NathanS

They only poached them two years ago to replace Charlie Sloth. I'd imagine they'll be there for a few more years at least.

It's probably set in stone that M&M are breakfast cover (both scheduled & unscheduled), unless in a very rare case neither of neither of them being avaliable, i doubt we will see her cover breakfast. I wouldn't mind Adele covering for Clara again, as she used to do. Makes a lot more sense than taking RMC off their own show with Adele covering their slot, especially as that kind of zoo type format isn't as well suited to mid morning in my opinion.

I doubt it's anything to do with the future of any of the DJ's. They wouldn't trail a departure announcement. Slightly off topic but as i've seen it mentioned above as a guess, Scott's departure has been speculated for years now. Management must be happy to keep them on otherwise they probably would've departed under the last changes. I still think they'll be in that slot this time next year. The fact Greg has only just increased to 5 days, i'd say it's nothing to do with his future on R1 Breakfast. As has been commented by several other members, i agree it'll likely be an announcement for an on air 'event' such as Comic Relief. The other thought i had (before Scott said it's him joining Greg tomorrow) was regarding filling the void of Big Weekend. Of course it looks unlikely it will take place this year, and there's been no announcement regarding that matter.

My first thought was another LOLathon. Scott mentioned it during a show last month about how much they really enjoyed doing it. The fact both Scott & Chris are on suggests it is that. It's something they could pull off during current times (more so than another Greg 'stunt'), and very much needed in my opinion! Admittedly, i didn't listen to the radio this morning so i forgot Greg wasn't on. Was he scheduled to just have today off? Could be totally unrelated. I'd say that it being Comic Relief is likely but who knows... guess we'll find out tomorrow.

It'll all depend whether he would want a full time return to Radio. It sounds like he's being lined up for prime time tv again. He's certainly someone Radio 2 could rely on as a regular stand in. Considering how inconsistent the cover is for the show, i really wouldn't be surprised if he fills in for Steve Wright before long.

It's good hearing Vernon back on the radio. Takes me back to when i was younger hearing him on a Saturday. He's brought back the maths question feature too, which is a nice touch.

Cover wise i wouldn't complain if it went something like: Early Breakfast: The Friday host who is on duty that week/previously on the Friday rotation or maybe Vick Hope Breakfast: Scott & Chris or Jordan (i think it's time he depped on breakfast, he's more than capable and i'm sure much of the audience wouldn't complain!) Mid Morning: Adele, Arielle or Katie as secondary dep Afternoons: M&M, Drivetime: Split between Jordan or RMC. Future Sounds: Jack Saunders Weekend Breakfast & Mid morning cover could now be a way in to give the newer voices more airtime and get the audience used to them. Certain people (if anyone reads digitalspy) go on about 'new talent', this will probably be the best way to slowly transition the schedule in the coming years. Dance Anthems will likely be left in Arielle's hands when Charlie's off.

I made similar comments the other day. I agree, mid mornings work best as a music based show, sandwiched between two feature/personality led shows. Adele, in my opinion is the best cover for Clara. She largely keeps the usual format, but adds in a few features from her usual show (when she was on early breakfast), it baffled me personally why they put them on daytime, then Adele on evenings. RMC were brought in a few years ago to replace The 8th, and they suit that show. I can't see any benefit them moving to daytime full time anytime soon, or at all.

Maybe so, although i can see Annie staying where she needs for as long as they need her to. I can't see the real need to move her off her slot. Jack Saunders may well be odds on to be the one to replace her, should the time come in the next couple of years. It probably won't be long before we hear Sian cover Annie or Jack, the latter will probably be Annie's main stand in now Phil Taggart has gone.

Part 2 (sorry for waffling on) As for departures. I was sad to see Dev (Alice too, miss them both on the air together) and Mistajam leave. It's likely the last 3 departures were management decision to move along the schedule to fit in the new presenters. I got the impression Mistajam was approached and poached by Global for Capital Dance, a big loss to Saturday afternoons, although they were well prepared for replacements on 1xtra drive and Dance Anthems. As much as quite a few weren't fans, Maya Jama was rather a big loss for the station. She has quite a following who i imagine listened because it was her, who would otherwise not listen at that time (or to radio 1 at all). Although i think Jordan is great in that slot and all 3 shows are the least he deserves, plus he will have gained new listeners from his profile being raised on IAC. Phil Taggart was good at what he did on his show, but i feel like he's been pushed aside for some years now, same goes for Huw Stephens. Both had good stints at R1, the latter especially so! I'm sure Sian and Gemma will do a good job taking their respective shows forward. Continuing the festive period intake was a good call. Some very strong voices to keep and eye on for the future (cover, Friday breakfast rotation etc.) It puts them in a strong position for future schedule shake ups. Fast forward to this year, it's great to hear Greg back on 5 days this week. Overall R1 sound like they're in a good place. I think the weekday schedule is strong and no reason to move them along at all for now. Only real change i can see this year is Jordan's inevitabe move to drive. September will be 3 years since Grimmy moved to that slot so it'll likely be then they swap (or Grimmy leaves, someone new joins to take 10-1 etc.), although i personally hope it happens sooner as it's more than overdue. I imagine, along with other parts of the BBC... the Sounds app will get more of a push this year. Think that's everything covered pretty much.

