About GTN

Galloway Talking Newspaper Association for the Blind was established in 1994 with the help of Stranraer Rotary Club, in answer to a need for a local weekly news service accessible to blind and partially sighted residents of the Rhins and Machars area of Southwest Scotland.

Permission was sought and generously granted by the Wigtownshire Free Press and Galloway Gazette to use their content and the area Health Board provided a room once a week in which we recorded a 90-minute cassette tape for distribution using the Post Office free 'Articles for the Blind' concession.

Charity status was obtained, along with sufficient donations to buy tape decks, a mixer board, microphones, headsets, and consumables including tapes, mailing pouches, labels, and so on. Volunteers came forward to make up four teams consisting of a presenter, editor, technician, four readers and one or more admin people. In this way, each volunteer was only called on to commit about three hours once each month.

The temporary conditions of the fledgling organisation soon gave rise to a dream of our own permanent base and recording studio. Willing hands very quickly progressed that dream into reality, when the late Countess of Stair, as our patron, arranged for the lease of a small piece of land from Stair Estates off London Road in Stranraer. This was to be at a peppercorn rent of £1 per annum, which has never been demanded by the landlord.

An old prefabricated bungalow, formerly used as a holiday home near Stairhaven, was purchased and a local plant hire contractor dismantled the building and delivered it to the site in London Road, free of charge. With the generous help of local tradesmen and volunteers, the new studio was formally opened by the Countess of Stair on 17 May, 1996, at a gross cost of £32,000.

GTN has continued to move with the times, taking advantage of technological advances and progressing from using cassette tapes to USB thumb drives and players (supplied on loan, free of charge to listeners) and, most recently, onto web player and smart speakers. 

The COVID pandemic and lockdowns forced rapid adaptation. In order to keep the service running, 'Home Teams' were born, which saw each reader record their items at home and send them on to the technical officer who combined them into the week's edition. Post-pandemic, some were happy to return to the camraderie of the studio but it was realised that the flexibility of recording at home made it easier for some volunteers to fit it into their busy lives and we now have two Home and two Studio teams alternating week-by-week.

The  Rephad Studio, off London Road, served us well for the 29 years from 1996 to 2025, when technical and environmental conditions forced us to look for more modern accommodation. Arrangements were made to use the new recording studio in the Millennium Centre in George Street, Stranraer.

Over the years we have seen many changes in volunteers, the size of our audience, the equipment we use, and the technological advances we have embraced. Our work has been recognised with many awards and it is our earnest hope that Galloway Talking Newspaper Association for the Blind – or simply GTN – will continue to provide this essential service for many years to come.

New volunteers and listeners are always welcome – spread the word!

Thank you for your support.