Chris Evans enjoys record audience on BBC Radio 2
Chris Evans presents the nation's most popular breakfast radio show BBC Radio 2 breakfast presenter Chris Evans pulled in a record weekly audience over the last three months, according to new figures.
The broadcaster, who has hosted early mornings for four years, pulled in 9.85m listeners - compared to 9.35m during the previous quarter.
His Radio 1 counterpart Nick Grimshaw added 700,000 to his weekly audience, after suffering declining ratings.
Rajar's latest research reveals radio listening is at a 15-year high.
It says that 91% of the population aged over 15 listen to the radio each week, the highest level since records began in 1999.
The BBC's principal networks - Radios 1, 2 and 4 - all saw their audiences rise in the last three months, with Radio 2 substantially ahead with 15.5 million listeners each week.
But classical network Radio 3 saw its listenership dip to below two million.
Radio 4 extended its reach to just over 11 million weekly listeners, while Today, its flagship early morning current affairs programme, edged beyond the seven million mark.
Digital-only broadcaster 6 Music saw its audience come close to two million listeners each week, a record high for a station that was saved from the axe in 2010.
BBC Asian Network, another digital-only offering, also attracted a high of 668,000 weekly listeners, up from 555,000 last quarter.
In the last three months of 2013, ownership of digital radios climbed to more than 45% of all adults. A decade ago, the figure was 5.3%.
The number of listeners who tune into radio via their mobile phones has also climbed to nearly 25%, which rises to 45% for young listeners in their teens and early twenties.
"Britain's love affair with radio shows no signs of cooling," said Helen Boaden, the BBC's director of radio.
"We are a nation of audiophiles and so, despite the ever-increasing competition for people's time and the growing range of online audio providers, radio is thriving in the digital age."
She also applauded the "enduring popularity" of the BBC's portfolio of stations.
No comments:
Post a Comment