Radio Ga Ga on Lantau: British resident moonlights as a DJ spinning songs for expat community

With electric guitars hanging from stands, a sleek Apple computer and CDs scattered across a transparent desk – Michael Egerton’s apartment in Mui Wo, Lantau is a rather typical one for an expatriate. Except that it moonlights as a radio station.

Egerton is one of the creators of Radio Lantau, an internet radio station that broadcasts music and various shows geared towards the Lantau expat community. It is one of few free online radio shows in the city that broadcasts in English and caters specifically to expats. Launched in September last year, the station has approximately 12,000 listener hours each month on its webpage and about half of its listeners are from Hong Kong, he said.

The idea for Radio Lantau first came to Egerton when he was at a local Dai Pai Dong or open air food stall with several expat friends, two years back. They were discussing the lack of radio stations in Hong Kong playing diverse music and broadcasts catering to the Lantau expat community. Most stations in the city only play chart music or the most popular current songs, which don’t appeal to him and his friends, he said.

“When we first talked about starting the station, a lot of our friends were listening to RTHK. But it was still missing what we wanted to hear,” said Egerton, who is British and moved to Hong Kong in 2004.

Radio Lantau started as a 24-7 music station, but expanded to include different shows as well as segments featuring informal discussions on community issues. Topics are diverse and can range from the cutting down of trees in the neighbourhood and customer service complaints to concerns regarding redevelopment plans on the island.