Radio 1 (well radio in general) was a massive help for me during 2020, especially during the first lockdown. I think all of the DJ's (both daytime and specialist) were on top of their game and had the tone 100% spot on. Scott and Chris, even with the latter at home still bounced off each other well, and it was good to hear them back on breakfast cover (twice) and drivetime. Radio 1 (along with other stations) apparently had a strong boost in listeners, and overall listening hours during lockdown 1. (i don't have a source, read it on an article somewhere). Hopefully they've retained those listeners and added more on top. In terms of changes, some i agreed with.. some i didn't (mostly because i'm not a fan of change). Lockdown schedule was okay. The rotating of shows was a bit jarring (on the downside, we only heard Jordan, Dev & Alice every 3 weeks at the weekend) The new schedule from September, i can see the points Aled made for bringing it in, but for me the varying show lengths, and new start times, i preferred the old schedule. I don't understand the breakfast show and mid morning show time change. I also preferred 'daytime' finishing at 7 (probably because that's what i'm used to, plus it's lead to half hour being chopped off Scott's show). Personally, i think there could've been other ways of highlighting new artists/music and bridging the gap between specialist and daytime, instead of moving Future Sounds back an hour.(i'd imagine there was a budget element too, with live shows finishing an hour early at midnight, and an hour later at 5am). However, that's just my opinion. I'm sure they know what they're doing behind the scenes.

I was going to post this during Christmas week, but didn't get the time. Im going to combine several things into this thread, so the title might be a bit vague. Here goes. 2020 was a very tough year for us all, in all aspects (so i hope you are all well, i've found finally joining this forum a great escape being able to actually discuss a subject i like with other people). It also saw some huge changes at Radio 1 with plenty of changes made so a few question which i'll bulletpoint below. -Do you agree with any/some/all of the changes Aled has made last year? -Does anyone think any of the decisions were influenced or as a result of the pandemic? (i.e budget, or presenters reconsidering their options). -Overall what are your thoughts on where Radio 1 are now compared to say 2019, or pre April 2020? Are they in a strong position now compared to then? Also, any predictions for 2021 will be welcome. I'll post my thoughts in a seperate post underneath, would be interested to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

Would like to hear everyones views of this years guest presenters. For me, of the daytime presenters (from what i heard), James Cusack was the stand out for me, i thought he fitted right in with R1's format, and would like to hear him cover again as i think he would fit in well (they could do with a cover presenter who could cover across a variety of shows like Jordan did before he gained a show of his own). Rakeem Omar and Sam Macgregor (who co hosted life hacks) were also ones to watch for me. Quite a few of them were impressive tbh. Of the nighttime specialists i heard small bits of, Dan Alani was good sitting in for Annie, as was Sarah Storey on NYD (although i had heard her on Capital already so already knew what to expect). Dan would be a good one (providing he's free to do so) to step in when Jack Saunders is away. Overall i was impressed, hopefully it leads to some opportunities for some of them, either as cover, a shot at the Friday early breakfast rotation or opportunities elsewhere in the radio industry.

I agree, i miss Mistajam on Dance Anthems, on the other hand i get the best of both worlds, as i turn over to Capital at 7pm on a Saturday night after DA's has finished on Radio 1. Charlie is pretty much a spot on choice as replacement for him (equally Arielle would've been a good replacement) in my opinion.

Although i agree it sound a bit jarring at 3pm on a Friday, and that it suited the 6-7pm slot perfectly as a warm up/compliment to Friday nights on Radio 1, i'm glad they kept it. PA's is different to the morning 'Anthems' hour. It showcases the more commercial sounding brand new dance music/up and coming DJ's that wouldn't otherwise get mainstream exposure. Obviously quite a few other factors help, but quite a few tracks/DJ's that have had early on support have gone onto success both in the clubs and on the chart. Shane Codd is a current example. I suppose the last hour of Dance Anthems plays some of what goes out between 3 and 4pm on a Friday, plus the launch of Capital Dance (plus they now play more than just remixes of the main playlist on Capital on Fri/Sat nights). Annie Mac and co focus on the more cutting edge end of things. The other anthems shows i'm not much of a fan of anymore. It was much better when they launched it as Greatest Hits in 2017. Personally, i prefer hearing songs in full as opposed to being shortened and mixed into other songs. They are frequently repeated as well with how often they have anthems features (Friday 08:30-09:00, Going Home Anthems on a Thursday).

