A proposed Radio 2 spin-off station has been dealt the ‘final nail in the coffin’, as audience figures for its commercial rivals soar.
Weekly listeners for the station between July and September were down by more than 150,000 on the same period last year, as fans flock to rivals featuring former BBC presenters.
In February, the BBC unveiled plans for a new spin-off station for ‘pop nostalgia’ which will focus on the music of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.
But its launch was halted by Ofcom over the summer, directing the Corporation to launch a full public interest test.
In the Ofcom report, it said: ‘The launch of the Radio 2 extension stream could have an adverse impact on competition by reducing listening and revenue.’
Greatest Hits Radio has poached three presenters from Radio 2 including Ken Bruce, 73, pictured
In 2020 Simon Mayo, 65, joined Greatest Hits Radio after 17 years at the BBC to host his now famous Album Show every Sunday at 1pm, before also returning to daily radio and The Simon Mayo Drivetime Show in March 2021
In February, the BBC unveiled plans for a new spin-off station for ‘pop nostalgia’
A decision by the BBC on whether it seeks to go ahead with the new digital-only service is expected next month when the Corporation’s interest test is published.
Boom Radio — a station which has successfully appealed to disaffected Radio 2 listeners and features DJ David Hamilton, 86, among its presenters — has increased its audience year-on-year by six per cent to over 700,000 weekly listeners.
Phil Riley, Boom’s co-founder, said: ‘It is baffling that BBC bosses may still be considering spending millions of pounds more of the public’s money to launch a radio station aimed at baby boomers, despite knowing there is a fast-growing, successful commercial station already providing that exact same service, and given the almost daily press stories about the BBC’s lack of funds.’
‘The brilliant figures for Boom should be the final nail in the coffin for the BBC’s plans.
‘Pressing ahead would simply be a spoiler project effectively designed to kill off Boom Radio.’
Greatest Hits Radio is another station which is vying for older listeners.
It has poached three presenters from Radio 2 including Ken Bruce, 73, Simon Mayo, 66, and Paul Gambaccini, 75.
Listening figures released yesterday by RAJAR show the station’s audience has grown by 13 per cent from 6.66 million to 7.54 million listeners since a 2023 report covering the same period last year.
The Radio 2 downturn comes amid claims that it has been abandoning its core older listeners in a bid for a younger audience — and continued speculation that Greatest Hits Radio and Boom are being boosted by disaffected former fans of the BBC station.
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