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  1. Data
  2. Audience Data
November 5, 2012

BBC losing out in fight for London radio listeners – plus full Rajar round-up

By Dominic Ponsford

BBC London 94.9 continued to lose ground to commercial rival LBC in the second quarter of this year.

According to figures released by Rajar, the BBC London station reached 374,000 listeners a week (down 17.4 per cent year on year) versus LBC 97.3's weekly reach of 927,000, which was up up 14.6 per cent year on year.
 
Radio 5 Live's main output (including Sports Extra) did not apear to benefit from an Olympics boost in the third quarter of 2012. According to Rajar it reached 6.3m listeners a week in the period, which was a slight 0.6 per cent dip year on year. However the BBC said that the Five Live Olympics Extra digital station achieved a reach of 1.9m listeners.
 
Commercial station Talksport was slightly down year on year according to Rajar, with an average weekly reach of 3m (down 3.6 per cent).
 
Radio 4 was up 3.5 per cent year on year at 10.8m.  Radio 4's flagship current affairs programme Today was up year on year with an average weekly reach of 6.9m according to Rajar (compared with 6.8m in the same period a year earlier).
 
Five Live breakfast had a weekly reach of 2.8m (versus 2.5m a in the same period last year) and Talksport's breakfast show was steady year on year with a weekly reach of 1.3m.
 
In London, BBC London 94.9's breakfast show slumped from 209,000 a year ago to 152,000 while rival commercial station LBC 97.3 grew from 527,000 in the same period a year ago to 566,000.
 
Full breakdown of radio listening figures for the third quarter of 2012
 
Name of station: average weekly reach (in thousands); percentage change year on year
 

102.5 Radio Pembrokeshire

48

14.3

102FM Touchradio – Warks Worcs Cotswolds

44

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106 JACKfm (Bristol) (was Original 106)

92

-19.3

106 JACKfm (Oxford)

55

-39.6

106.1 Real XS (was 106.1 Rock Radio)

n/a

n/a

106.1 Real XS Manchester (was 106.1 Rock Radio)

168

n/a

106.3 Bridge FM

33

-19.5

107 The Bee

29

20.8

107.2 Wire FM

52

-14.8

107.3 Touchradio – Warwick

n/a

n/a

107.4 Tower FM

56

9.8

107.5 Sovereign Radio

27

22.7

107.6 Banbury Sound

15

0

107.6 Juice FM

221

19.5

107.7 The Wolf

34

-30.6

107.8 Arrow FM for Hastings

21

-8.7

1Xtra from the BBC

1114

23.2

2BR

60

9.1

3FM

27

28.6

96.2 The Revolution

41

-14.6

96.2FM Touchradio – Coventry

20

-25.9

96.3 Radio Aire

119

-16.2

96.3 Real XS Glasgow (was 96.3 Rock Radio)

63

5

96.4 BRMB

n/a

n/a

96.4 Eagle Radio

145

-0.7

96.4 FM The Wave

130

-13.9

96.9 Viking FM

255

8.5

97.2 Stray FM

48

0

97.4 Cool FM

382

-9.3

97.4 Rock FM

267

-5.7

Absolute 80s

895

-12.1

Absolute Radio 00s

143

19.2

Absolute Radio 60s

189

n/a

Absolute Radio 70s

172

n/a

Absolute Radio 90s

435

18.9

Absolute Radio Classic Rock

356

2.9

Absolute Radio London

592

7.4

Absolute Radio National

1055

-11.9

BBC 6 Music

1620

31.8

BBC Coventry and Warwickshire

86

-2.3

BBC Essex

250

-10.1

BBC Hereford & Worcester

98

-3.9

BBC London 94.9

374

-21.1

BBC Oxford 95.2FM

62

-15.1

BBC Radio 1

11198

-5.5

BBC Radio 2

13903

-2.8

BBC Radio 3

2150

4.8

BBC Radio 4

10845

2.7

BBC Radio 4 Extra

1694

11

BBC Radio Berkshire

125

-13.8

BBC Radio Bristol

141

-2.1

BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

108

0

BBC Radio Cornwall

154

1.3

BBC Radio Cumbria

100

-29.1

BBC Radio Cymru

142

2.9

BBC Radio Derby

155

10.7

BBC Radio Devon

203

-21.6

BBC Radio FIVE LIVE

6098

-2.2

BBC Radio Gloucestershire

114

22.6

BBC Radio Guernsey

23

0

BBC Radio Humberside

238

36

BBC Radio Jersey

27

-6.9

BBC Radio Kent

266

12.7

BBC Radio Lancashire

202

-6.5

BBC Radio Leeds

209

-13.3

BBC Radio Leicester

181

8.4

BBC Radio Lincolnshire

117

21.9

BBC Radio Manchester

231

29.1

BBC Radio Merseyside

322

-7.5

BBC Radio Newcastle

308

16.2

BBC Radio Norfolk

172

-18.9

BBC Radio Northampton

100

6.4

BBC Radio Nottingham

187

-1.6

BBC Radio Scotland

928

-2.6

BBC Radio Sheffield

255

6.7

BBC Radio Shropshire

103

-4.6

BBC Radio Solent (Hants/ IoW/ East Dorset)

