BBC GLR (PatrZDZ's vision)

**BBC GLR** (Greater London Radio) is the BBC's local radio station serving Greater London.

It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at Broadcasting House in Langham Place, London.

According to RAJAR, the station has a weekly audience of 607,000 listeners and a 1.6% share as of June 2023.

## History

### 1970–1988: Radio London

Local radio arrived in London as part of the second wave of BBC local stations, following a successful pilot project headed by Frank Gillard, who on visiting the United States, discovered local radio stations of varying formats and brought the concept to Britain.

Test transmissions for the new local radio station were carried out from Wrotham, Kent, on 95.3 MHz in FM mono, relaying BBC Radio 1 (at the time broadcast only on medium wave), with several announcements informing listeners of the new service. On 6 October 1970, Radio London was launched, three years before commercial radio for Greater London in the guise of LBC. An additional medium wave frequency was allocated on 1457 kHz (206 metres) from Brookmans Park. 95.3 soon changed to 94.9.

BBC Radio London was the local station for the capital, although, in its early days, it relied heavily on news reports from other stations in the BBC network and often shared programming with BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2. For several months after launch, the station was not able to play commercial records as no agreement had been reached over so-called needle time, which led to London listeners becoming acquainted with broadcast library music from outside the UK (notably the Canadian Talent Library) and music from film soundtracks. A phone-in programme, Sounding Brass, was first presented by Owen Spencer-Thomas in 1977. Listeners were invited to choose a Christmas carol or hymn while a Salvation Army brass band stood by in the studio to play their request live. It later moved to BBC Radio 2 and was presented by Gloria Hunniford.

As soon as Independent Local Radio stations LBC and Capital London went on air, public attention to Radio London declined.

Radio London started regular broadcasts from Harewood House, Hanover Square, near Oxford Circus, later moving to 35 Marylebone High Street - the former Radio Times warehouse.

Tests for FM stereo began in 1981 with Music on the Move, a programme featuring non-stop music, before its full launch on 11th February. The FM transmitter was shortly moved to Crystal Palace. This coincided with the planned relaunch in 1981, which saw the station take on a style that was softer than BBC Radio 2 - a station predominantly playing "easy listening" music. The music ranged from softer contemporary pop, such as The Carpenters, to light classical music. The relaunch led to improved audience figures and a string of awards and accolades.

One of its programmes on the schedule was Black Londoners, devised by Ray Criushank, a community relations officer for the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and presented by Alex Pascall. The programme helped to develop on-air talent from London's Afro-Caribbean community, namely Juliet Alexander, Syd Burke and Mike Phillips and was the pioneering programme on television or radio to regularly speak to Black Londoners. The programme's title was changed to Black London shortly before Radio London closed. It was revived for a short time in 2003, with Pascall returning as a presenter. The forerunner to the BBC Asian Network was an Asian programme, London Sounds Eastern, presented by Vernon Corea who was appointed the BBC's Ethnic Minorities Adviser in the 1970s. Pandit Ravi Shankar, and Indian pop star Usha Uthup, were among those interviewed for London Sounds Eastern, launched on BBC Radio London in 1976 and produced by Keith Yeomans.

A programming relaunch in 1984 saw Radio London adopt the tagline "The Heart and Soul of London", with more soul music being played during the day. Tony Blackburn from BBC Radio 1 moved up the schedule to host a morning show. Regular Soul Night Outs were held initially in Kilburn but later in other venues, such as Ilford. This was where Dave Pearce (who later went to BBC Radio 1) made his first regular appearances as a BBC DJ (Monday night programme "A fresh start to the week"). Two of the station's producers, Guy Hornsby (Tony Blackburn) and Mike Gray (Robbie Vincent Telephone Programme), went on to create the commercial dance stations Kiss 102 and Kiss 105.

Radio London closed on 7 October 1988. The final programme, just before its 18th birthday, was presented by Mike Sparrow and Susie Barnes. Immediately after closedown at 7 pm, test transmissions began for the next 17 days, preparing for a new radio station for London, Greater London Radio (GLR).

### 1988–present: Greater London Radio (GLR)

Test transmissions for the new Greater London Radio GLR began as soon as Radio London closed. Its pre-launch announcements stated in no uncertain terms that GLR was to be radically different in style. GLR was to be the first new radio station in London for 15 years.

Heading the new station were Managing Editor Matthew Bannister and Programme Organiser Trevor Dann. Bannister came from Capital London, while Dann came from Radio 1, via BBC TV's Whistle Test, and developed an album-oriented music policy. GLR was aimed at people who hate pop but love music, hate prattle (excessive on-air talk) but want to know what's what where in the world. Early promotions used the phrase "rock 'n' rolling news". Much of the daytime speech output covered London events and nightlife, with comedians and other artists being interviewed.

