By Dan Walsh
Midlands 103 has announced an agreement to acquire the popular Wexford town-based radio station South East Radio. No financial detail has been disclosed.
The proposed transaction is subject to standard closing conditions and regulatory approvals.
Midlands 103 is part of the Tindle Group, which also operates local media outlets in the UK and Channel Islands.
Presenter Alan Corcoran told RTE News that the 20 plus staff at the radio station were feeling confident about the move and see it as a positive step forward.
Managing Director of Midlands 103, Will Faulkner, said he was committed to preserving the local ethos that has made South East Radio a trusted voice in Co Wexford.
“This investment reflects our confidence in the future of audio, particularly locally sourced, quality content,” he added.
South East Radio’s Managing Director, Eamonn Buttle, said this was an exciting new chapter in the station’s 35 years of operations.
“On behalf of my brother Norman, the Buttle family, and myself, I would like to express what an honour it has been to serve the media industry for over four decades,” Mr Buttle told WexfordLocal.com.
History of South East Radio; South East Radio broadcasting studios were constructed in the old bank premises on Wexford’s Custom House Quay and the station was officially launched on Friday, October 20th 1989 by the then Minister for Justice and Communications, Mr Ray Burke.
Bishop of Ferns, Bishop Comiskey blessed the premises, and the first live broadcast was made by the first Head of Programmes, Noel Andrews, brother of the famous BBC ‘This is Your Life’ and other shows presenter, Eamonn Andrews.
The Chief Executive of South East Radio was Eamonn Buttle, who was also Managing Director of the Echo Group of Newspapers. Mr Buttle had led a successful application for the Wexford radio licence at the South East hearing of the Independent Radio and Television Commission in Waterford the previous April.
WexfordLocal.com 