VETERAN BROADCASTER AND NEWSPAPER PUBLISHER LAUNCHES COPYCAT-NAMED SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM AND REVIVES ONLINE RADIO STATION FOR THE AREA

ONLY THREE VOTES FOR COLESHILL TO BE INCLUDED IN TITLE AFTER HASTILY-ARRANGED POLL

AN IMPOSED name change on Atherstone's most popular social media platform has sparked a war on two fronts for its owners.

A rival with a similar sounding title has slipped into the void left by the dramatic creation of Atherstone & Coleshill People's Forum.

Last month Nub News revealed Peter Farrugia had apologised to his 13,500-strong followers after being bombarded with hundreds of comments on a unilateral decision to "expand a little", admitting he should have "asked in the first place" while instigating a hastily-arranged poll and abiding by "whatever the outcome".

But after the result gave a resounding 'thumbs down' to the new title – with less than half of one per cent voting for the change – veteran broadcaster and former town newspaper publisher Geoff Wilding resurrected his North Warwickshire Radio online station and launched an accompanying Facebook platform called Atherstone peoples forum.

A swift application to Facebook to restore the original name followed but Mr Farrugia and his "& Coleshill" version are stuck in no man's land at the moment, counting down the days to reverting back to an "Atherstone-only" format – but comforted no doubt by statistics for the last month of just under 95,000 posts, comments and reactions.

Members were asked to vote on a multiple-choice questionnaire involving four alternatives.

The results were:

Expanding to Atherstone & District Forum collected 85 votes (10 per cent);

Allowing Coleshill Specific Membership as Atherstone & Coleshill People's Forum managed just THREE votes (0.34 per cent).

With likely tongue-in-cheek, the forum owner claimed it was a "close run thing" when he announced the numbers.

But after promising to "change the name back, as soon as it is possible", he dropped another minor bombshell by saying in the future the platform would be known as "Atherstone People's Forum (Official)" while pointing out that he and co-administrator Adam McElhone "have our own jobs and get paid nothing to run and usually 'referee' this page".

Mr Wilding told Nub News: "I am flattered that the other forum should need to add the word 'official'.

"I am a little puzzled. What exactly does 'official' mean?

"We don't need to use the word, as ours is about people and sharing.

"Atherstone peoples forum is an open page. We are not a closed shop."

At 74, Mr Wilding, who as a one-man band wrote, edited and published the former Atherstone Recorder newspaper, says he feels invigorated at his double launch.

He arrived late to journalism, studying the broadcast genre before taking a post as news editor of Cross Counties Radio – based in Nuneaton – at the turn of the millennium.

The publishing bug followed and then NWR Online.

He added: "However after a short time I began to realise just how much time and effort NWR was going to need. Quite frankly I just did not have the time.

So Mr Wilding returned to the commercial world and let his dream of running the station lapse,

" The big event for me was semi-retirement. Suddenly I had time on my hands.

"Not really being a Facebook expert, I looked at it and decided that North Warwickshire needed a true community page.

"A lot of practice and help from my media friends led to Atherstone peoples forum".

He immediately apologises for the grammatical errors in the title but added: "Facebook has set up rules, and this was the only way I could do it.

"But when published the members came rolling in and people began asking about the now defunct NWR radio station. So it had to be done."

He is busily rebuilding the station format and sorting out legal issues.

He said: "I want to include everyone in this," adding, "If you fancy your chances as a presenter then message me and with a little training it can happen."

Mr Wilding can be contacted by email on [email protected], on the forum page or the radio station.