n/a

n/a

BBC Radio Solent (West Dorset)

n/a

n/a

BBC Radio Stoke

156

-25.4

BBC Radio Suffolk

115

-10.2

BBC Radio Tees

106

-2.8

BBC Radio Ulster

542

0.7

BBC Radio Wales

450

-6.1

BBC Radio Wiltshire/Swindon

83

-10.8

BBC Radio York

94

0

BBC Somerset

66

-1.5

BBC Sussex and BBC Surrey

241

-7.7

BBC Three Counties Radio

146

-19.8

BBC WM (Birmingham & Black Country)

214

-10.5

BBC World Service

1387

-7.6

Beacon Radio

n/a

n/a

Buzz Asia 963 & 972AM

88

-12.9

C.F.M (Bauer Carlisle)

74

-30.8

Capital Birmingham

421

-9.9

Capital East Midlands

480

-14

Capital London

1999

-8.3

Capital Manchester

516

0.2

Capital North East

491

-10.6

Capital Scotland

476

-4.8

Capital South Coast

164

-18.8

Capital South Wales

236

-9.6

Capital Yorkshire

1100

7.7

Central FM

53

0

Channel 103 FM

47

6.8

Cheshire's Silk 106.9

17

-15

Chester's Dee 106.3

32

-8.6

Chill

n/a

n/a

Choice FM London

508

-9.6

City Talk 105.9

62

-7.5

Citybeat 96.7/102.5FM

126

-9.4

Classic FM

5450

1.2

Clyde 1 FM

574

-1.5

Clyde 2

230

12.7

Connect FM (was Connect FM and Lite 106.8FM)

38

-17.4

Dearne FM

48

-15.8

Downtown Radio (DTR)

267

-7.3

Dream 100

46

-6.1

Eagle Extra (formerly County Sound 1566MW)

10

-33.3

Fire Radio

40

-7

Fire Radio South Coast

5

n/a

FIVE LIVE SPORTS EXTRA

1005

-12.6

Forth2

73

-27

ForthOne

342

0

Free Radio 80s (Birmingham & Black Country)

93

n/a

Free Radio 80s (Coventry & Warwickshire)

21

-12.5

Free Radio 80s (Shropshire)

12

n/a

Free Radio FM (Birmingham & Black Country) (was BRMB and Beacon)

335

n/a

Free Radio FM (Coventry & Warwickshire) (was Mercia)

109

-28.8

Free Radio FM (Herefordshire & Worcestershire) (was Wyvern)

82

n/a

Free Radio FM (Shropshire) (was Beacon)

78

n/a

Gem 106

n/a

n/a

Gem 106

392

n/a

Glide FM 1079 (was Oxford's FM 107.9)

18

-14.3

Gold Birmingham

n/a

n/a

Gold Cambridgeshire

49

32.4

Gold Devon

31

10.7

Gold East Anglia

74

-5.1

Gold East Midlands

65

-11

Gold Essex

59

-25.3

Gold Four Counties

85

34.9

Gold Kent

58

13.7

Gold London

353

-6.4

Gold Manchester

116

46.8

Gold North West & Wales

28

21.7

Gold Solent

66

-13.2

Gold South Wales

76

65.2

Gold Sussex

70

25

Gold Thames Valley

36

20

Gold West Country

112

7.7

Gold Wolverhampton

n/a

n/a

Hallam FM

375

3.6

Heart Cambridgeshire

235

16.9

Heart Cornwall (was 105-107 Atlantic FM)

69

-1.4

Heart Devon

322

-5.6

Heart East Anglia

305

-5.9

Heart East Midlands

102

67.2

Heart Essex

415

-16.7

Heart Four Counties

555

12.3

Heart Kent

365

-3.4

Heart London

1826

-9.9

Heart North West and Wales

255

22

Heart Solent

341

9.6

Heart Sussex

386

10.6

Heart Thames Valley

388

2.6

Heart West Country

643

-9.2

Heart West Midlands

690

-17.8

Heat

681

7.9

IOW Radio

38

2.7

Island FM 104.7

30

3.4

Jack FM South Coast (Was The Coast)

211

104.9

Jazz FM

624

22.8

KCFM 99.8

87

27.9

Kerrang! 105.2

307

-17.7

Kestrel FM

31

-6.1

KESTREL FM – was Delta Radio

19

35.7

Key 103 (Manchester)

483

-15.3

Kingdom FM

83

5.1

Kismat Radio 1035 (Greater London)

