WORCESTERSHIRE bands dream of getting airplay on the county’s radio stations, so one can only imagine the thrill when a number of them heard they had made it onto a radio station - in Australia.

Two shows dedicated to the county’s unsigned bands were broadcast on Radio Port Douglas last month thanks to Stompin’ on Spiders’ Gary Tolley, who took the time to promote the Worcestershire artists while on a visit to his son, who has settled in the area.

“I took a lot of stuff on a memory stick and they picked out the ones they wanted,” Tolley explained.

Not Just Worcester Sauce - which Tolley guest presented - introduced those more used to the Great Barrier Reef than the Malvern Hills to acts which included Becky Rose, Ronda, Sam Eden and, of course, Stompin’ on Spiders during four hours of prime time radio.

Radio Port Douglas presenter Roy Weavers said: “They were brilliant shows and very well received by our audience, especially since the majority of the artists are unsigned and had self-recorded. Fortunately Gazza Tee knew a lot of the background to them from the Hereford and Worcester music circuit.

“We love breaking new sounds and, let’s face it, it doesn’t get any rawer than this considering the distance between our two areas.”

For Tolley, it was a hugely exciting experience.

“When we played Foxtail Soup, for example, it was the very first time that kind of English folk music had been heard on Port Douglas Radio,” he said.

But Tolley - and Stompin’ on Spiders - are not just being heard on the radio.

A previous trip and a journey in a “brake van” through the tropical rain-forests of Queensland on the world-famous Kuranda Scenic Railway inspired Tolley to write Kuranda Brake - the title track of a limited edition five track EP released in Queensland.

It’s now being sold to raise money for the scenic railway and community projects in the area and has been so popular, Tolley is about to send copies more over.

- Listen to the shows here: http://podcasts.radioportdouglas.com/MusicalThemePark29thAugust2011.mp3 and http://podcasts.radioportdouglas.com/MusicalThemePark22ndAugust2011.mp3.