Paul Chantler

Paul Chantler (12 October 1959 – 31 March 2024) was a British radio broadcaster, author, and broadcasting executive who held senior programming roles at Chiltern Radio, Essex Radio, and Wireless Group and worked for the BBC.

Career
In 1971, Chantler began his career working on Hospital Radio in Royal Tunbridge Wells. While serving as Program Director for Chiltern Radio, Chantler launched the Galaxy radio station, and he would later serve as the Group Programme Director for Essex Radio and the Wireless Group. When BBC Radio Wiltshire launched in April 1989 under the name BBC Wiltshire Sound, Chantler was its first presenter. The first song played on the station by Chantler was "We've Only Just Begun" by the Carpenters. Chantler later served as a consultant for other radio stations in the United Kingdom, such as Premier Christian Radio, Invicta, and Southern Sound.

In 2022, radio broadcaster Paul Hollins and Chantler co-wrote Essential Media Law, a guide to libel and defamation. Following its popularity among content creators, the book was updated with a second edition in 2024. In 2019 Chantler was named a fellow of the Radio Academy for his “outstanding contribution to both public and commercial radio as a journalist, presenter and programmer”.

Death
Chantler died on 31 March 2024, aged 64, in Eastbourne, East Sussex. Recently diagnosed with liver cancer, Chantler had been admitted to the hospital reporting breathing difficulties.