Latest news about BBC Radio 1

Greg James to write for Waitrose newspaper

BBC Radio 1 Breakfast presenter Greg James has signed up to be a regular columnist for the Waitrose & Partners Weekend newspaper. Greg, who co-wrote the children’s book series, Kid Normal, will have his first column published today in which he talks about his love of flan and why he is a fan of Waitrose. Other columnists for the magazine include BBC Radio 2’s Jeremy Vine and Phillip Schofield. Ollie Rice, Editor-in-Chief of Waitrose Weekend says: ‘We’re delighted to welcome Greg to the Waitrose & Partners Weekend team. His positivity and wit will be'...

Radio 1 pulls another listener stunt with Greg James being ‘kidnapped’

On the 1st anniversary of Radio 1’s prank of putting Greg James into an escape room and asking listeners to help find him, they’ve pulled another one with Who’s Got Greg. There was a lot of media interest when Greg didn’t turn up for his breakfast show this morning (Wednesday 19 February) after a late night out at the BRITs, but as the day went on there was speculation that this could be another prank to hook listeners in. This was confirmed when Greg appeared on Scott Mills’ lunchtime show to reveal that after the awards he’d been blindfolded, bundled into a car, then taken to a secret location and was in a white room with only a single bed in it...

Annie Mac signs up as Reform Radio ambassador

Manchester online radio station Reform Radio has appointed BBC Radio 1 presenter Annie Mac as its first ambassador. Annie’s role as an ambassador for Reform Radio will see her supporting and strengthening the work of the social enterprise, which uses the engagement of radio and music to work with young people looking for employment. On the appointment, Annie Mac says: “I’m really honoured to take on the role of ambassador for such a brilliant organisation as Reform Radio. The work it does is vital in charging up young people with the confidence they need to go out there in the world and...

RAJAR Q4 2019: London and national brands round-up

Coverage of the general election helped 5 Live, Radio 4 and LBC each add half a million listeners across 2019. 5 Live is up from 4.9m to 5.4m in the Q4/2019 RAJAR listening figures, while Radio 4 has added a similar amount, rising from 10.4m a year ago to 10.9m now. LBC, including new digital station LBC News, posts a record high of 2.7m listeners (up more than half a million year on year), while talkRADIO is up more than 40% from 12 months ago to now have 433,000 listeners a week – another record high for the Wireless station...

KISS and Radio 1 team up for the Young Audio Awards

Presenters Matt Edmondson and Mollie King from BBC Radio 1 and KISS FM’s Swarzy and Tyler West are joining forces for the Young Audio Awards 2020. The national presenters are ambassadors for the event which takes place on March 17th in London. There’s just one week left to submit entries for the competition, which celebrates radio and audio created by under-18s and school radio stations. KISS FM’s Swarzy, who presented an award last year, said: “I am so excited to be returning to the Young Audio Awards, this year as an Ambassador, after the thrill of 2019’s event where I got to meet so many talented future stars.”...

BBC Radio 1 chooses Dundee for Big Weekend 2020

Greg James has announced on Breakfast that Dundee is the location for BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend this year. Harry Styles, Camila Cabello and Dua Lipa are among the first acts named on the bill at the event, happening Friday 22nd to Sunday 24th May. Greg James says: “Radio 1 is nothing without its listeners. We rely on them getting involved in every show so to repay them for this, we love putting on a massive festival with our favourite artists – and this year we’ve got a brilliant opportunity to shout about our Scottish listeners and demonstrate how much we love them...

Shortlist out for Audio and Radio Industry Awards 2020

The shortlist for this year’s Radio Academy’s ARIAs have been announced at an event at News UK headquarters in London. Presenters getting nominated include Chris Evans, Greg James, Stephen Nolan, Zoe Ball and Frank Skinner. Bauer leads the Commercial Radio nominees with just over two dozen, whilst we count that News UK has around 15. Global isn’t mentioned due to not submitting any entries once again this year. The rest of the shortlist includes newspapers, independent podcasts, independent producers and presenters, along with a few local radio stations including...

Opinion: RadioToday industry predictions for 2020

One thing is for sure – radio is changing at an incredible pace. Keeping up with emerging products and making full use of smart technology is key. But whilst the art of ‘input’ is changing, the ‘output’ has remained fairly static for many decades. Listeners can still hear a friendly voice on the radio at all hours of the day – the major difference is where the voice is located and when they were recorded. But let’s dig deeper down into the industry and see what 2020 might bring...

Annie Nightingale recognised in New Year Honours List 2020

BBC Radio 1 presenter Annie Nightingale has been awarded a CBE for services to radio in the New Year honours list. Annie joined the BBC in 1970 for a regular programme on BBC Radio 1 and remains there to this day with a weekly show, and will celebrate 50 years at the station next year. She was also appointed as a Member of the Order of the British Empire for her services to radio broadcasting in 2002. In 2004, Annie was the first female DJ from Radio 1 to be inducted into the Radio Academy Hall of Fame...

BBC Radio 1 announces 35 lucky presenters getting a one-off show

BBC Radio 1 received over a thousand entries after asking for demos from anyone with any radio experience back in October. Among those taking a step away from their day jobs to host on Radio 1 are Jessica Maciel, a tattoo studio owner from Dublin, Dave Holt, a shop manager from Birkenhead, and Stuart Millar, a PhD student and research engineer from Belfast. Joining them is 21 year-old Gregor Davidson from Aberdeen, who will present on Radio 1 on Boxing Day, marking exactly one year to the day since he hosted his first ever radio...