A Day in the Life of a Radio Presenter

Is Being a Radio Presenter Fun or Hard Work?

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a radio presenter?
Whether it’s fun? Whether it’s hard work? Well, I’m here to tell you it’s a bit of both!

Who I Am and Who We Broadcast For

My name is Sarah and I have two shows each week on Gosport Hospital Radio. which is the local radio station, aimed at patients in the Gosport War Memorial Hospital but can also be heard by anyone, all around the world!

Personally, I have regular listeners in Toronto, Canada and Memphis, Tennessee but my target audience are the patients in the hospital.

What Goes Into Making a Radio Show?

So, what exactly does a radio presenter have to do, in order to research, prepare, create their show and, finally, go live on air?

When you hear everything as a listener, in your home or in your car, you hear the final product of what is possibly a whole week’s worth of work and is, hopefully, a polished and professional sounding show, all compressed into one hour!

Choosing a Theme and Music

The first thing we have to do is decide on a theme for our show and the music we will be playing. We use the library in Studio 2 to search for music and make a playlist

That sounds simple enough, right?

However, what I didn’t realise when I first started, is that my worst subject from school – Maths – would be involved! You have to work out how many minutes of music plus how many minutes of talking you can fit into your one-hour slot.

I’ll admit, I’m not great at this. Not only because I’m hopeless at maths, but also because I talk… a lot.

You can also choose to play CDs, which I do occasionally. This tends to be more when I have been asked to play a particular song and it isn’t in our library. Once we have a playlist put together it is saved to our area on the computer and we are basically ready to go.

Scripts, Notes, or Winging It

Some presenters wing it.
Some use notes.
Some use some kind of script.

There’s no right or wrong way.

However, I use a script…. simply because, as I mentioned before, I talk – a lot! I tend to go off on a tangent, so a script keeps me focused and reminds me where I was, when I get distracted.

During the week I write notes about things I want to include in my show and then my script is written a day or 2 before my show is due to be aired. Because I suffer a little bit from OCD I make sure I time myself reading my script out loud so I know it will roughly fit into the hour.

Like I said, there is no right or wrong way of doing this and you kind of find out which way works best for you.

Going Live: Entering Studio 1

Once your playlist is ready and, if you’re using notes or a script, they are ready too, you are then all set to GO LIVE!!

That’s when you come out of Studio 2 and enter Studio 1! And are faced with some of the most terrifying looking equipment ever! Well, I was the first time I walked into there.

I wasn’t even going in to do a show. I was literally being shown around the station after showing an interest in volunteering. My first thought on seeing the recording equipment in Studio 1 was to turn face and run!

But, I’m so glad I didn’t because now I love using it. It no longer scares me! I am not a technical person, in fact, I’m a bit of a technophobe but it actually took me much less time to learn how to use it than I imagined.

The other presenters and technical people are very friendly and very helpful. You get full training and aren’t let loose on the general public until you think you’re ready. Oh, and the people training you have to think you’re ready, too!

Preparing for the Show

So, onto actually getting ready to start your show. In studio 1 there are 3 chairs and 3 microphones. This means, if we want to, we can have guests in the studio with us.

We go in and sit down, in front of the desk. We set up notes, script and anything else we need to, in preparation for the start. Again, this differs from presenter to presenter.

I am usually at least 30 minutes early for every show because I like to make sure I have everything I need, and if there is anything not quite set up correctly, I have time to sort it out. Other presenters run in as their show starts and all is still well. But I am having mild heart failure if I don’t leave my house an hour before – for the 10 minute journey!!

Taking Control of the Airwaves

So, then we log onto the system and load the playlist that we will be using that day. Then I plug my headphones in, I slide the 4 ‘carts’ up (the carts are where the songs from the playlist drop into, in order to play), I press the Mixer Output button and then at 59:45 minutes the News jingle plays for 15 seconds. Once the jingle has finished on the hour, the News starts for 2 minutes and 2 seconds. During that 2 minutes I take over the system and press Studio 1.

The next hour is mine.

I play the music I’ve chosen and waffle away. Every time the music stops and there is a pause in my playlist, I talk, reading from my script or remembering the odd things I want to add, remembering each time to make sure the microphone is up, so I’m not talking away to myself!

Handing Everything Back

When my last song is playing I hand the system back to the studio by reversing the steps I used to take it over and clear my playlist.

I always make sure that the News jingle has dropped into a cart so it is there ready to go when I press play and it takes over from my music which sometimes, I have to fade out, depending how much I have talked!

Once the jingle has started, I press Sustain so now the system has been handed back successfully.

All the knobs and buttons and wires I have moved, I return back to where they were when I entered the room, even down to the chair, because I use a different chair to other presenters. This way everything is ready for whichever presenter is next in. I never completely log off until Mediplay has started playing successfully. That way, if anything happens eg, Mediplay doesn’t take over, there is no sound coming out so the radio has gone silent, or anything else I am still logged on to, hopefully, be able to fix it.

Is It Worth It?

So, that is a Day in the Life of a Radio Presenter. Well, this radio presenter, anyway. Some aspects are a little work but mostly it’s fun! What couldn’t be fun about listening to an hours worth of music you love and having a natter? Something everyone would enjoy!

Join us – let’s turn up the volume on kindness!

Gosport Hospital Radio is fuelled by volunteers, kind donations and a passion for lifting patient spirits. If you love the idea of becoming a presenter – or you just fancy twiddling a fader and announcing the lunch menu in style – become part of our crew.

👉 Volunteer your skills – presenting, producing, tech‑wiring, tea‑making, social‑media‑posting – we welcome it all.

👉 Support us with a donation – every penny goes straight to maintaining our studio, upgrading equipment, and most importantly, delivering smiles to the wards of Gosport Memorial Hospital.

Your generosity keeps the music playing, the banter flowing, and the patients’ morale sky‑high. Whether it’s a one‑off contribution or a regular standing order, you’ll be directly funding comfort, companionship and that all‑important sense of community for those on the road to recovery.

Donate today, tune in tomorrow, and help us make every day in the hospital sound a little bit brighter.

See you on the airwaves!