And even on weekends we had Adele Roberts and Matt & Mollie. We had it so good. The only complaints really (and they were minor) was that Dean was slightly marmite on Friday and weekend mid-mornings and if that's the worst we can say about a Radio 1 line-up that's pretty good going. 

Some of this I imagine is the tabloids making mischief but if there are elements of truth in there it's very worrying for Radio 1 - particularly say if the bit about GK Barry's show not being live is true. I really am struggling to understand that Thursday 1pm for 6 weeks 'GK Barry Show' - even if there's some valid reason/project that means Matt & Mollie can't do Thursdays for the next 6 weeks we're all none the wiser so it just looks like they've been sidelined one of their most popular shows for a TikToker. Like why Thursdays and why in such a peak period? And how do they think that's going to endear her to audiences?  Also if the bit about 'Insiders say he prides himself on championing new talent' bit is accurate he really needs to reconsider. Yep Sam & Danni have progressed under his watch but any head of station worth in salt would've spotted their potential. And other than them the tale is of rolling out the red carpet for celebs to play DJ whereas in a time where routes for DJs are more limited than ever 'proper new talent' have had to wait their turn. We all could've told you Matt & Mollie and Katie were weekday ready long before they moved in 2024. And the likes of James Cusack or Emil Franchi are exactly the sort of DJs a station like Radio 1 should be championing but instead both had to do cover duty for 4 years before they got proper shows.  Sadly the whole feel of the station is you never quite know who'll turn up and it's not getting the love it deserves and that's not on the DJs at all - many of them are excellent. But while on its own it's not a big thing not even updating the Sounds schedule for cover most of the time is a pretty telling summary of where Radio 1 is currently. And Radio 1 with stuff like the Going Home revolving door and how suddenly Jordan was pushed out (with seemingly no love lost from Radio 1's side) have meant the likes of us who might otherwise leap to Radio 1's defence even aren't prepared to give Radio 1 the benefit of the doubt. 

Yes - for somebody like Dean.  Even if there was the possibility of contract renewal, what do you do, stay on Early Breakfast and get pushed out in another year, or go somewhere else with a higher profile. Jordan's exit was a bit more complicated but similar.  No chance of Breakfast in the medium term, or a huge pay rise and one of the biggest shows in radio. Radio 1 and even Radio 2 are no longer the glittering prizes.

How far things have fallen in 5 years.  Greg, RMC, Scott and Chris, Vick and Jordan - what a line-up that was. The problem is that Radio 1 seems to be trying to appeal to an audience that doesn't exist. Between Scott and Chris leaving and then Jordan leaving - I lost most interest.

I couldn’t agree more - Aled has massacred the schedules, invested in the wrong presenters and for me, personally has killed the connection between the listener and presenter. He’s out of touch and has made some shocking decisions in his tenure. 

