via Moorside Edge, West Yorkshire. Music: Guns 'n' Roses 'Sweet Child O' Mine', Kings of Leon 'Down South' recorded live at BST Hyde Park. Station ID (transmission echo on the audio!), music news: Mark Knopfler to play on the new Killers album? Music: Radiohead 'High And Dry' from the album 'The Bends', Dire Straits 'Romeo And Juliet'. To 2022 UTC.
  • 11 July: 2045 UTC: 1233 kHz: Absolute Radio, UK. Good to moderate reception, most likely to be 300 watts via Sheffield. Promo for the Absolute Radio smartphone app, music from Bob Marley and the Wailers 'Could You Be Loved', station ID, ads: British Gas boilers, 'Game of Thrones' on Now TV. Music: U2 'One' from the album 'Achtung Baby', Gorillaz 'Dare' and Madness 'It Must Be Love'. To 2113 UTC.
  • 11 July: 2117 UTC: 1242 kHz: Absolute Radio, UK. Strong to moderate reception, most likely 1 kW via Stockton-on-Tees. Music: No Doubt 'Don't Speak', station ID (transmission echo audible). Music: Ash 'Shining Light', promo for the Christian O'Connell breakfast show. Music: Fleetwood Mac 'Everywhere' and Liam Gallagher 'Wall Of Glass'. To 2130 UTC.
  • 11 July: 2138 UTC: 1251 kHz: Smooth Radio, UK. Good to moderate reception, most likely to be 760 watts via Great Barton, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk. Music: Spandau Ballet 'True', station ID for Smooth Radio, male speech, lost to the noise floor. Ad break: Dartford Crossing, The Sun, PPI, hearing solutions, British Gas new boilers. Music: 'What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted', ID 'Smooth Love'. Music: Christina Perri 'Jar of Hearts' and Phil Collins 'Groovy Kind of Love'. To 2153 UTC.
I also heard a mix of broadcasts at 2159 UTC on 1260 kHz, one of which I believe was Smooth Radio, most likely to be via Bristol, Bath or Wrexham. I heard Al Green 'Let's Stay Together' and a 2200 UTC news bulletin: Wimbledon 2017: Johanna Konta [GB] in the Semi Finals. I could also hear music of an Asian flavour, though I believe I heard a Smooth Radio ID at 2206 UTC.


That completes the log for July 2017. Enjoy the weekend!

πŸ“»

Friday, July 14, 2017

We must catch up!

REPORTING From The Fox Tower has been quite quiet recently, due to a technical outage at RFTFT HQ, which, thankfully, was resolved by the good people at KTD, Kendal.

The plan for posts over the last couple of weeks was to address the summer of sport which is now upon us, which I shall bring you, but as Wimbledon 2017 is coming to a close, one Penrith business is thriving as they supplied Traybakes to the Championships. Learn more from this recent ITV Border report by Kate Walby:
Here is a recent photograph of the team at Traybakes, Redhills, Penrith, who have won a contract to supply cakes to TV chef Paul Hollywood and also to Wimbledon.
[Managing Director Justine Carruthers, centre, with sales administrator Chris Raffel, left, sales and marketing manager Judith Keating, right and their bakery technician team, back; 16 May 2017. PAULA THANNER]:

The Traybakes team, May 2017

As this post is a 'hello again' after a couple of weeks, I shall be back in a day or so to re-establish regular posts. Until then, enjoy the weekend!

M a r t i n

Monday, June 26, 2017

Wallpaper of the Week, 26 June 2017

TAKING you down memory lane to a recent stop - August 2016 - for Wallpaper of the Week.
The image is of Christ The Redeemer in the foreground, with the Rio 2016 Olympic Stadium in the distance, with colours of the nightlights peppered throughout. Enjoy the image.

Best of Luck, Katy!


ONE of the athletes who competed at #Rio2016 was Katy Sealy, (pictured above, at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games) representing Belize. Reporting From The Fox Tower first introduced Katy on March 28 with the 'Meet The Olympian!' post, followed by the '...5 Gold Rings' post on April 2.

