BBC Radio

BBC Radio is an operational business division[1] and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering the majority of musical genres, as well as local radio stations covering local news, affairs and interests. It also oversees online audio content.[2]

This article is about the BBC's operational division consists in several UK radio stations. For The BBC's digital multiplex, see BBC National DAB. For The radio in the United Kingdom, see Radio in the United Kingdom.

BBC Radio
Division
IndustryMass media
Founded1927; 93 years ago
Headquarters
Broadcasting House, London
,
United Kingdom
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Bob Shennan (Director, BBC Radio and Music)
ServicesRadio broadcasting
OwnerBBC
ParentBritish Broadcasting Corporation
Websitebbc.co.uk/radio

Of the national radio stations, BBC Radio 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 Live are all available through analogue radio (5 Live on AM only) as well as on DAB Digital Radio and online including BBC iPlayer. The remaining stations, BBC Radio 1Xtra, 4 Extra, 5 Live Sports Extra and 6 Music, all broadcast on digital platforms only.

All of the BBC's national radio stations (with the exception of 5 Live and 5 Live Sports Extra which broadcast from MediaCityUK in Salford) broadcast from bases in London, usually in or near to Broadcasting House in Marylebone. However, the BBC's network production units located in Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester also make radio programmes.[3]

History
Further information: Timeline of the BBC, British Broadcasting Company, and BBC § History

The BBC's radio services began in 1922. The British Government licensed the BBC through its General Post Office, which had original control of the airwaves because they had been interpreted under law as an extension of the Post Office services. Today radio broadcasting still makes up a large part of the corporation's output - the title of the BBC's listings magazine, Radio Times, reflects this.

First charter
George V giving the 1934 Royal Christmas Message on BBC Radio

On 1 January 1927 the British Broadcasting Company was succeeded in monopoly control of the airwaves by the British Broadcasting Corporation, under the terms of a Royal Charter.

John Reith, who had been the founding managing director of the commercial company, became the first Director General. He expounded firm principles of centralised, all-encompassing radio broadcasting, stressing programming standards and moral tone. These he set out in his autobiography, Broadcast Over Britain (1924), influencing modern ideas of public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom. To this day, the BBC aims to follow the Reithian directive to "inform, educate and entertain".[4]

Competition from overseas stations

Although no other broadcasting organisation was licensed in the UK until 1973, commercial competition soon opened up from overseas. The English language service of Radio Luxembourg began in 1933 as one of the earliest commercial radio stations broadcasting to Britain and Ireland. With no possibility of commercial broadcasting available from inside the UK, a former British Royal Air Force captain and entrepreneur (and from 1935 Conservative Party member of parliament) named Leonard F. Plugge set up his own International Broadcasting Company in 1931.[5] The IBC began leasing time on transmitters in continental Europe and then reselling it as sponsored English-language programming aimed at audiences in Britain and Ireland. Because Plugge successfully demonstrated that State monopolies such as that of the BBC could be broken, other parties became attracted to the idea of creating a new commercial radio station specifically for this purpose. It was an important forerunner of pirate radio and modern commercial radio in the United Kingdom. The onset of World War II silenced all but one of the original IBC stations; only Radio Luxembourg continued its nightly transmissions to Britain.

Empire and the world

To provide a different service from the domestic audience the Corporation started the BBC Empire Service on short wave in 1932, originally in English but it soon provided programmes in other languages. At the start of the Second World War it was renamed The Overseas Service but is now known as the BBC World Service.[6]

Commercial radio influence

Beginning in March 1964, Radio Caroline was the first in what became an eventual fleet of 10 offshore pirate radio stations that began to ring the British coastline, mostly along the South East coast. By 1966 millions were tuning into these commercial operations, and the BBC was rapidly losing its radio listening audience.[7][8] This was largely due to the fact that even though they were fully aware of the problem, the BBC still only played a few hours of Pop music from record a week, as opposed to the pirates who broadcast chart music and new releases all day.

The British government reacted by passing the Marine Offences Act, which all but wiped out all of the stations by midnight on 14 August 1967, by banning any British citizen from working for a pirate station. Only Radio Caroline survived, and still continues today (though the last original offshore broadcast was in 1989).

One of the stations called Radio London ("Big L") was so successful that the BBC was told to copy it as best they could. This led to a complete overhaul by Frank Gillard the BBC's Director of Radio of the BBC output creating the four analogue channels that still form the basis of its broadcasting today. The creator of BBC Radio One told the press that his family had been fans of Radio London.

