Geelong, Victoria’s largest regional city, south west of Melbourne, received its first radio station, 3GL, in December 1930.
The station originally broadcast on 1400 kHz, shifting up the dial to 1350 kHz when Australia’s radio dial was re-worked in 1935. The station’s frequency changed again, to 1341 kHz, in 1978.
With Melbourne radio stations being heard loud and clear into Geelong, 3GL could also be heard over much of Melbourne but never posed any real threat to the Melbourne stations.
Above: 3GL in 1987 (top) and in 1989.
3GL was Geelong’s only commercial radio station until the launch of rival Bay FM (call-sign: 3BAY) in December 1989.
On 27 January 1990, 3GL converted to the FM band and the 3GL call-sign was replaced with a new official call-sign, 3CAT – named after the city’s local Australian Rules football team, the Cats – and adopted the on-air branding K-Rock, featuring the “rockin’ ‘roo” that was also used by Brisbane radio station 4MMM. K-Rock broadcast on 95.5 MHz and 3GL’s former AM frequency, 1341 kHz, is now used by a Chinese-language broadcaster, 3CW.
At the time of its launch, K-Rock was owned by Hoyts Media which also owned Melbourne radio station 3MMM, and carried a hard rock format not unlike its Melbourne sister station. K-Rock also maintained 3GL’s long tradition of broadcasting matches of the Victorian Football League, which was re-named the Australian Football League in 1990.
K-Rock, carrying much the same logo as it when it launched in 1990 minus the ‘roo, and Bay FM are now both part of the Grant Broadcasters radio network and broadcast from studios in the Geelong CBD.
Website: K-Rock
Fond memories of 3GL on 1350 KHz, listened to from Melbourne; particularly the Greek Music program broadcast from the James St studio on a Sunday evening (I am not Greek; just like Greek music and people). This was before the mushrooming of ethnic language broadcasts during the seventies and eighties (3EA, SBS, etc). 3GL we miss you.
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