Katy is currently in Tegucigalpa, Honduras for the Central American Senior Championships, taking place this coming weekend. Here is a Tweet from Katy, in Honduras!
The picture was Tweeted June 26. For more of Katy on social media, here she is in training for the hurdles, shared on Vimeo:

katysealyvideo1 from D Sealy on Vimeo.

Finally, I hope you have learned a little bit more about Katy and join me in wishing her well for the Championships.
If you want to find out more about Katy, visit her website. If you would like to make a donation to assist Katy in reaching her targets, visit her GoFundMe page. Keep up to date with Katy via her social media: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Good Luck, Katy!

Sunday, June 18, 2017

A Midsummer Night's DX (June 2017)

FIRST of all, I recently found the above spinning globe on the internet and thought it would decorate a post about radio broadcasts traveling the world quite nicely, so I have given it the privileged position at the top of the post.

The previous post of radio activity, logging Medium Wave, can be viewed here. That post opened with "It is raining!" - The weather cannot be anymore different, as this weekend is the hottest days of the year so far!

Let us move on to the subject of this post: A log of broadcasts received on the Short Wave band of the Roberts R881, Monday 12 June 2017.
Housekeeping notes: Times in UTC (GMT), frequencies in kiloHertz (kHz) and transmission powers in watts or KiloWatts (kW).
A QSL from Radio Peking, which would become Radio Beijing, latterly China Radio International.

  • 12 June: 1908 UTC: 7385 kHz: China Radio International, China. Good to moderate reception, 500 kW via Kashi-Saibagh, China. Albanian language including male and female speech, current music (Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake). To 1922 UTC.
  • 12 June: 1927 UTC: 7395 kHz: China Radio International, China. Good to moderate reception, 500 kW via Kashi-Saibagh, China. German language including male speech, music, female speech, instrumental music (Vanessa Carlton 'A Thousand Miles'), live music. To 1945 UTC.
  • 12 June: 1950 UTC: 7415 kHz: China Radio International, China. Good to moderate reception, 500 kW via Urumqi, China. Czech language 'Learn to speak Chinese' programme, off at 1955 UTC.
  • 12 June: 1957 UTC: 7415 kHz: China Radio International, China. Strong to moderate reception, 500 kW via Kashi-Saibagh, China. English language with 20:00 UTC news: Leaders of China and the Philippines meet; New military award created; EU are ready to discuss Brexit with the UK, though a new UK Government is yet to be formed, following the June 8 election; President Macron takes control in France; UK Government announces Cabinet reshuffle. Other news: Military plane crash. Chinese passenger plane returns to Sydney airport, following discovery of engine casing damage. Weather: Hong Kong gale warning. Feature: Paul James presents 'Chinese Theatre', touring China, looking at a Chinese television series. To 2012 UTC.
  • 12 June: 2037 UTC: 8700 kHz: Spurious broadcast from Radio Romania International! English language, male speech, Romanian ties with US President Donald Trump - The Romanian President visited Trump at the White House. To 2042 UTC.
  • 12 June: 2056 UTC: 9420 kHz: Voice of Greece [ERT / Helliniki Radiophonia], Greece. Strong to moderate reception, 170 kW via Avlis, Greece. Greek language including female speech, music - A Zither! Female vocals. Male and female speech, music. Male speech. To 2120 UTC.
A QSL from ERT The Voice of Greece.
Until the next time, enjoy!
πŸ“»

Sunday, June 4, 2017

Season 2016/17: The Ups and Downs

THE 2016 - 2017 Football season has finally come to a close, with the UEFA Champions League Final in Cardiff on Saturday evening.  Here are the placings that matter throughout the divisions, as well as the teams that lifted the trophies this season:

Premier League:
Champions: Chelsea (pictured above)
Relegated: Hull City, Middlesbrough and Sunderland.

EFL Championship:
Champions: Newcastle United
Promoted: Brighton and Hove Albion
Play-Off Winners: Huddersfield Town
Relegated: Blackburn Rovers, Wigan Athletic and Rotherham United.


EFL League One:
Champions: Sheffield United (pictured above)
Promoted: Bolton Wanderers
Play-Off Winners: Millwall
Relegated: Port Vale, Swindon Town, Coventry City and Chesterfield.