The BBC hired many out-of-work broadcasting staff who had come from the former offshore stations. Kenny Everett was asked for input in how to run the new Pop station due to his popularity with both listeners and fellow presenters. Tony Blackburn who presented the very first BBC Radio One morning show had previously presented the same morning show on Radio Caroline and later on Big L. He attempted to duplicate the same sound for BBC Radio One. Among the other DJs hired was the late John Peel who had presented the overnight show on "Big L", called The Perfumed Garden. Though it only ran for a few months prior to Big L's closure, The Perfumed Garden got more fan mail than the rest of the pop DJ's on Radio London put together, so much that staff wondered what to do with it all. The reason it got so much mail was that it played different music, and was the beginning of the "album rock" genre. On Everett's suggestion, Big L's PAMS jingles were commissioned to be resung in Dallas, Texas so that "Wonderful Radio London" became "Wonderful Radio One on BBC".

The BBC's more popular stations have encountered pressure from the commercial sector.[9] John Myers, who had developed commercial brands such as Century Radio and Real Radio, was asked in the first quarter of 2011 to conduct a review into the efficiencies of Radios 1, 2, 1Xtra and 6 Music. His role, according to Andrew Harrison, the chief executive of RadioCentre, was "to identify both areas of best practice and possible savings."[9]

BBC analogue networks

On 30 September 1967:

  • BBC Radio 1 was launched as a pop music station (part-time at first)
  • The BBC Light Programme (launched 29 July 1945) was renamed BBC Radio 2 and broadcast easy listening, folk, jazz and light entertainment.
  • The evening BBC Third Programme (launched 29 September 1946) and daytime BBC Music Programme (launched 22 March 1965) were merged under the heading of BBC Radio 3, although the Third Programme kept its separate title until 3 April 1970.
  • The BBC Home Service (launched 1 September 1939) became BBC Radio 4.

BBC Radio 5 was launched on 27 August 1990 as a home for sport and educational and children's programming, but was replaced by BBC Radio 5 Live, a dedicated news and sport network, on 28 March 1994.

2002 digital radio networks

With the increased rollout of Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) between 1995 and 2002, BBC Radio launched several new digital-only stations BBC 1Xtra, BBC 6 Music and BBC 7 in 2002 on 16 August 11 March and 15 December respectively – the first for "new black British music", the second as a source of performance-based "alternative" music, the latter specialising in archive classic comedy shows, drama and children's programmes. BBC Asian Network joined the national DAB network on 28 October 2002. The stations have since been renamed to include the BBC Radio brand, to BBC Radio 1Xtra, BBC Radio 6 Music, and BBC Radio 7. In 2011, BBC Radio 7 was renamed BBC Radio 4 Extra as the service was brought more into line with BBC Radio 4.

Stations
Much of BBC radio comes from Broadcasting House, Portland Place at the head of Regent Street, London

National (UK-wide)

The BBC today runs eleven national domestic radio stations, six of which are only available in a digital format: via DAB Digital Radio, UK digital television (satellite, cable and Freeview) plus live streams and listen again on BBC Sounds.

The main radio stations, available via both analogue (FM and/or AM frequencies) and Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB), are:

  • BBC Radio 1 – youth oriented, mostly contemporary pop and rock music (including Top 40 singles), plus news, original in-house live music sessions, original live music concerts and music documentaries. Available on 97-99 FM in addition to digital platforms.
Slogan:Where the UK's journey into new music begins, from pop to dance, from hip hop to rock and everything in between
  • BBC Radio 2 – the network's flagship station broadcasts adult oriented entertainment, wide range of music—specially adult contemporary and middle of the road, also talk, comedy, plus news, original in-house live music sessions, original live music concerts and music documentaries. Available on 88-91 FM and on digital platforms.
Slogan:The home of great music – Pop and Rock from the sixties, seventies, eighties and beyond to blues, big band, country and jazz with the best live music and documentaries
  • BBC Radio 3 – arts and high culture, special-interest music (classical, jazz, world music), plus news, original in-house live music sessions, original live music concerts and music documentaries. Available on 90-93 FM and digital platforms.
Slogan:Radio 3 broadcasts classical music, jazz, world music, new music, arts programmes and drama. It's the home of the Proms and broadcasts more live music than any other network
  • BBC Radio 4 – news, current affairs, arts, history, original in-house drama, original in-house first-run comedy, science, books and religion. The service closes down and simulcasts the BBC World Service from 01:00 to 05:20 daily. Available between 92-95 and 103-105 FM, 198 LW, various medium wave frequencies and on digital platforms.
Slogan:Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio
  • BBC Radio 5 Live – news, sports and talk programmes available on 909/693 MW and digital frequencies.
Slogan:First for breaking news, and the best live sport. Premier League football, Champions League football, Europa League football, international football, FA Cup football, Championship Football, Football League, Scottish...

