Latest news about XS Manchester 106.1

Clint Boon announces departure from radio and XS Manchester Drive Show

XS Manchester Drive presenter Clint Boon is leaving the station after seven years on the drive time slot. He’ll be replaced by former Rock FM and Key 103 presenter Hywel Evans from January. Clint announced the move on his show today, with a follow-up statement on social media.

XS Manchester to air new current affairs radio programme

Michelle Ackerley is joining XS Manchester to host a brand-new current affairs programme on Sundays at 7pm. The Manchester journalist will present the weekly show starting on Sunday 3rd October. XS Manchester’s Voice is funded by the Audio Content Fund and will be produced by MediaCityUK-based Audio Always...

Alex James moves from Hits Radio to XS Manchester

Hits Radio presenter Alex James is joining XS Manchester to host the breakfast show from July 6th. Alex has been on-air in the North West for 15 years, with stints at Key 103, Radio City, Real and Century. He’s also presented on Kerrang! Radio and hosted Bauer’s networked evening show In Demand. He says: “I can’t wait to get started on XS Manchester Breakfast – finding out what’s going on in our listeners’ lives, keeping an eye over everything that’s going on in and around Manchester and of course with loads of the best music to start the day in the world’s greatest city.” ...

RAJAR Q1 2020: Regional and local radio facts and figures

XS Manchester has doubled its listening hours year-on-year after the station was saved from closure. The Communicorp station now has 132,000 weekly reach (last year 94,000) and 1.28 million hours (last year 546k), giving it more total hours than Manchester’s heritage station Hits Radio. Also in the north west, Radio City Talk, which will close at the end of this month, leaves with 32,000 weekly listeners, down from 45,000 a year ago. Sticking with Bauer, local stations are mostly on the up. Of the 15 local services for Greatest Hits Radio in Scotland and England, eight are up and seven are down...

Ofcom rejects XS Manchester’s request of format change

XS Manchester’s request of format change to rebrand as Capital XTRA has been rejected by Ofcom. The request was made last October by Communicorp (now known as CCUK) to change from a rock and speech service for 35 – 64-year-olds, to an urban contemporary music service featuring music of an Afro-Caribbean origin and was subject to a public consultation. Ofcom originally said it was minded to approve the change, which would have resulted in Global’s Capital XTRA service being broadcast on 106.1FM in Manchester, closing XS. There were over 70 individuals and organisations who responded, with all but two opposed to the proposed changes...

Ofcom receives 51 objections to XS Manchester change

The feedback to Ofcom’s consultation about the proposal to change XS Manchester to Capital XTRA sees 51 objections and two in favour. Of the two welcoming the news, one is a local music company whilst the other simply comments “Since the last rebrand it’s been a dreadful station, put it out of its misery, sooner the better.” But over 50 people took the time to write to Ofcom to help block the move. Some of the comments include: ...

RAJAR Q4 2019: Regional and local radio facts and figures

The big stories from around the regions this quarter include Capital Scotland shedding 104,000 listeners, whilst Hits Radio and Greatest Hits Radio increased listeners in the North of England. Global brands - The majority of regional and local Capital stations are down – including Capital Scotland which falls from 513,000 to 409,000 weekly reach, Capital South Wales going from 213,000 to 180,000, Manchester down from 493,000 to 437,000 and Yorkshire down to its lowest figure of 849,000. Recently acquired and...

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...

Fleur, Greg & James lined up for Tuning In North

Fleur East, Greg Burns and James Barr are the first speakers to be announced for Radiocentre’s Tuning In North event this September. The event will be the industry body’s biggest conference outside London and will bring together radio stations, agencies and clients for a full morning looking at the world of audio. Attendees will hear about the latest trends and opportunities in the evolving world of radio, be provided with insight into the latest in creativity and binaural sound and learn how advertisers can capitalise on the audio revolution.

RAJAR Q1 2019: Regional and local radio facts and figures

Whilst the national news is all about new radio stations and breakfast shows, the main headlines in the regions are about one of Bauer’s latest brands. The first results for Greatest Hits Radio in England show a mainly downward trend following the rebrand from City 2 stations last quarter.