EFL League Two:
Champions: Portsmouth
Promoted: Plymouth Argyle and Doncaster Rovers (pictured below)
Play-Off Winners: Blackpool
(Carlisle United finished 6th; Losing on aggregate to Exeter City in the Play-Off Semi-Finals)
Relegated: Hartlepool United and Leyton Orient.

Doncaster Rovers celebrate promotion.

National League:
Champions: Lincoln City
Promoted via Play-Offs: Forest Green Rovers
(Barrow finished 7th)
Relegated: York City, Braintree Town, Southport and North Ferriby United.

Trophies (in chronological order, throughout the season):
EFL Cup: Manchester United
EFL Trophy: Coventry City
UEFA Europa League: Manchester United
FA Cup: Arsenal
UEFA Champions League: Real Madrid.

Real Madrid, 2017 Champions League Winners.

Saturday, June 3, 2017

Ten Years On: Elton John at Brunton Park

BRUNTON Park, Carlisle has played host to Olly Murs and Louisa Johnson this [Saturday] evening, the second night of music, as UB40 and Level 42 performed on Friday night. Other recent concerts at Brunton Park have included Rod Stewart, but Saturday [3rd June] marked the tenth anniversary of Elton John at Brunton Park.

For the Elton John & His Band setlist, thoughts, memories and reflections on an evening attended by over eighteen thousand, take a look at the original Elton John at Brunton Park post on Reporting From The Fox Tower, by clicking here.  Enjoy.
🎢

Sunday, May 28, 2017

An Amazonian Princess meets an American Pilot...

... And brings us the cinema event of the Summer.

DC Comics Superhero Wonder Woman reaches the cinema screen this summer, courtesy of Warner Brothers, with Gal Gadot in the lead role.

This motion picture also appears to be breaking new ground; It is the first Superhero film to be directed by a female, with a female in the lead role. That is the only researched knowledge I shall impart about the movie; You will find out the story when you go see it.

There are a number of screenings in the North West, beginning with 'first look' preview screenings, courtesy of Vue Cinemas in Carlisle, Barrow in Furness and Lancaster, at 00:01 on Thursday (June 1). Showings will continue throughout Thursday at Vue Cinema Carlisle [eleven showings], Lonsdale Alhambra Penrith [two showings] and Brewery Arts Centre Kendal [one showing]. Other screenings will, of course, be scheduled at those and other cinemas following release on Thursday.  Enjoy.

Sunday, May 21, 2017

Season 2016/17: The Season So Far - Part 10 (The FinalΓ©)

THE forty six League Two matches had been completed. Carlisle United Football Club finished the season in sixth place. Carlisle United qualified for the League Two Play Offs, which were scheduled as follows:


The first leg was United v Exeter City at Brunton Park, Sunday 14 May, 6:30pm.
Here are the match highlights, courtesy of Carlisle United:


Sunday 14th: Sky Bet League Two [Play Off]: United 3 - Exeter City 3  (Attendance: 9708)

Image of some of the 9708 crowd, courtesy of Carlisle United Football Club.

The second leg was on the evening of Thursday 18 May, 7:45pm at St James Park, the home of Exeter City. With the aggregate score of 3-3 from the first leg, this second leg would be a winner takes all match.
Here are the match highlights, courtesy of Carlisle United:


Thursday 18th: Sky Bet League Two [Play Off]: Exeter City 3 - United 2  (Attendance: 7450)

Exeter City won the second leg 3-2 and took the tie 6-5 on aggregate.
Carlisle United's season has ended; Exeter City will face Blackpool at Wembley Stadium for a place in League One. Blackpool defeated Luton Town in their Play Offs.

Thank you for following The Season So Far posts here on RFTFT.

I would like to thank everyone at Brunton Park for another rollercoaster season, the staff there through the week, the Blues store staff, the matchday programme and Golden Gamble ticket vendors (including Ewan and the Blues Lotto team too!), the ticket office staff, the stewards, the caterers, the turnstile staff, matchday PA - So proud to be a supporter of the Club, of Mr Curle and the playing staff, of the ground staff for once again being recognised for their work in keeping the playing surface one of the best.
To all the other unsung heroes that aren't in this post, thank you too.
Let's keep building together and do it all again next season - With a promotion!!

