Spencer's at South Bank
Posted January 27th, 2012 by debritz
ABC Radio has its first permanent home in Brisbane in five years. 612ABC's top-rating breakfast host Spencer Howson (pictured, above, on the ABC webcam) was the first voice to be heard from the new South Bank studios this morning, when his guests included Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk (below).
Along with other ABC employees, 612, Radio National, News Radio and Triple J staff abandoned the broadcaster's long-time Coronation Drive, Toowong site after the discovery of a "cancer cluster". The local radio staff have spent the past five years in temporary premises at Lissner Street in Toowong, while other ABC employees have been working from different sites in Toowong and on Mt Coot-tha.
You can listen to 612, and see images from the webcam, here.
Update: Howson also welcomed to the new studio veteran ABC announcer Russ Tyson (below, right), and his colleagues Phil Smith, Tim Cox and Kelly Higgins-Devine.
Great pics! Thanks for sharing...
It was also very nice for ABC1 to share some footage!
Nobody has yet explained to my satisfaction why the ABC needs prime riverside real estate and why the government nibbled away at public land to satisfy it.
You can ask the same question, cast the same doubts, over every piece of riverfront real estate in this, or any other city. At some point, in every case, a government authority had to agree to release the land, and someone had to buy or lease it.
It's done. The ABC lives at South Bank. Its appropriate that the ABC should reside n a Cultural Precinct. What else needs explaining?
Keep in mind that South Bank wasn't the original planned site. It was another site at Newmarket. But it was made clear that if a more high profile (read-water view) site wasn't found, then get ready for another "cancer cluster" claim. guess who won?
Because the other block of prime riverside real estate was giving people cancer. Duh.
Why is it appropriate that the ABC should reside in a cultural precinct?
It could operate perfectly well from an industrial estate (or Newmarket).
It no more needs or deserves a riverside site than, say, the XXXX brewery.