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Karl Schembri
John Bundy’s brainchild radio station A3 FM stopped transmitting last Thursday, less than two years since it was launched, opening the way once again to Radio Calypso on a national frequency.
The overhaul was the result of an agreement reached between the owner of the station, Charles Polidano, and Calypso Media Communications, who have taken over the management of the new station.
Calypso was operating on a community radio frequency after the Gozitan station was taken over by Radju Marija last year. Under Polidano’s ownership, Calypso will now be transmitting from the Bugibba studios that hosted A3 FM since October 2003.
A spokesman for the new management said the station will now be called Calypso 101.8 and will retain the same line-up of presenters as it had as a community channel, including Angela Agius and John Mallia.
Presenter Enzo Gusman told MaltaToday last Friday: “We’re back, stronger than ever. Actually, it’s the resurrection of Calypso, after we were bought out by Radju Marija.”
Gusman was approached by construction magnate Charles Polidano to start managing the station instead of Bundy, but he said that, “at this stage in my life I didn’t want to take up a management position, so I convinced Polidano to join forces with Calypso, and it finally happened”.
Eileen Montesin will also feature daily in the Calypso line-up. On Friday she was in an ecstatic mood.
“The feedback I got today was tremendous,” Montesin said. “The phone calls, text messages and people who stopped me in the street after the programme… they just couldn’t stop. It’s my comeback on a national frequency since I left Super 1 Radio three years ago.”
Calls made to Polidano and Bundy remained unanswered.
Bundy had called the former station A3 because he had said he was “a firm believer in God”.
In an interview before the station was launched in 2003, he said: “The number 3 has always been my favourite because I believe in the Holy Trinity… The letter ‘A’ is the first letter of the Maltese alphabet and it is also the first letter of the word Ahna (We).”
The DJ of Pajjiz tal-Mickey Mouse fame had said that the idea to team up with Polidano came over a cup of coffee.
“I was surprised how a person with little knowledge of the media and its workings could be so enthusiastic about such a project,” Bundy had said.
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