Similar to the Sun article 

Also in the Daily Mail 'It's not the station it once was... the wheels are coming off': Inside the Radio 1 'revolt' over GK Barry's 'bizarre' new two-hour slot... as ALEX DOYLE reveals the string of hosts 'fearing the chop' to make way for 'TikTok influencers' When Radio 1 announced the sackings of experienced DJs in favour of influencers in July, they tried to spin the move as the dawn of an exciting new era. Station boss Aled Haydn Jones is desperate to connect with a younger audience and believed that bringing in content creators and social media stars would mean more listeners and more engagement. But insiders say his determination to ‘TikTok-ify’ the station has only led to chaos and paranoia, with established presenters now living in fear of losing their jobs. One source branded the changes, which saw big names like Rickie Haywood-Williams, 46, Nat O’Leary, 34, James Cusack, 36, and Swarzy, 33, all axed – branded as a ‘middle finger to the craft of radio’. If what I’m told is correct, they were informed of their fate by phone call. At the time, Haydn Jones publicly thanked the axed presenters for their service and wished them ‘every success in whatever comes next’. But well-placed sources at the broadcaster say that the atmosphere at the once hugely successful station has become so toxic that a number of staff members have quit their roles and many others dread coming into the office. Social media influencer GK Barry has been handed a two-hour BBC Radio 1 slot starting every weekday at 1pm, which will get under way later this month Station boss Aled Haydn Jones (pictured with Mollie King and Matt Edmondson, right) is said to believe bringing in content creators will mean more listeners and more engagement Rickie Haywood-Williams was axed from Radio 1 in the shake-up, which has been slammed as a ‘middle finger to the craft of radio’ ‘It’s not the station it used to be,’ says my insider. ‘The atmosphere is awful here right now and it’s just not a nice place to work. ‘A lot of people blame Aled for the shift. People are jumping ship. It’s not just presenters going, staff across the station are leaving. There is going to be a full-on revolt soon, there is just no direction right now.’ Much of the anger – and bewilderment – is focused on the hiring of social media influencers GK Barry, 27, and Charley Marlowe, 26, neither of whom has much experience in radio. GK has been handed a two-hour slot starting every weekday at 1pm, which will get under way later this month, initially for a six-week run. While the I’m A Celebrity star’s representatives argue that she does indeed have plenty of experience, I can reveal she will not be broadcasting live. Sources say the shows hosted by GK – whose real name is Grace Eleanor Keeling – will be pre-recorded and broadcast ‘as live’. My insider says: ‘It’s very bizarre that she isn’t hosting live, she is Radio 1’s big new signing and you’d think that she would want to be doing it live, as you would think the bosses would too. They continued: ‘It has left some in the production department absolutely furious. There have been multiple crisis meetings with management about this. ‘Production are ultimately the ones who have to somehow put this show together without real-time input from the listeners. It’s just deceiving them and, without the listeners, there is no Radio 1.’ Remove ads They add: ‘Nobody has anything against GK personally, but it leaves such a sour taste that people qualified for the role have lost out. It’s us in production who have to figure it out.’ GK has previously acted as a relief presenter for the station in the last year and, while she has little live radio experience, her podcast Saving Grace, which she launched in 2022, is a massive hit, attracting high-profile guests and thousands of weekly streams. Previously, the Loose Women panellist has said of the gig: ‘I am really excited to be back hosting a series of my own BBC Radio 1 shows from this September. ‘You’ll be hearing my favourite songs, we’ll be speaking with some really exciting guests and, as always, in true GK Barry style, I promise a lot of humour, chaos and embarrassing stories along the way!’ The appointment of Charley Marlowe – who narrated the BBC Three dating series I Kissed A Girl and had a stint presenting Radio 1’s early breakfast show – has proved equally controversial. I’m told there are rumours that Charley’s show is ‘nowhere near ready’, and that she has yet to master operating the decks, which control the music and microphones, among other things. Content creator Charley Marlowe – who narrated the BBC Three dating series I Kissed A Girl – has also been appointed to the BBC Radio 1 team Swarzy, who hosted the early breakfast show on Sundays, was also axed from the DJ line-up Representatives of GK Barry, who appeared on I'm A Celebrity in 2024, argue that she does indeed have plenty of experience for her new role I’m also told the show – which Marlowe will present with co-host Vicky Hawkesworth, 30 – has not yet been fine-tuned. Production staff are also disturbed by the fact that Charley will be the third co-host Vicky has had since 2022. ‘It feels like Aled has no direction, swapping out one northern female for another without explanation, it’s not a good look,’ said my insider. As part of the sweeping changes, presenting duo Danny Mylo, 36, and Rosie Madison, 40, will take over the Early Breakfast Show, the 5am to 7am show which had been hosted by fan-favourite Dean McCullough, 34. The best friends first found fame hosting various shows on Bauer media’s regional stations, including Hits Radio and Pulse 1. Meanwhile, James Cusack’s Weekend Breakfast will now be hosted by Emil Franchi, 33, from Durham, who broke into the industry through university radio. Charlie Hedges will continue fronting the popular Live Lounge but will be joined by Jeremiah Asiamah, who replaces Melvin Odoom, 46, and Rickie Haywood-Williams, who joined in 2019. Asiamah, 28, is known for his high-energy music sets and last year appeared at Glastonbury. Haydn Jones, 50, took over the role as Head of Radio 1 in 2020 from Ben Cooper. Before rising up the ranks, he worked on The Chris Moyles Show from 2004 to 2012. He was initially seen as a popular choice but his star has waned over the years. Insiders say the off-air chatter among frustrated staffers became so loud that Haydn Jones issued a memo condemning the gossips and demanding that they put a stop to their muck-raking. But it has failed to stop the rot. My source adds of the chaos at Radio 1: ‘The place has gone to absolute s***. It just feels like the wheels have fallen off. People are hoping things will improve but we don’t think it will. ‘Staff are so burnt out, they are not getting pay rises and the current structure means they can be shifted between shows without any say [in the way they are deployed]. We keep feeding back to our line managers but nothing changes.’ They added that the seasoned presenters who do remain, such as Mollie King, Matt Edmondson and Jack Saunders, are fearful they could be replaced by more influencers: ‘Everyone’s jobs are at risk’. The latest figures from audience-research company RAJAR show that Radio 1’s listenership dropped by 131,000 to 6.9million in the second quarter of this year. But one star who needn’t worry about their position is Greg James, the longstanding host of the station’s prestigious breakfast show. The 40-year-old, who joined the station almost 20 years ago, has been at the helm of the flagship slot since 2018 and bosses are so keen to keep him, they gave him a pay rise that took him into the £440,000 – £444,999 bracket. ‘They would be totally finished without James, that’s why they’ve thrown more money at him,’ said my insider. ‘If he was to go, they wouldn’t have a presenter for that slot and whoever Aled brings in next, we’ll have to pick up the pieces again.’ A spokesman for the station said: ‘Radio 1 is proud to be the number one radio station for young audiences and we're looking forward to the launch of our new schedule this month, which has an exciting line-up of both new, and established, DJs. ‘The station has a strong track record of nurturing young and emerging talent but, alongside this, Radio 1 will always be home for DJs with specialist music knowledge and from a diverse range of backgrounds.’