Every three months, three new charities will be chosen to be part of the scheme. Each shopper will then be given a community token with their receipt and they will make the choice of which charity to support by placing that token in the box associated with that charity.

The scheme is open to all charities within a mile of a local ASDA, and a cash sum will be given to the winning charity at the end of the three months.

Auckland Hospital Radio’s Chris Nisbet, Lindsay Mcelhone and Dennis Duncan were there for the launch on 26th March 2012.

Bishop Auckland Town Mayor, John Leftbridge was there to launch the scheme and said “This is another example of placing Bishop Auckland out there and showing the World what we do best”

Auckland Hospital Radio’s PR Manager, Chris Nisbet said “This is a great inititive, it is good to see a large company, like ASDA, investing in its local charities and community. We are delighted to be one of the first charities to be chosen”

The scheme is due to run for the next couple of months. Auckland Hospital Radio will not only be part of the scheme, but will be taking part in many store events.

The other major benefit of this application is that visitors can hear requests and dedications which were collected on the wards during visiting time.

The application is free of charge and can be downloaded from iTunes. View in App Store

At the start of 2012 it was decided that the paint work in the studio, which had been on the walls for nearly ten years was looking a little tatty, so as part of the hospital’s redecoration project, we were very kindly offered the chance to have the studio freshened up. The decorators moved in on the second week in January and spent just under two days sprucing the place up.

In order for them to get in and work their magic, there was a lot of equipment to either cover up or remove, so we took the oportunity once the painters had gone, to re-wire our IT network, clean, and throw away some of the rubbish we had collected over the years.

Simon Temby AHR Programme Controllor said “It looks like a different studio! Everything is so clean and I’m pretty sure that in nearly ten years of being here, the only time the place was this tidy was just after we’d moved in! The white walls will take a bit of getting used to, we used to have a mixture of purple and yellow walls. The place looks so bright now!”

“On a serious note though, it’s given us the chance to upgrade or IT network, which is vital to the running of the station and we’re very grateful to the hospital for including us in their plans to spruce the place up.”

Live shows had to be cancelled for a few days whilst the work was being done, but the station remained on air with pre-recorded and automated programming throughout. Normal service has now been resumed. When live show are being broadcast, a live television picture from AHR’s studio can be seen on Hospedia bedside units tuned to us on radio channel 1. Click on the picture above to take a closer look.

Lindsay McElhone, Fundraising Manager said “We’re really grateful for the generosity of local people and this money will go a long way to supporting the service into 2012.”

On Saturday 19th November 2011, Auckland Hospital Radio will be attending the 2D Community Festive Fayre at Bishop Auckland College.

Come along and see the exhibiters. We’ll be there with our own stand, so pop up and say hello and we’ll tell you all about what we do. If you’ve ever fancied getting involved in Hospital Radio, this is the perfect opportunity.

Doors open at 10:30am and the event finishes at 2:30pm. Entry is free.  It’s always interesting to see what is going in your own community so it’s well worth a visit. You may be supprised by just how much there is to get involved with.

Station Manager Simon Temby said:

“It was a great night, as it always is at The Spice Lounge. The guys there are so friendly, the food is always fantastic and everyone was in good spirits.

I’d like to thank everyone who came and supported us. The money raised is vital to keep the service running, update aging equipment, and it’ll also be key to our plans of expanding our service in the near future.”

The quiz consisted of, General Knowledge, TV and film, and music rounds. In the end there was just one point between the teams in first and second place. The winning team won and £80 Spice Lounge voucher. There were also various raffle prizes won throughout the night. 

The next Quiz Night at The Spice Lounge is already planned to take place on 30th April 2012, so watch out for tickets going on sale in the new year.

Auckland Hospital Radio are once again holding a quiz night at The Spice Lounge Indian restaurant, Fore Bondgate, Bishop Auckland this coming Monday (14th November 2011 at 7pm).

It’s usually a very enjoyable night, with a picture quiz, general quiz and the ever popular music round. A buffet meal is served to each table with all selection of the usual favourite Indian dishes after a starter of Onion Bhajis (which are the best I’ve ever had).

AHR Station Manager Simon Temby said:

“The guys at The Spice Lounge are great. They’ve been supporting us since they opened in Bishop Auckland a few years ago by sponsering programmes and holding our quiz night twice a year. They’re so friendly and the food is fantatic.

The quiz night is always a good laugh. There’s usually a bit of friendly rivalry between the tables which creates a good atmosphere”

Tickets are selling fast for £15 per person (which is on a par with what you might pay at a restaurant without the quiz). Fifty percent of the money raised by the sale of tickets will go towards running Auckland Hospital Radio’s two services  for the patients, staff and visitors of Bishop Auckland General Hospital for another year.

If you would like to buy tickets or make an enquiry about the night, you can email Lindsay McElhone at tickets@ahr.org.uk or call the studio and leave a message for her on 01388 45 54 53 (55453 internally).

Hurry! There’s not many left!

A gazebo was set up outside their building with a temporary studio inside and reports were sent back to the studio from various places throughout the course using radio mics and 3G mobile technology.

AHR members Craig Robinson, James Bancroft and Simon Temby were on hand to help the Radio Tyneside team broadcast the event which was carried by four radio stations; Radio Tyneside, South Tyneside Hospital Radio, Lionheart Radio and of course Auckland Hospital Radio.

AHR Station Manager Simon Temby said, “The broadcast was a tremendous success, in fact of the three Great North Run events we have broadcast this has by far been the most sucessful. The use of technology to get our reporters around the course made it a really interesting listen and I’d like to extend my thanks to the Radio Tyneside team for allowing us to broadcast and have a hand in producing such a proffesional programme. Here’s hoping what we’ve learned this year will help us produce an even better programme next year.”

Various celebrities spoke to the team. And they were honoured to speak to Wonderwoman, Elmo from Seasame Street, Bannanaman (who was actually eating a bannana at the time) and a man with a fridge on his back! Rather him than me!

This will be the third year in a row the event has been broadcast on both stations and in the past the team have managed to snatch the odd word with runners including the likes of Gordon Ramsey, the cast of Eastenders and a man with a fridge on his back to name a few!

You can catch the action from start to finish 9am till 12 noon here on AHR on channel 1 of your Hospedia unit, speakers around the hospital and here on the AHR website by clicking “Listen Live”. If your going to be in Newcastle for the event you can listen via Radio Tyneside on 1575 AM. You can also hear the programme in Alnwick via Lionheart Radio on 107.3 FM.