October 9, 2023updated 10 Oct 2023 10:14am

‘Groundbreaking’ and ‘dreadful’: Brandreth, Myrie and Kearney among those paying tribute to LBC at 50

LBC alumni recalled the chaotic early days at a plaque unveiling for the station.

Former LBC staff pull the curtain aside on a plaque commemorating 50 years since the station's launch. Left to right: Martha Kearney, Gyles Brandreth, Dicky Arbiter, Clive Myrie, Ben Brown, Peter Allen, Mark Easton. Picture: Polly Hancock

Press Gazette joined a host of famous names from broadcast journalism to mark 50 years since the launch of LBC, the UK’s first licensed commercial radio broadcaster.

LBC alumni including BBC correspondent Clive Myrie, Today presenter Martha Kearney and former Conservative MP Gyles Brandreth were among those to attend the unveiling of a blue plaque on Friday at the site of its old offices near Fleet Street.

LBC and its news bulletin service Independent Radio News (IRN) launched on 8 October 1973 in the now-demolished Communications House in Gough Square, Holborn.

Bron Maher

@bron_maher

Bron Maher is Press Gazette's senior reporter, covering US and UK media. He joined Press Gazette in November 2021 from Newsguard, a US start-up that reviews how far news sites adhere to journalistic standards.