The station was originally launched as Radio Teesside at 6 pm on 31 December 1970 with a local news programme entitled Teesside Tonight, presented by George Lambelle, who later won five major programming awards.
On 1 April 1974 the station became known as Radio Cleveland, when the county of Cleveland was formed. The station moved to new offices in 1983. On 1 April 1996, the county of Cleveland split into Stockton-on-Tees, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, and Redcar and Cleveland. These four boroughs along with nearby Darlington now form the governmental sub-region of Tees Valley. Also included in the main coverage area is the Army's main garrison at Catterick Garrison, which is also included in the transmission area of Radio York on 104.3 FM.
BBC Tees (2007-2020)
On Saturday 11 August 2007 the station rebranded itself as BBC Tees, due to its broadcasting area no longer being associated with the name Cleveland. The BBC Tees brand was already associated with its 'Where I Live' website and 'BBC Bus', which have both since been discontinued.
BBC Radio Tees (2020-present)
On 27 January 2020 the station was rebranded as BBC Radio Tees.
Transmitters
The signal on 95 FM is relatively strong and comes from the 900-foot Bilsdale transmitter on the North York Moors, which transmits the main television signals for Teesside and North Yorkshire, and national radio frequencies, as well as the commercial stations TFM, 100-102 Real Radio and Capital FM on 106.4 FM. A relay transmitter covering the town of Whitby broadcasts on 95.8 FM. The DAB signals come from the Bauer 11B multiplex at Eston Nab and Brusselton. The station did transmit on medium wave for a while but this was closed down in 1992. BBC Radio Tees is also available on DAB in Teesside, County Durham and North Yorkshire and online via the station's website.
Programming
Most of BBC Radio Tees' programming is produced and broadcast from its Middlesbrough studios. During off-peak hours, BBC Radio Tees also carries regional programming for the North East and Cumbria, produced from sister stationsBBC Radio Newcastle and BBC Radio Cumbria. During the station's overnight downtime, BBC Radio Tees simulcasts BBC Radio 5 Live.