Monday, May 15, 2017

Medium Wave, May 2017

IT is a mid-May Monday and it is raining. So stay sheltered, put the heating back on (but only if you need to) and enjoy this post here on Reporting From The Fox Tower, as I bring you a list (or a log, to use the term in radio broadcast reporting circles) of broadcasts received on the Medium Wave band of the Roberts R881, throughout the day of Sunday 7 May 2017.
Housekeeping notes: Times in UTC (GMT), frequencies in kiloHertz (kHz) and transmission powers in watts or KiloWatts (kW).
  • 7 May: 1113 UTC: 810 kHz: BBC Radio Scotland, UK. Moderate to poor reception, up to 100 kW via Westerglen, Scotland, UK. Football: Scottish Premier League: Partick Thistle v [Glasgow] Rangers. Update from the EFL (English Football League) Championship: Blackburn Rovers lead in their match. 'Sunday Sportsound on BBC Radio Scotland'. Joe Garner is in the Rangers team. GOAL: Thistle 1 - Rangers 0. To 1135 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1146 UTC: 837 kHz: BBC Radio Cumbria, UK. Moderate reception, 1 kW via Barrow in Furness, UK. Music: Eddy Arnold 'Make The World Go Away'. Music of the 1960s, presented by Joe Costin. Now playing: 'I've Put A Spell On You'. Speech by Joe Costin, ID (spoken by Richard Nankivell), music. Joe Costin gives telephone, text and email contacts. Music. To 1156 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1214 UTC: 855 kHz: BBC Radio Lancashire, UK. Moderate to poor reception, 1 KW via Preston, UK. Constant broken tone, speech at an OB [Outside Broadcast] with crowd noise - Football? To 1228 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1233 UTC: 882 kHz: BBC Radio Wales, UK. Strong reception, up to 100 kW via Washford, Somerset, UK. Actress Alison Steadman is the studio guest; Music: 'You've Got A Friend'. Ms Steadman talks about her acting career, the shows 'Little Voice' and 'Pride And Prejudice' and awards. Music: The Red Army Choir. I believe the male host speaking with Alison Steadman was Aled Jones!  Continuity weather update, traffic and travel update.  1300 UTC news and sport update: General election campaign news from the major parties. Sport: Blackburn Rovers have been relegated from the EFL Championship to EFL League One. Cricket: Glamorgan. Time check: "Three minutes past one".  On air now: 'Lynn Bowles on Sunday'. Now playing: U2 'Desire'. Contact details; Question: "Have you switched your heating off yet?' Music: Texas 'When We Are Together', Harry Styles 'Sign Of The Times'. To 1310 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1338 UTC: 909 kHz: BBC Radio Five Live, UK. Strong reception, up to 200 kW via Moorside Edge, UK. One Day International cricket, England v Ireland at Lords. The England innings has ended on 328 runs. Football: Liverpool 0 - Southampton 0. Boxing: Tyson Fury issues a challenge to Anthony Joshua; The thoughts of Steve Bunce. Football: EFL Championship final day: Newcastle United are Champions (Brighton & Hove Albion are runners-up); Blackburn Rovers have been relegated to EFL League One. Horse racing news. Football: Live to Anfield: Penalty: Saved (Missed by James Milner of Liverpool). Liverpool 0 - Southampton 0. News update from the British & Irish Lions. Football: Preview of Arsenal v Manchester United. Golf update. Football: Live interview with Rafa Benitez, Manager of Newcastle United, winners of the EFL Championship.  To 1359 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1405 UTC: 936 kHz: Dales Radio, UK. Strong reception, 150 watts via Brunt Acres Road, Hawes, UK. Community Radio for the Yorkshire Dales. Music: Denice Williams 'Let's Hear It For The Boy'. ID, time check, Rob Stevens, music: K.T. Tunstall. "Taking a look at the Dales Diary soon", music: REM 'Losing My Religion', Evelyn 'Champagne' King 'Love Comes Down'. ID "What's on in the Dales" Giggleswick Gliders. ID. Music: Robbie Williams 'Old Before I Die'.  To 1425 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1440 UTC: 999 kHz: Rock FM 2, UK. Moderate reception, 800 watts via Longton (Preston / Blackpool), UK. Ad for insurance provider, ID, music: Human League 'Don't You Want Me', ID, Alannah Miles 'Black Velvet', ID, Lynyrd Skynyrd 'Sweet Home Alabama', ID, Kate Bush 'Running Up That Hill'.  To 1452 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1508 UTC: 1053 kHz: TalkSport, UK. Moderate reception, up to 500 kW via Droitwich, UK. Football: Commentary highlights of Liverpool v Southampton, phone-in with Liverpool supporters. Live updates from the Emirates Stadium: Arsenal 0 - Manchester United 0. Promo, ID, ad break: Car sales, eBay, Just Eat app, Trade Point. Interview with Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool FC Manager.  To 1520 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1528 UTC: 1071 kHz: TalkSport, UK. Moderate reception, 1 kW via Wrekenton, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, UK. Ad break, football promo. Conversation regarding Liverpool Football Club. Updates of the final day of the EFL Championship. Cricket update from Lords: ODI: England v Ireland. Interview with Arsene Wenger, prior to Arsenal v Manchester United. Further Premier League updates, contact telephone number for 'The Full Time Phone In', ad break.  To 1542 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1549 UTC: 1089 kHz: TalkSport, UK. Moderate reception, up to 400 kW via Moorside Edge, UK. Football: Update from the Emirates Stadium: Half Time: Arsenal 0 - Manchester United 0. Telephone callers. Speech regarding Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool Football Club. Speech from Jose Mourinho (Manchester United), Arsenal update.  To 1555 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1748 UTC: 1152 kHz: Metro Radio 2, UK. Moderate to poor reception, 1.8 kW via Greenside, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, UK. Music: Queen 'I Want To Break Free', ID, Duran Duran 'Rio'. Male speech, contact details, female speech, ad break. News at 1800 UTC: General Election 2017 campaign.  To 1800 UTC.
  • 7 May: 1808 UTC: 1170 kHz: TFM 2, UK. Moderate reception, 320 watts via Stockton-on-Tees (Teesside), UK. Music: Kenny Rogers 'The Gambler', ID, Old Crow Medicine Show 'Wagon Wheel', ID, male host with link giving studio text number. Music: Robbie Williams. ID. Link to Country music show!  To 1820 UTC.