Three years into the new relaunch, the station was given an additional three years to prove itself to its audience by senior BBC management or close for good; this threat was also applied to its other metropolitan BBC local radio stations BBC WM in Birmingham and BBC GMR in Manchester. The threat was lifted after the BBC deemed it sufficiently patronised to remain on-air; however, criticism of the station grew from its Radio London days, causing David Mellor, then Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport to remark: "The BBC must think hard whether it is occupying radio frequencies without making much use of them." This claim was rejected by senior management.

In 1991, Matthew Bannister left to spearhead the BBC's charter-renewal strategy called Extending Choice. He was replaced as Managing Editor by Trevor Dann. Kate Marsh was appointed News Editor. In 1993, GLR was forced to relinquish its 1458 kHz medium wave frequency, for a new commercial radio station, which was eventually won by Sunrise Radio. Previously it had been simulcasting with 94.9 MHz FM, with a few programmes which occasionally opted from FM. In 1993, Nigel Chapman, Head of BBC South & East, drove through a policy of "speech shoulders", forcing GLR to drop its music / speech mix at breakfast and drive times. Dann resigned in protest and left the BBC.

Steve Panton, formerly Managing Editor of BBC Radio Solent, took over and GLR in 1993. One of its noted DJs on-air at the time was Gary Crowley, who had a weekend show which regularly showcased new and unsigned bands. Kaleem Sheikh presented the A to Z of Indian Film and Classical music to a mainstream and specialist audience.

## Programming

Local programming is produced and broadcast from the BBC's London studios from 4:30 am to 1 am every weekday and from 6 am to 1 am on Saturdays and Sundays. During the station's downtime, BBC GLR simulcasts overnight programming from the BBC World Service.

The station's output is generally aimed at 25 to 45-year-olds, and features a more diverse range of programmes for London's various ethnic, religious, social and cultural communities in the evening hours and on weekends. Most programmes contain a lot of speech (including interviews, studio guests, banter between presenters and phone ins) but many also feature music to a greater or lesser degree. The varied styles of music played on the station is the key element which differentiates BBC GLR from London's other major speech based radio station, LBC 1152.

### Presenters and Programmes

Weekdays

* Early Breakfast with Jasom Rosam - 4:30am till 6:30am
* Breakfast with Salma El-Wardany and Tim Arthur - 6:30am till 9:30am
* Robert Elms - 9:30am till 12:30pm
* London Live with Eddie Nestor - 12:30pm till 1pm
* Jeanette Kwakye - 1pm till 3pm
* Claira Helmet - 3pm till 5pm (Monday-Thursday only)
* Jen Brister - 3pm till 5pm (Friday only)
* Drivetime with Simon Lederman and Frankie McCamley - 5pm till 8pm
* Jim Davis - 8pm till 10pm (Monday-Wednesday only)
* Ian Stone's Big Schmooze - 8pm till 9pm (Thursdays only)
* Lavender Room with Matthew Linfoot - 9pm till 10pm (Thursdays only)
* Gary Crowley - 8pm till 10pm (Friday only)
* Upfront with Charlotte Franks - 10pm till 10:30pm
* Nikki Bedi - 10:30pm till 1am (Monday only)
* Dotun Adebayo - 10:30pm till 1am (Tuesday only)
* Gerry Lyseight - 10:30pm till 1am (Wednesday only)
* Joe Mackertich - 10:30pm till 1am (Thursday only)
* DJ Target's Friday Jam - 10:30pm till 1am (Friday only)

Saturday

* Saturday Breakfast with JoAnne Good - 6:00am till 9:00am
* Carrie Grant and David Grant - 9:00am till 12:00pm
* Ellie Goulding - 12:00pm till 2:00pm
* Claira Helmet with Jamie Reid - 2:00pm till 6:00pm
* Chris Hawkins - 6:00pm till 8:00pm
* DJ Ritu - 8:00pm till 9:00pm
* Yasmeen Khan - 9:00pm till 11:00pm
* Rampage with Jess Iszatt - 11:00pm till 1:00am

Sunday

* Inspirit with Jumoké Fashola - 6:00am till 8:00am
* Judi Love - 8:00am till 10:00am
* Ellie Goulding - 10:00am till 1:00pm
* GLR's Greatest Hits - 1:00pm till 2:00pm
* Tony Blackburn - 2:00pm till 4:00pm
* Eliza Rose's Sunday Best - 4:00pm till 7:00pm
* Norman Jay - 7:00pm till 10:00pm
* Jasmine Dotiwala - 10:00pm till 1:00am