When she first took to the airwaves on Ten FM, Ella Wishart’s hand was shaking so much she said she had trouble pressing the ‘on’ button.
Initially interested in volunteering for production jobs behind the scenes at Tenterfield’s community radio station, Ella was eventually offered one of the premium breakfast radio slots, and she’s not one to turn down an opportunity.
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She’s been flying solo on Monday mornings for a year now (as well as doing a Saturday program with Mike Harris) and has done it so well she’s been offered more slots.
“I’m pretty lazy in the mornings,” she said.
Ella may call herself lazy but few would be able to keep up with her pace. The cooler months are her off-season, as she juggles cricket, swimming and discus over the summer months as well as her radio commitments. Oh and she’s a year 10 student at Tenterfield High School into the bargain.
Over winter her sporting activities are reduced to ‘chucking a discus’ a few times a week.
Monday mornings, however, involve getting to the radio station at around 6.30am to so some recording before going live at 7am. After the brekky show it’s a quick trip to school to start off the rest of her week.
She said it was a bit daunting taking on the prime slot to start with, but she copes by pretending that no-no-one’s listening. She doesn’t have any statistics on how many people are actually tuned in (and that’s probably a good thing) but can see how many are listening online and that sometimes climbs into the double figures.
“And that’s good for a tiny community station,” she said.
Ella is very humble about her abilities, not appreciating the smooth, confident and entertaining presence she has on the radio.
“I just hope I don’t annoy people,” she said.
She has ‘stuffed up’ a few times but has lived to tell the tale, and highly recommends a volunteering role at the radio station to her counterparts at school. She’s not leaning towards a career in radio at this stage (she’s more scientifically-inclined) but doesn’t discount the possibility.
“It’s a great way to be part of the community, feeling that I’m in with it all and giving back,” she said, “because it’s a pretty groovy one to grow up in.”
Ella hopes to one day look back on her days at Ten FM and think, “Man, I did something pretty amazing.”
Everyone else can see she’s already going that.