81

-39.1

Kiss 100 FM

1952

14.6

Kiss East

443

3.3

Kiss West

501

6.4

KL.FM 96.7

48

9.1

kmfm East

90

-6.3

kmfm West

69

-5.5

Lakeland Radio

14

0

LBC 97.3

927

10.2

LBC News 1152

439

14.9

Lincs FM 102.2

315

-2.8

Magic 105.4

2174

9.1

Magic 1152 (Manchester)

69

-24.2

Magic 1152 (Newcastle)

164

-7.9

Magic 1161 (Hull)

59

-32.2

Magic 1170 (Teesside)

88

-15.4

Magic 1548 (Liverpool)

89

-11.9

Magic 828 (Leeds)

113

6.6

Magic 999 (Preston)

30

-25

Magic AM (Sheffield)

102

-1

Manx Radio

36

0

Metro Radio

382

5.8

Midwest Radio

n/a

n/a

Midwest Radio

35

n/a

Minster FM

73

-3.9

Mix 96

39

5.4

Moray Firth Radio (Bauer Inverness)

115

-10.2

Nation 80s (was 102.1 Bay Radio)

39

-9.3

Nation Radio

138

1.5

NME Radio

n/a

n/a

North Norfolk Radio

20

-16.7

Northsound One

126

-7.4

Northsound Two

52

20.9

Norwich 99.9fm

54

12.5

Nova Radio – Weston (was Star Radio in North Somerset)

21

5

Oak FM

26

-21.2

Original 106 (Aberdeen)

44

-13.7

Palm FM

34

-19

Peak 107 FM

99

11.2

Pirate FM

163

-0.6

Planet Rock

864

2.9

Premier Christian Radio

164

-9.4

Pulse 2

57

11.8

Q

162

-22.5

Q100.5 (Was Five FM)

15

-34.8

Q102.9FM/Q97.2FM/Q101.2FM

80

1.3

Q106 (was Six FM)

8

-33.3

Q107 (was Seven FM)

11

-26.7

Radio Borders (Bauer Borders)

51

-16.4

Radio Carmarthenshire and Scarlet FM

42

5

Radio Ceredigion

13

30

Radio City 96.7

465

0

Radio Exe 107.3 FM (was Exeter FM)

25

-13.8

Radio Mansfield 103.2

41

7.9

Radio Wave 96.5 FM

66

-12

Reading 107 FM

22

-12

Real Radio North East – (was Century Radio)

252

-22

Real Radio North West – (was Century Radio)

442

-24.7

Real Radio Scotland

545

-12.9

Real Radio Wales (North)

61

27.1

Real Radio Wales (South)

436

-2.5

Real Radio Yorkshire

396

6.7

Ridings FM

48

6.7

Rother FM

36

2.9

Rugby FM

24

9.1

Signal One

258

-9.2

Signal Two

69

-12.7

Smash Hits Radio

970

9.1

Smooth 70s

749

n/a

Smooth Radio East Midlands

295

-22.8

Smooth Radio Glasgow

265

3.9

Smooth Radio London

431

-29.6

Smooth Radio North East

410

-1.9

Smooth Radio North West

907

3.9

Smooth Radio West Midlands

376

-5.5

Southend & Chelmsford Radio

58

7.4

Spire FM

45

7.1

Spirit FM

57

21.3

Star NE – North (was Durham FM)

21

-4.5

Star NE – South (was Alpha 103.2)

26

-10.3

Star Radio in Cambridge

26

-21.2

Sun FM

57

-32.1

Sunrise Radio (Greater London)

282

-21.7

Sunrise Radio National

403

-11

Swansea Sound – 1170 MW

58

-10.8

talkSPORT

3018

-3.6

Tay-AM

81

20.9

Tay-FM

124

-6.8

TFM Radio

161

-7.5

The Bay

101

-6.5

THE BEACH

60

7.1

The Breeze (East and West)

42

n/a

The Breeze (East) (formerly The Quay)

n/a

n/a

The Breeze (South West) (was Star Radio (Bristol))

26

-3.7

The Breeze (West)

n/a

n/a

The Hits

893

-10.3

The Pulse

143

-14.9

Time FM 106.6

24

50

Total Absolute Radio (London)

832

7.9

Total Choice (UK)

701

-8.4

Touchradio Staffs

27

-10

Town 102 FM

64

8.5

Trax FM

98

6.5

U105

198

-11.2

Wave 102 FM

26

-7.1

Wave 105 FM (Bauer South Coast)

350

-11.8

Wessex FM

47

11.9

West Sound (Bauer Southwest Scotland)

190

5

Wyvern FM

n/a

n/a

XFM London

372

-14.5

XFM Manchester

228

7.5

Yorkshire Coast Radio

41

0

Yorkshire Radio

100

38.9

 

 

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