πŸ“»
Until the next time - Enjoy!

Monday, May 8, 2017

Season 2016/17: The Season So Far - Part 9

"The roller-coaster season continues..."

The previous Carlisle United Football Club post, Part 8, featured the fixtures for April - May 2017. Those fixtures are now results; They are as follows:

April:
Saturday 1st: Sky Bet League Two: Yeovil Town 0 - United 2  (Attendance: 3145)
Saturday 8th: Sky Bet League Two: United 1 - Notts County 2  (Attendance: 4361)
Friday 14th: Sky Bet League Two: Hartlepool United 1 - United 1  (Attendance: 5011)
Monday 17th: Sky Bet League Two: United 1 - Stevenage 1  (Attendance: 4572)
Saturday 22nd: Sky Bet League Two: Crawley Town 3 - United 3  (Attendance: 2003)
Saturday 29th: Sky Bet League Two: United 2 - Newport County 1  (Attendance: 5402)

May:
Saturday 6th: Sky Bet League Two: Exeter City 2 - United 3  (Attendance: 6774)

The forty-six League fixtures have been completed - Here is the final League Two table:


Carlisle United Football Club finish the League season on 71 points, with a goal difference of +1. The Blues are sixth in the table following the final fixture - United advance to the League Two promotion play-offs! Here are the fixtures for the play-offs:


United play Exeter City Home and Away, aiming to reach the Final at Wembley Stadium. Reporting From The Fox Tower will bring you updates on the play-offs.

C'mon ye BLUES!