The new digital-only (Internet Streaming/Sky/freesat/Freeview/DAB) radio stations are:

  • BBC Radio 1Xtra – new black and urban music, plus news, original in-house live music sessions, original live music concerts and music documentaries. The service simulcasts BBC Radio 1 from 01:00 to 03:00 weekdays and from 19:00 to 01:00 on Saturdays.
Slogan:On air. On the ground
  • BBC Radio 4 Extra – classic comedy, drama, books, science fiction, fantasy and children's programmes. Originally named BBC Radio 7.
Slogan:Showcasing the best in comedy drama and entertainment. With quizzes, sitcoms, panel games, satire, stand up, life stories, classics from the archive, science fiction and fantasy
Slogan:More live sport. Pure live sport. Live cricket from the Test Match Special team, football commentary, Formula 1, rugby union, rugby league, baseball, NFL American Football, tennis...
  • BBC Radio 6 Music – an eclectic mix of alternative genres including rock, funk, punk and reggae (and most non-special interest genres), plus news, original in-house live music sessions, original live music concerts and music documentaries
Slogan:The place for the best Alternative Music. From Indie Pop and Iconic Rock to Trip Hop, Electronica and Dance with great Archive Music Sessions, Live Music Concerts and Documentaries
Slogan:Bollywood, Bhangra, Asian Urban and underground. Home of Desi music, news and documentaries

National Regions

The BBC also runs radio stations for the three national regions: Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. These stations focus on local issues to a greater extent than their UK-wide counterparts, organising live phone-in debates about these issues, as well as lighter talk shows with music from different decades of the 20th century. Compared to the majority of the UK's commercially funded radio stations, which generally broadcast little beyond contemporary popular music, the BBC's "national regional" stations offer a more diverse range of programming.

Local services

There are many BBC Local Radio services across England (and the Channel Islands), often catering to individual counties.

World Service

BBC World Service is the world's largest international broadcaster,[10][11] broadcasting in 27 languages to many parts of the world via analogue and digital shortwave, internet streaming and podcasting, satellite, FM and MW relays. It is politically independent (by mandate of the Agreement providing details of the topics outlined in the BBC Charter), non-profit, and commercial-free. The English language service had always had a UK listenership on LW and therefore DAB Services allowed, by this popular demand, it to be now available 24/7 for this audience in better quality reception.

Slogan:The World's Radio Station

Broadcasting

BBC Radio services are broadcast on various FM and AM frequencies, DAB digital radio and live streaming on BBC Online, which is available worldwide.

They are also available on Digital Television sets in the UK, and archived programs are available for 7 days after broadcast on the BBC website; many shows are available as podcasts.

International syndication

The BBC also syndicates radio and podcast content to radio stations and other broadcasting services around the globe, through its BBC Radio International business which is part of BBC Studios. Programmes regularly syndicated by BBC Radio International include: In Concert (live rock music recordings from BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2, including an archive dating back to 1971); interviews, live sessions and music shows; Classical Music (including performances from The BBC Proms); Spoken Word (Music documentaries, Dramas, Readings, Features and Comedies, mainly from BBC Radio 4) and channels, including BBC Radio 1.

BBC Radio International also provides many services internationally including in-flight entertainment, subscription, and satellite services. BBC Radio International is partnered with Sirius Satellite Radio and British Airways as well as many other local radio stations.

Programmes

Throughout its history the BBC has produced many radio programmes. Particularly significant, influential, popular or long lasting programmes include:

  • Any Questions? (1948–present): Topical debate series.
  • The Archers (1950–present): Long running rural soap opera. Currently the most listened to programme on Radio 4 and on the BBC's on-line radio service.
  • Children's Hour (1922–1964): Long running slot for children's programmes.
  • Desert Island Discs (1942–present): Interview programme in which the guest chooses the eight pieces of music they would take with them to a desert island. The longest running music radio programme in British history.
  • Friday Night Is Music Night (1952–present): Long running live music show, covering a wide range of music tastes.
  • Gardeners' Question Time (1947–present): Gardening programme in which gardening experts give advice and answer listeners' questions.
  • The Goon Show (1951–1960): Highly influential comedy series with elements of surrealism.
  • Hancock's Half Hour (1954–1960): Influential comedy series which transferred to television.
  • The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1978–1980 and 2004–2005): Comedy science fiction serial by Douglas Adams.
  • I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue (1972–present): Comedy series parodying the radio panel game format.
  • It's That Man Again (1939–1949): Comedy series popular during and after World War II.
  • Journey into Space (1953–1958): Science fiction series which was the last UK radio programme to achieve a higher audience than television.
  • Just a Minute (1967–present): Long running panel game where the contestants must attempt to speak for one minute without repetition, hesitation or deviation.
  • Letter from America (1946–2004): Commentary on American news and events by Alistair Cooke. The longest-running speech radio programme in history.
  • The News Quiz (1977–present): Topical comedy show
  • The Reith Lectures (1948–present): Annual series of lectures given by leading figures of the day.
  • Round the Horne (1965–1968): Comedy series notable for its innuendo and use of the gay slang polari.
  • Sports Report (1948–present): Saturday sports round-up including the classified football results.
  • Test Match Special (1957–present): Live cricket coverage.
  • Today programme (1957–present): Early morning news and current affairs programme.
  • Top Gear/The John Peel Show (1965–2004): Pioneering and influential alternative music programme. Originally fronted by Brian Matthew as a live music show, which featured unique performances by many top names such as The Beatles, The Who and Jimi Hendrix. Changed name to simply The John Peel Show in the early 1970s
  • Woman's Hour (1946–present): Long running magazine programme for women.
  • Workers' Playtime (1941–1964): Lunchtime variety show.
  • The World at One (1965–present): Lunchtime news show.

Expenditure

The following expenditure figures are from 2012/13 and show the expenditure of each service they are obliged to provide:[12]

2012–2013 BBC Radio expenditures of each service it is required to provide
Service2012/13 Total Cost
(£million)		Comparison with
2011/12 (£million)
BBC Radio 1 54.2 + 3.6
BBC Radio 1Xtra 11.8 + 0.7
BBC Radio 2 62.1 + 1.6
BBC Radio 3 54.3 + 1.8
BBC Radio 4 122.1 + 6.2
BBC Radio 4 Extra 7.2 - 1
BBC Radio 5 Live 76 + 6.7
BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra 5.6 + 0.3
BBC Radio 6 Music 11.5 - 0.2
BBC Asian Network 13 0
BBC Local Radio 152.5 + 6
BBC Radio Scotland 32.7 + 0.6
BBC Radio nan Gàidheal 6.3 + 0.3
BBC Radio Wales 18.8 + 1.1
BBC Radio Cymru 17.6 + 1.7
BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Radio Foyle 23.8 0
Total 669.5 + 29.4

Directors
AppointedDirector
1963Frank Gillard
1970Ian Trethowan
1976Howard Newby
1978Aubrey Singer
1982Richard Francis
1986Brian Wenham
1987David Hatch
1993Liz Forgan
1996Matthew Bannister
1999Jenny Abramsky
2008Tim Davie
2013Helen Boaden
2016 James Purnell
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See also

References
  1. "BBC Management Structure". 26 July 2013. BBC. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
  2. BBC Audio & Music, Retrieved 18 November 2010
  3. "BBC National Radio" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 February 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2009.
  4. "No need to change BBC's mission to 'inform, educate and entertain'". UK Parliament. 31 October 2016.
  5. AND THE WORLD LISTENED The Biography of Captain Leonard F. Plugge - A Pioneer of Commercial Radio. Kelly Publications 2007. Author: Keith Wallis
  6. History BBC World Service
  7. "The Offshore Radio Revolution in Britain 1964–2004". H2G2. 31 August 2004. Retrieved 22 July 2007.
  8. Imogen Carter (27 September 2007). "The day we woke up to pop music on Radio 1". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 September 2007.
  9. Andrews, Amanda (28 November 2010). "BBC enlists commercial sector help to shake up radio". The Telegraph. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
  10. "Microsoft Word - The Work of the BBC World Service 2008-09 HC 334 FINAL.doc" (PDF). Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  11. "World s largest international broadcaster visits city". Coal Valley News. Archived from the original on 21 January 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  12. "BBC Full Financial Statements 2012/13" (PDF). BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2012/13. BBC. 2013. pp. 8–9. Retrieved 17 August 2013.

Further reading
  • Donovan, Paul (1991). The Radio Companion. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 0-586-09012-6.
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