Sabras Radio

Leicester
Broadcast area	Leicestershire, West Midlands and Buckinghamshire
Frequency	FM: 91.0 MHz 102.1 MHz AM: 1260 KHz DAB: 11B
RDS	SABRAS
Programming
Language(s)	Hindi, English, Gujarati, Punjabi and Bengali
Format	Asian
Ownership
Owner	Sabras Sound Ltd
Sister stations	Sanskar Radio
History
First air date	7 September 1995 (28 years ago)
Technical information
Class	European
Transmitter coordinates	52°37′08″N 1°07′53″W / 52.6190°N 1.1315°W / 52.6190; -1.1315
Links
Website	www.sabrasradio.com

Sabras Radio is an Asian commercial radio station based in Leicester, England, available on 1260AM, FM and DAB.^[1] The radio station broadcasts to the East Midlands, Birmingham, Coventry, and Milton Keynes. It is also accessible online through SabrasRadio.com and through the mobile app SabraRadio, TuneIn and Simple Radio. Sabras Radio also hosts TV, Urban, Film, and many other great things.^[2] The presenters broadcast in Hindi and English covering topics of interest to the British Asian audience. The station features an "open-door policy", welcoming listeners from the street to join the presenters in the studio.^[3][4]

Background and History

On 7th September 1981, new ILR station Centre Radio broadcast a programme called Sabras on its first day on air. This continued until Centre stopped broadcasting in September 1983. However the programme was picked up by its replacement Leicester Sound and the new station aired the programme for two hours each weeknight with a three hour show on Sunday evenings.^[5]

In 1988, Sabras was further extended when split programming was introduced. It aired on GEM-AM every day from 6pm (7pm on Sundays) until 10pm.

In 1992 Leicester Sound announced that it was to launch a full time Asian station on MW and it decided to simulcast London's Sunrise Radio, thereby bringing Sabras to an end after 11 years on air. Sunrise East Midlands went on air on 15 September 1992.

The following year saw the Leicester licenses come up for renewal and Sabras Sound, which was created by an early pioneer of Asian radio in Leicester, Don Kotak, was one of the bidders, and was successful and 14 years to the day after the sabras programme launched on Centre Radio, Sabras Sound went on air.

The station was later renamed as Sabras Radio and broadcasts on AM in Leicester as well as on the county's DAB multiplex.