Eye On Manchester blog by Aidan O’Rourke Tutor Photographer

Personal & professional diary on photography, languages, Français, Deutsch, local interest, art, music, travel and more

From 3 April BBC GMR is no more – it is to be rebranded under the sparkling new name of… Radio Manchester…. Radio Manchester is of course the name under which Manchester’s local radio station was first launched in the 1970s. I remember the 60’s sounding jingle with rollicking drums, piping brass and, sung in a Mike Sammes Singers style ‘bah bah bah bah… on Radio Maan-ches-tahh!’

View along Oxford Rd from Maths Building demolished 2005-6 | Download Large

Later it succumbed to the name GMR ‘Greater Manchester Radio’. The post-1974 county was abolished in 1993 but the initials lived on – until now. In the age of search engines and relevant keywords, GMR has no meaning – but did it ever have any?

I’m informed the new Radio Manchester will be a station reborn, following frantic behind-the-scenes activity in New Broadcasting House Oxford Rd in the days leading up to the re-launch.

I can recommend two shows in advance, both of which will capture the spirit of Manchester in different ways.

Phil Wood, chatty and verbose voice of afternoon radio in Manchester, will move to a late night slot during the week. I understand the new show will capture a feel of nighttime Manchester. I’m sure it will be a great listen for expats, who for some time now have been able to listen over the internet.

My other recommendation is Terry Christian’s show, which will move to Saturday nights. Terry plays a textbook selection of classic Manchester tracks, some by famous names like Happy Mondays, Morrissey and Ian Brown, and some obscure but fascinating ones. Recently for instance, he played a song called ‘Claremont Road’ by the artist Prince Cool. Prince who? That’s what I thought but the track, written about the road in Moss Side, located five minutes from where I live, was brilliant.

To listen to Radio Manchester, tune into 95.1 FM, find it on digital radio, or point your browser at

www.bbc.co.uk/manchester

Last week bike campaigners in Manchester staged a publicity event and launched an ad campaign which can be seen on billboard ads and on the back of buses around Manchester.

Love Your Bike ad Great Bridgewater St Manchester

The aim is to persuade car drivers to switch to the bike to get to work. The ad points out the three main benefits of commuting by bike: Burn calories, save cash, get there on time.

But for many would-be bike users there are two issues that may dissuade them from cycling: road safety and security of the bike whilst parked.

EOM is in favour of the ‘Love Your Bike’ campaign, if only to try and recapture the spirit of a time when there were fewer cars on the road.

But the guiding principle should be the ‘rule of thirds’: One section of travelling public will never ever use a bike, many others are already committed bike users and need no convincing. In the middle are the ‘floaters’, the ones who might be tempted onto two wheels – with a bit of gentle persuasion.

These are the people who should be targeted. After seeing the campaign, EOM has vowed to dust off the bike, currently languishing in the garage, and cycle the conurbation again. But does the campaign successfully target that middle group and does it address the issues of safety and security?

Make up your own mind by going to www.loveyourbike.org.

The campaign has been initiated by Friends of the Earth Manchester, with the support of Manchester City Council.

Here are some images of cyclists captured in the rain on Wilmslow Rd and in Whitworth Park on Wednesday 29 March 2006. Click to see an 800×600 version.

Footnote 30 November 2006: The Love Your Bike campaign, put together by Manchester-based agency Creative Concern, was a winner at the 2006 Green Awards www.greenawards.co.uk.

The award for Best Integrated Campaign under £100k was presented to Manchester Friends of the Earth for its joint public awareness campaign with Manchester City Council, at the Guildhall in London 29 November 2006.

What have Blackpool and Manchester got in common? They both have towers of about the same height, Blackpool Tower at 518 feet and the Beetham Tower at 515 feet (561 feet including the blade). They both act as ‘gateways’ to the north, attracting tourists through their respective airports, they are both undergoing redevelopment, though Blackpool has yet to embark on its impending transformation.

Blackpool Tower and Manchester Beetham Tower | Download Large

Another thing in common – as featured on the BBC’s Sunday morning Parliament programme, north west edition – 26 March 06 – is that they are both hoping to attract a ’super-casino’, in fact they are competing with each other. The North West Regional Assembly thinks that Manchester should stand aside, to maximise Blackpool’s chances of winning the super-casino, and EOM agrees.

Manchester is getting a huge amount of economic investment at the moment, while Blackpool – as I witnessed on a recent visit there – looks still to be sorely in need of it. We ought to think regionally, not just on a local authority basis. A super-casino would fit better into Blackpool’s profile and whatever about the ethics of casinos, if councillors in Blackpool want a super-casino, let them have it!