Great Dorset Steam Fair
Posted by Chris Graham on 28th July 2020
Great Dorset Steam Fair: While we won’t be enjoying wonderful scenes like this this year, the atmosphere of the event will be recreated by Steam Fair FM over the originally-planned show period in August.
Following the news that this year’s Great Dorset Steam Fair has been postponed until 2021, it has been announced that the show’s popular radio station, Steam Fair FM, will be providing a special, online broadcast during the original planned show period – Thursday, August 27th to Monday August 31st.
The radio station will be celebrating the ‘best of Great Dorset’ with archive interviews, showground reports, features and ‘vox pops’ comprising messages from visitors and exhibitors, recorded over the years.
The initiative was announced by Martin Oliver, GDSF managing director, and Patrick Heeley who heads Event Radio Associates, responsible for operating the station with the show since 2003.
Commenting on the decision, Patrick Heeley said: “The lockdown presents a unique opportunity to air once again the many items in our archives. Our aim is to re-create the ‘sounds and smells’ of the world’s largest steam and heritage event, together with the greatest vintage hits spanning the 40 years from 1955 to 1995. Although not coming live from Tarrant Hinton, the station sound will be almost exactly the same as in a normal show year. All listeners will need to add is their own cider!”
The vintage music will include a significant helping of Steam Fair favourites Dr Busker, The Wurzels and others. There will be a special feature on Queen, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the band’s formation in 1970, with a track played every hour.
Pat Heeley will return this year for a ‘virtual Dorset’ offering with Steam Fair FM.
Martin Oliver will feature on the broadcast, including current updates and discussing plans for the 2021 show. The broadcast is being supported by many of the station’s regular advertisers and sponsors.
The special online broadcast will be available worldwide via computers, smartphones, tablets, internet radios, smart TVs and in-home streaming services such as Sonos. It will also be available on command through Alexa and Google Play speakers, via the Tune In app. Further details are available from the GDSF website, the Steam Fair FM website and the GDSF Facebook page.
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