Nick Grimshaw's BBC Radio 1 breakfast show records worst ever listening figures

Nick Grimshaw took over from Chris Moyles as Radio 1 breakfast show host in 2012
PA Archive/PA Images
Tom Powell26 October 2017
The Weekender

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DJ Nick Grimshaw’s breakfast show on BBC Radio 1 has recorded the lowest listener figures since records began.

The former X-Factor judge has seen his audience drop below 5 million per week for the first time, according to research body Rajar.

The show recorded 4.94 million weekly listeners between July and September, down from 5.5 million in the previous quarter.

Chris Evans, host of BBC Radio 2’s breakfast show and the corporation’s highest paid star, saw his audience increase to 9.35 million per week in the same period.

Chris Evans' breakfast show saw its audience rise to 9.35 million per week
PA Wire/PA Images

Grimshaw took over from Chris Moyles in 2012, who now hosts a rival breakfast show on Radio X.

Radio 1 controller Ben Cooper defended his show, stating it was still “the most relevant youth brand in the UK today”.

He also said that Radio 1 had 9.4 million subscribers on social media and another 5 million on YouTube.

A source at the station said: "Grimmy is the number one Breakfast Show in the UK for young audiences and that's all they really care about.

"Teens are addicted to their phones so you can see why Radio 1 does so well on YouTube and Facebook."

It is the first time listener figures have dropped below 5m since Grimshaw took over from Chris Moyles (pictured) in 2012
PA Archive/PA Images

Radio 1’s sister station, 1Xtra recorded its highest ever audience for its breakfast show in the same quarter.

Host A.Dot saw her listeners increase to 390,000 per week.

Ken Bruce's Radio 2 show also saw a boost in its audience, helping him achieve a record weekly reach of 8.77 million, up from 8.3 million in the second quarter and 8.48 million in the third quarter of 2016.

Helen Thomas, network editor of Radio 2, said: "Ken Bruce joined BBC Radio 2 in 1982 sitting in for Ray Moore, so for him to attract a record weekly audience of 8.77 million listeners 35 years later is a huge achievement. Congratulations to Ken - the ultimate PopMaster!"

BBC Radio 4's Today programme saw a drop in its audience after enjoying a huge growth last quarter.

The news show pulled in 7.06 million listeners a week in the third three month period of 2017, dropping from the 7.66 million a week it achieved in the second quarter and returning to the region of the 7.10 million it pulled in in the third quarter of 2016.

Digital station BBC Radio 6 Music attracted a record 2.43 million listeners a week in the third quarter of the year, an increase from 2.24 million in the second quarter and 2.34 million last year.

Bob Shennan, director of BBC Radio and Music, said: "These are great results for BBC 6 Music which is one of the most exciting radio innovations in the last 20 years and is second to none for its brilliant roster of music curators across the schedule.

"It's pleasing to see continued growth of all our digital stations with their unique range of programming from classic comedy and sports to urban music and specialist DJs."

Rajar bases its figures on an annual sample of approximately 100,000 respondents aged 15 and over. Participants are asked to keep a diary recording their radio listening for a week.

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