Information Minister Nicholas: Ivor Bird was ‘a pioneer’ in radio broadcasting

Information Minister Melford Nicholas is celebrating the life and achievements of
the late founder of the popular Grenville Radio Ltd. (ZDK Radio), Ivor G.T Bird,
who died last Tuesday at his Halcyon Heights home.
“It was revolutionary what he did; to have built up an institution from 1970 that is
still going strong today more than fifty years later speaks volumes of the man.
ZDK Radio became the essence of his contributions to us all. The memory of Ivor
Bird spans the whole gamut; from culture, news packages, especially the notion of
breaking news, he was clearly a visionary in many ways,” Nicholas observed.
The Information Minister recalled the signature sound used to signal a ‘breaking
news’ and the effect it had on the society as often times it was the announcement
of a tragic event. According to Nicholas it was these types of innovations that set
Ivor Bird apart from others and helped to cement his influence on broadcasting not
just in Antigua and Barbuda but across the region as well as many broadcasters in
neighbouring countries quickly sought to emulate the radio formats popularized by
ZDK.
Nicholas also noted that despite popularizing radio broadcast in the country, Ivor
Bird achieved this feat by being the ‘invisible hand’ as even as he himself hosted a
popular radio programme, he went by the moniker ‘The Silent One’ where he did
not speak at all.
“There were so many innovations at that time; there were so many young deejays
who came through the ranks at ZDK, the list is quite exhaustive. Additionally,
what he did for calypso and for reggae, the sounds of the Caribbean must also be
recorded as through ZDK these musical genres were heard year-round, another
first for ZDK and Ivor Bird,” he stated.
At the ceremony marking VC Bird Day, a moment’s silence was offered in
memory of Ivor Bird, as under his guidance ZDK earned a reputation as the ‘18 th
candidate’ of the ABLP because of its role in the party’s campaigns during election
season.