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Moyles coaxes breakfast radio listeners away from Wogan
Amar Singh7 May 2009
Radio1 presenter Chris Moyles is almost neck and neck with Sir Terry Wogan in the battle for breakfast show listeners, figures showed today.
The Chris Moyles Show has 7.7million listeners each week, up from 7.3million, following the DJ's climb of Mount Kilimanjaro for Comic Relief.
BBC Radio2's Wake up to Wogan has 7.78million listeners, dropping from 7.96million last quarter and 8.1million last year.
Moyles took over the flagship slot in January 2004 as the self-styled "saviour of Radio1". He strongly denied reports on air last month that he was about to be axed from the station's breakfast show.
Figures released by British radio research body Rajar show that radio listening has reached an "all-time high" of 45.8million a week, or 90.2 per cent of the British population aged 15 and over.
The listener figures, for the first quarter of this year, are up by 251,000 and the overall number is the highest weekly reach recorded since research methods changed in January 1999.
BBC radio's reach is 33.81million, an increase on 33.52million last quarter but down from 34.22million last year. Its listener share is 56.3 per cent, up from 55 per cent last quarter but below the 56.8 per cent of last year.
Radio1 draws 11.07million listeners a week, up from 10.58 million last quarter, and its audience share, at 10.3 per cent, is up from 10.1 per cent last quarter.
Radio2 has a weekly reach of 13.46million, a slight fall from 13.47million last quarter. At 15.9 per cent, listener share is up from 15.8 per cent but down from 16.5 per cent last year. Radio3's reach rose to 1.99million, up from 1.98million last quarter, while Radio4's rose to 9.98million from 9.81million last quarter.
The Today programme, which has seen a surge in popularity linked with its coverage of the economic crisis, had a weekly reach of 6.69million listeners - up again from 6.42million last year.
Tim Davie, director of BBC Audio and Music, said: "These figures are excellent news for the radio industry, and digital radio in particular. Radio remains as relevant and popular as ever and the growth in digital listening, powered by DAB, is particularly encouraging."
Reader views (10)
If the egotistical, talentless, Moyles can bring in 7.7million listners, it doesn't say much for his listners taste in entertainment. Perhaps the Mums switch him on whilst taking the kids to school for background noise.
I work in an office full of 20 somethings and not one of them can stand him.
- Christina, Bedford, 07/05/2009 17:44
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Wogan's show is quite funny with all the letters and emails being read out. His substitute, Johnny Walker, is a true radio legend - how could anyone not know who he is! - he's a good laugh and I would prefer him on R2 breakfasts on a permanent basis.
Moyles is crude, unfunny, boorish, egotistical and has a dull show with his colleagues chatting amongst themselves when really that conversation should have been taking place in the pub the night before. I don't care about any of his colleagues lives. How about some real entertainment?
If we're staying on Radio 1, Scott Mills on the drivetime show is a real laugh. Self-deprecating and he puts on a real show for the listeners.
Good to see Five Live getting a boost to their ratings
- Noel, Belfast, UK, 07/05/2009 17:20
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I don't listen to the prattle of either of these two gentlemen,I find it much more interesting listening to the sound of the slugs chewing my lettuces.
- Richard, Streatham, 07/05/2009 17:00
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But Terry's a bloody good OAP... Mind you, I prefer Moyles over Wogan.
- James, Swindon, 07/05/2009 16:53
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The youngster won't me tuning in. Terry is still hilarious and is much nicer to wake up to.
- Geraldine, London, 07/05/2009 16:40
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The significant figure is that 1 in 10 of the population don't listen to the radio at all anymore. This is much higher than the comparable figure of those who don't watch any TV. And, if you look closely into the figures, you'll find that a very high percentage of the radio audience listen only to BBC stations.
- Eduardo, N London, 07/05/2009 16:24
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I tuned in this morning to listen to Terry Wogan and he was not on. Someone in his place. I guess if you cannot be bothered to turn up to work, then people will go elsewhere for their radio entertainment like I did.
- Missy, London, 07/05/2009 16:08
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Where do they get these figures from I'm 57 and have never been asked about my listening habits.
- Mike M, Bedford England, 07/05/2009 14:49
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Hardly anything to shout about is it? If you cannot beat an OAP well past his sell by date how good does that make you?
- Mike, London England, 07/05/2009 14:12
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Presumably Wogans' millions of faithful octogarian listeners are now starting to die off, by the coach load.
- Dave, Cumbria, 07/05/2009 13:44
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