Eurovision 2024

[Jono]

A breakfast show ratings war between BBC Radio 1 DJ Chris Moyles and his new BBC Radio 2 rival Chris Evans would be "disastrous" for radio listeners, a senior commercial radio representative warned today.

Andrew Harrison, the chief executive of commercial radio trade body Radio Centre, warned that the clash would have dire consequences for listener choice if both DJs ended up chasing the same audience.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live today, Harrison warned against a "ratings war developing for listeners between Chris Moyles and Chris Evans, between Radio 1 and Radio 2".

"If that were to happen it would be disastrous of course for the overall plurality of stations and provision for listeners across the UK, not just from a BBC perspective," he added.

Moyles has already ramped up the competition between the two shows, three months before Evans takes over.

Greeting the news of Wogan's departure yesterday, Moyles, who has 200,000 fewer listeners than the 7.93m who tune into Wogan each week, said: "Yay for me! I will be the number one breakfast show in Britain."

That remains to be seen. Radio 1 is supposed to aim at a 15- to 24-year-old audience, while Radio 2's remit says it should be targeted at the over-35s. But there is only eight years difference between 35-year-old Moyles and Evans, who is 43.

"We are very worried in the commercial sector about the overall footprint and role of Radio 2, which has been driving a much younger audience across the last decade, and that's beginning to encroach on commercial radio's territory," said Harrison.

The Radio Centre chief executive said Radio 2's schedule had changed radically from the days when it was dominated by the likes of Ed Stewart, Jimmy Young, Gloria Hunniford and John Dunn.

"Older listeners are our concern. Radio 2 very much catered for an older demographic, an older audience, and that was appropriate as part of the overall radio landscape in the UK, a publicly-funded BBC would have a mainstream national service catering specially for older listeners," Harrison said.

He added that it was "clearly a matter for BBC management" who presented the Radio 2 breakfast show.

"Our concern would be much more really with the BBC management and the BBC Trust to ensure that whoever is fronting the breakfast show and replacing Terry ensures that the public service delivery of that breakfast show, the amount of news, the amount of information, documentaries and features are consistent with the BBC's public service remit," Harrison told the 5 Live breakfast show.

He said it was difficult for commercial radio to hold on to new talent when the BBC had the only two national pop music stations on FM broadcasting to a national audience.

"It's incredibly difficult for small local radio stations to compete against the national BBC. Radios 1 and 2 are the only stations on FM with national licences to broadcast pop music. Inevitably a lot of the strong talent that is nurtured and developed in commercial radio will want to move on to a national platform whenever they get an opportunity," Harrison added.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/sep/08/chris-moyles-chris-evans-ratings-war

I don't know many 15-25 year olds who are fans of Evans and would choose him over Moyles but know many over 25 who do.

The Radio Centre have moaned that Radio 1 is appealing to a bigger audience, now they're moaning the older Radio 1 listeners might move over. Make their minds up...

[popbitcher]

commercial radio are making a mockery of themselves now! we should be hearing their offerings rather than hearing their opinions on the bbc.

[E*F*4L]

commercial radio are making a mockery of themselves now! we should be hearing their offerings rather than hearing their opinions on the bbc.

i agree & i thought Johnny Yawn at Craptial had the most listeners ?

who gives a stuff what they think, all they want is to have it dumbed down to their level

[Jugalug]

I care what they think Alan. I don't dismiss people's opinions quite as readily as you do - in fact, I don't think I've met anyone who does.

[E*F*4L]

what they are saying is that it will split the Moyles audience which is what the bbc bosses want (we all know why they have done it) to get the older listners to more to R2,

as most 15-35 year olds apparently listen to R1 anyway so the commercial stations don't really have the much to lose do they & most of the comercial stations are owned by a few company's so they just play the same music & dj's over all their stations so they basically have national licenses & to be honest they are dire, my local stations both have a thing called the golden hour which they do every day & they only go back to 1985, one had Robbie's new song on & they acted & tried to get across as if they had actually had Robbie in for a interview where in fact he had been recorded on the phone, & then there is the rubbish un funny prank calls, they have said they are aimed at the older listener all along & just because Evans is now going to R2 they feel threatened, well why don't they actually do something about it, instead of just moaning all the time because first it was R1 & now it's R2, why not just get rid of R1,2 & 3 & just have R4 with its boring chat & no BBC stations that play music & just have the commercial crap to listen to.

[Robbie Keane]

Why does Radio Centre believe that the BBC is to blame for commercial radio's failings? If commercial radio produced anything worth listening to, we'd listen to it.

[Mike]

Aww bless commercial radio. It's like watching a 5 year old trying to get attention... "don't forget us, we need you to listen so we can get the advertisers to buy spots on our station" Well maybe if your stations weren't so fecking bland there would be more of a chance.

[Nik B.]

whaaaa?

Attention seeking still? surely Radio Centre have grown up by now...

[augusta92]

Surely the breakfast show is aimed at families who might range from 1- 60 years old?

Or do the BBC expect every member of a family to be listening to a different radio show?

Maybe they should develop multi links for car radios so that the 5 year olds can listen to one channel, and the 15 year old teenager can listen to another while their 45 year old parents on the school run listen to yet another channel? Why bother to encourage families to do anything together!

In our house the radio is on in the kitchen in the morning and we all sort of listen to it, whatever age we are.

[welovemoyles]

See old idiot Gaunty slagged off Moylesy again. Saying Evans is going to tread all over Moyles :x

[DarkAngelMJH]

Are you actually surprised about that Chris?

[Lucie]

'Chris Moyles: I'll beat Chris Evans in ratings'

http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/09/12/chris-moyles-i-ll-beat-chris-evans-in-ratings-115875-21667524/