Tbf, despite the stick he gets from the general public, i do think he's good at what he does. He's a good DJ. However, he worked his way up from weekend breakfast/Sunday nights, through to evenings, then the second longest breakfast show. There's nowhere else to go now, apart from back to weekends. When the move to drive came, i did enjoy the show and it did start off with some good new features, but personally for me it's now suffering from the same fate his breakfast show did towards the end. Apart from when they have a guest on here and there, the show only has a handful of features which have become a bit stale. Especially with Jordan's rising profile, i think it's now perfect time for a change. Even if it is a direct swap in the interim.

I personally think Clara suits the Live Lounge show well. It has been a single headed, music heavy show since Jo Whiley took over in 2001. It sits nicely in the middle of the workday, inbetween two entertainment led shows. Same goes for Annie Mac. When she took over from Zane Lowe, i did associate her as a dance specialist but i think she fitted in nicely, and based off Aled's commitment to moving her show to a more primetime audience, i think she's going to be there (and rightly so) for a few more years. The strongest weekday schedule imo is the same as now except: 04:00/05:00-07:00 Adele Roberts staying put. I don't get to listen all that often, but i think she's fully in tune with her "Early Morning Crew". And of course Jordan on drive, which i can see being brought forward soon.

Fully agree with all of the above posts. I miss the banter between Greg & Chris Smith, What's My Age Again and the mayor of where? especially. I think he's great and it was a spot on decision by Ben Cooper and Aled to swap him and Grimmy. Maybe it's just i miss that old dynamic on the drive show, and Radio 1 in general at the time. A lot has changed (both for the best and not so great) since, and it's understandable things would change a bit upon landing the breakfast show. Regardless, it's great he now has 5 days and long may his time on breakfast continue. Should Jordan be offered drivetime, that would make a very strong line-up with Scott & Chris plus Annie Mac and Jack Saunders in the evenings Go back further, and i enjoyed the pre chart show era, with Feet Up Friday. Maybe wishful thinking but would love if they revived the idea somewhat, maybe in the last hour of the show

Money talks. Uncertainty around the BBC in general, plus now they now have to publicly publish the salaries of staff on their books who earn over 100k a year, the big commercial groups now know exactly how much they need to pay to poach talent from the BBC, highlighted by Chris Evans, plus the recent move of Graham Norton both to Virgin. I get the impression the only people i think (reading between lines and personal opinion) chose to leave and were poached were Mistajam and Dotty (A.Dot). With the former, launching a brand new station dedicated to new dance music, along with,(more than likely) a pay rise was probably too big an opportunity to miss. Although on a slight tangent, although i miss his Radio 1 show, i get the best of both worlds listening to Charlie Hedges, then Mistajam on Capital so win win.

Good to hear Dev has found a new Radio home. I don't really listen to Heart (narrow playlist and short formatted links) but some DJ's are good at putting some personality across into tight, short links. Will Manning and Rob Howard over on Capital seem to be good at it, as is Mistajam, of course...and i think Dev will be too. At a time on air radio roles are vanishing more and more due to the big commercial groups buying up smaller stations and networking their main brands, plus BBC Local Radio making cuts to their budgets, a job is a job so it might be a step down from his Radio 1 shows, but it's still a national radio gig on the biggest commercial network. Hopefully in time he can land some more shows/more prominent slot. There is often a lot of weekday cover up for grabs on Heart so wouldn't surprise me if he quickly moved into the go to cover role soon enough. I wouldn't mind hearing him have a go covering the Big Top40 (then he'll be heard on Capital aswell!). He, of course has experience doing the Official Chart on R1. At least with these changes, everyone leaving already has or have secured a show/s elsewhere.

Looking at the Christmas presenters announced for this year. Three of them were also on last year. Cal Carthy (covered Future Sounds last year, doing Dance Anthems this year), Connor Coates, and DJ Davda (who i noticed has covered the Soundsystem show a couple of times this year). One of the DJ's selected, Sarah Story was on the main Capital stations on Friday and Saturday nights recently, until they took on Mistajam/launched Capital Dance and had a reshuffle. Another name i recognise is Rakeem Omar. He broadcasts on BBC Radio WM so has a bit of broadcasting experience on BBC Radio.

Although some of them may still get chance to cover/be selected to host Fridays, there are a couple of last years intake of new presenters who i was impressed with. Gregor Davidson, who actually covered weekend early breakfast at least once or twice in the first part of the year. It would've been interesting to see if he, or any of the others would've been offered any cover work had it not been for the pandemic? It'll be a shame if the ship has sailed to get him on board.

Katie just appeared to confirm she's working Christmas Day, so looks like the info posted by the Official Charts Company is correct. Does seem a little odd that Scott won't be announcing the Christmas No 1, it's the first time it's fallen on 25th December since he took over as permanent host. Although, it's great he's doing Breakfast again.

The chart will almost certainly be live. It's the most important chart of the year (in the sense it's the one that still gets the general public interested in it), and will have live interaction with the listeners (texts, calls and tweets). There is usually two live shows on Christmas day (Breakfast and 'Drive' usually, or the chart when it falls on 25th December).

Arielle is on NYE 6pm till 10pm, then Jordan on 10pm till 1am.