Welsh radio show named best in the UK

A Welsh radio show, which celebrates the history of the valleys, has been officially crowned the Best Community Show in the UK.

In a ceremony last night at the Community Radio Awards, Rhondda Radio’s Rhondda Heritage Hour – presented by David Arthur and produced by John Geraint – carried off the Gold Award in competition with hundreds of stations across the UK.

Quality

The judges, drawn from senior figures across the industry, praised the Rhondda Heritage Hour as embodying “what radio is all about. It tells wonderful stories that are to be cherished. A quality community show and a true success.”

The programme is part of the wider Rhondda Heritage Project, made possible by a major grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund Cymru.

The Project has involved storytelling workshops up and down the valley, open to people of all ages and abilities, as well as the creation of a new Rhondda Heritage Trail with twelve stations at significant historical sites.

Hailing the Rhondda Heritage Hour’s success last night, John Geraint said, “This is all down to the wonderful contributions – more than a hundred of them – specially recorded by Rhondda people who came along to our workshops and shared their stories and family memories.

It’s so fitting that this has been recognised at the Community Radio Awards, as that is what Rhondda is and always has been – a community. It’s a place where what matters to us matters more than what matters to me. That’s what we’ve been able to reflect, time and again, in the Rhondda Heritage Hour.”

Rhondda Radio

The Rhondda Heritage Hour is broadcast every Wednesday afternoon at 3pm on Rhondda Radio, and you can listen to the latest edition of the programme here.