Richard first travelled through Hua Hin more than 30 years ago on a business trip, headed to Sam Roi Yot.  Of course, Hua Hin was a very different place from what it is now, so it didn’t make a lasting impression at the time. But Richard got to know and appreciate Hua Hin a lot more a few years later in 2007 when he started to week-end and holiday here in a condominium he and his Thai wife purchased as an escape from Bangkok. The family moved permanently to Hua Hin in 2015, purchasing a house close to Soi 112. He has developed a deep appreciation of being able to integrate into the local community, loving the international flavour of it, as well as the variety of outdoor options available.  However, he wishes for ongoing development of essential infrastructure such as a more stable and reliable energy grid and water pressure, and a better waste management plan and facilities. These things will allow Hua Hin to blossom as it should.

Born in Hull in northeast England, Richard moved south of London at the age of 5 or 6.  He admits to not being very academically focused, and left school after finishing his O levels, with no particular interest in further school study, although he did pursue courses in technical audio and visual production at college and also completed some correspondence courses, at a time prior to the advent of online learning.  He was aware that a long work-life was in front of him, and after much thought, he determined that he needed to follow his passions, as he was searching for something more than just the safe routine of the weekly pay packet.

Possibly a highlight of Richard’s career was with pirate radio. Initially, the radio industry in the United Kingdom was highly regulated by the government with strict licensing laws limiting the number of broadcasters and the content that was broadcast.   Since the 1960s, pirate radio has been a popular and enduring radio medium, evolving with the changes in broadcast technology, and actually remaining in existence today, though mainly land-based. Pirate radio can be credited with the BBC broadening its radio base to encompass 4 separate stations.

The original pirate radio stations exploited a loophole in broadcasting law by having their studios located offshore but were closed down in 1967 by government legislation. They had proliferated to meet the growing demand for pop and rock music that was not being played by BBC Radio.

 Richard obtained a job in the mid-1980s with arguably the best known of the pirates, Radio Caroline (named after Caroline Kennedy, daughter of JFK), which broadcast 2 different channels, one English and one Dutch, from a large red coloured ship, the MV Ross Revenge. It had a 91-metre-tall steel mast, used as a broadcast tower, holding the antenna system and with 200 tonnes of concrete ballast to allow it to withstand the wild weather it encountered moored off the English coast. There was a big resurgence of pirate radio at this time as broadcast equipment became more financially viable. The station owners tapped into the strong demand for alternative music styles such as reggae and prog and indie rock, using vinyl records and the cartridge technology of the time.  Richard recalls editing the tape by physically cutting it, removing a section, and then reattaching it, a cumbersome procedure compared to today’s digital editing.

Richard met the Thai wife, Kanjana, in 2005.  Working in radio in Thailand gave Richard opportunities to develop a variety of presentation styles and interviewing skills. Richard has met and mingled with countless names you would recognise, sometimes even meeting them at the very beginning of their fame. From the late 1990s onwards, Thailand became the training ground for new musical acts before they launched full World Tours, so Richard had the privilege of interviewing some of these stars before the big egos kicked in, including such recognisable names as Stevie Wonder, Phil Collins, The Spice Girls, The Backstreet Boys and many, many more.

Richard, with his friend and business partner Chris Andrews, started their media company BMAsia, the BM standing for Background Music.  Although people now have access to many different music streaming services, this was not the case in the early 2000s.  The business model was to design a variety of playlists, putting together different styles of music, which would suit the background music needs of high-class restaurants and hotels.  One of the first to take up this service was a man from the Sheraton in Bangkok, who coincidently is now the General Manager of the Marriott here in Hua Hin. The fortunes of BMAsia blossomed as more and more prominent hotel chains became customers.

Chris was the marketing guru, while Richard’s role saw him taking control of music design and technical installations while cementing relationships within the hospitality industry, both within Thailand and overseas. This afforded Richard much further opportunity to indulge his travel bug.  He was on a plane, headed overseas almost weekly for several years.

The company has gone through a number of changes as technology has made giant steps forward. BMAsia is now partnered with a streaming company to deliver its services, so Richard has had a respite from the continual travel.  The company suffered a hit as Covid-19 impacted the hospitality industry, downsizing staff numbers, though the company is now recovering and is forecast to grow further internationally.  The partners have hired a CEO and Richard says he is semi-retired from the business, though of course he is still on hand in a consultative, leadership capacity. Income from the business certainly helps pay the regular bills, which are not inconsiderable when you have dependent children.

Right now, it appears that Richard has found his “sweet spot”. He claims never to have been happier in his life, and is able to devote almost as much time as he would like to family pursuits.  Richard and Kanjana have two teenage children, a 19-year-old daughter Amm who is in her second year of study in International Culture and Business at Chulalongkorn University, and a 15-year-old son Jayden who attends a local school.  Their niece, Thong, and their Golden Retriever Jessie complete the family of six.

Keenly aware of his status as an older father, Richard wants to spend as much time in joint pursuits with his children as is physically possible (or knowing teenagers, as much as they will allow!) So, Richard happily plays taxi driver to take Jayden to indulge his passion for fishing at the lodge in Cha-am. He says the best compliments he has ever received are not about his personal achievements but rather about his children’s achievements or the wonderful people they have become. Richard is certainly intensely proud of them both, and told me of Amm’s upcoming first solo trip to the UK.  It is a proud moment for any parent when you release them gently to fly on their own.

Most intentionally, the local part of Richard’s broadcast career has been left until last. When Richard moved here to Hua Hin, he was immediately aware of what he saw as inadequacies with the local English-speaking radio. Although it had been established many years before by a Thai owner, it was a virtual wasteland, with little content and no advertisers.  Richard was able to see past its short-comings, and his vision for it was grand. 

With no business address available, Richard had to use his radio sleuthing skills to track down the transmitter.  An initial knock on the door went unacknowledged, a further one answered, but with Richard rebuffed when he offered his expertise.  It took a third approach, Richard armed this time with a demo-tape, to open the eyes and change the owner’s mind.  He then admitted that the radio station needed help, and one rock-solid handshake later, Richard was on the team.  To this day, their exists nothing more than a gentleman’s agreement between the pair. Richard is very grateful for this, as he is aware of just how many decisions in Thailand are based purely on emotion rather than logic.

Richard was responsible for the relaunch of Surf 102.5 in November 2015.  He changed almost every aspect of it, building a team of professional broadcasters and moulding the station to his vision.  His recipe for success involved calling on all aspects of his past work experience, by building a foundation for growth using an automated platform based on the model of Sky Radio in Amsterdam. He curated a format involving music, jingles, the BBC hourly news, local news, short snippets of conversation with local people and hired some now well-loved local talent to add local flavour to a western media format. Kanjana has been instrumental in handling the station’s administration, while Richard has been assisted by a number of highly-skilled professional broadcasters.  Richard is also thankful for the local sponsors who have taken up his offer of highly competitive advertising rates. This revenue from advertising has funded technology to make the radio station sound big and professional, including the erection of a new antenna.