BBC Radio 4

British national radio stationTemplate:SHORTDESC:British national radio station

Radio station in LondonTemplate:SHORTDESC:Radio station in London<templatestyles src="Module:Infobox/styles.css"></templatestyles>

**BBC Radio 4** is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasting House, London. The station controller is Mohit Bakaya.

Broadcasting throughout the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands on FM, LW and DAB, and on BBC Sounds, it can be received in the eastern counties of Ireland, northern France and Northern Europe. It is available on Freeview, Sky, and Virgin Media. Radio 4 currently reaches over 10 million listeners, making it the UK's second most-popular radio station after Radio 2.

BBC Radio 4 broadcasts news programmes such as *Today* and *The World at One*, heralded on air by the Greenwich Time Signal pips or the chimes of Big Ben. The pips are only accurate on FM, LW, and MW; there is a delay on digital radio of three to five seconds and online up to twenty-three seconds. Radio 4 broadcasts the Shipping Forecast which, in August 2017, was 150 years old.

According to RAJAR, the station broadcasts to a weekly audience of 10.0 million with a listening share of 11.3% as of December 2022.

## Outline

BBC Radio 4 is the second most popular British domestic radio station by total hours, after Radio 2 – and the most popular in London and the South of England.[*citation needed*] It recorded its highest audience, of 11 million listeners, in May 2011 and was "UK Radio Station of the Year" at the 2003, 2004 and 2008 Sony Radio Academy Awards. It also won a Peabody Award in 2002 for *File On 4: Export Controls*. Costing £71.4 million (2005/6), it is the BBC's most expensive national radio network and is considered by many to be its flagship. There is no comparable British commercial network: Channel 4 abandoned plans to launch its own speech-based digital radio station in October 2008 as part of a £100m cost cutting review.

In 2010 Gwyneth Williams replaced Mark Damazer as Radio 4 controller. Damazer became Master of St Peter's College, Oxford.

Music and sport are the only fields that largely fall outside the station's remit. It broadcasts occasional concerts, and documentaries related to various forms of both popular and classical music, and the long-running music-based *Desert Island Discs*. Prior to the creation of BBC Radio 5 it broadcast sports-based features, notably Sport on Four, and since the creation of BBC Radio 5 Live has become the home of ball-by-ball commentaries of most Test cricket matches played by England, broadcast on long wave. As a result, for around 70 days a year listeners have to rely on FM broadcasts or increasingly DAB for mainstream Radio 4 broadcasts - the number relying solely on long wave is now a small minority.

The cricket broadcasts take precedence over on-the-hour news bulletins, but not the Shipping Forecast, carried since its move to long wave in 1978 because that can be received clearly at sea. The station is the UK's national broadcaster in times of national emergency such as war, due to the wide coverage of the Droitwich signal: if all other radio stations were forced to close, it would carry on broadcasting. It has been claimed that the commanders of nuclear-armed submarines believing that Britain had suffered nuclear attack were required to check if they could still receive Radio 4 on 198 long wave, and if they could not they would open sealed orders that might authorise a retaliatory strike.

As well as news and drama, the station has a strong reputation for comedy, including experimental and alternative comedy, many successful comedians and comedy shows first appearing on the station.

The station is available on FM in most of Great Britain, parts of Ireland and the north of France; LW throughout the UK and in parts of Northern Europe, and the Atlantic north of the Azores to about 20 degrees west; MW in some areas; DAB; Digital TV including Freeview, Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media; and on the Internet.

## History

See also: BBC Home Service
The BBC Home Service was the predecessor of Radio 4 and broadcast between 1939 and 1967. It had regional variations and was broadcast on medium wave with a network of VHF FM transmitters being added from 1955. Radio 4 replaced it on 30 September 1967, when the BBC renamed many of its domestic radio stations, in response to the challenge of offshore radio. It moved to long wave in November 1978, taking over the 200 kHz frequency previously held by Radio 2, and later moved to 198 kHz as a result of international agreements aimed at avoiding interference.

For a time during the 1970s Radio 4 carried regional news bulletins Monday to Saturday. These were broadcast twice at breakfast, at lunchtime and an evening bulletin was aired at 5.55pm. There were also programme variations for the parts of England not served by BBC Local Radio stations. These included *Roundabout East Anglia*, a VHF opt-out of the *Today* programme broadcast from BBC East's studios in Norwich each weekday from 6.45 am to 8.45 am. *Roundabout East Anglia* came to an end in 1980, when local radio services were introduced to East Anglia with the launch of BBC Radio Norfolk.

All regional news bulletins broadcast from BBC regional news bases around England ended in August 1980 apart from in the south west. Until January 1983 there was no BBC Local Radio in the south west so these news bulletins and its weekday morning regional programme, *Mornin' Sou West*, continued to be broadcast from the BBC studios in Plymouth on VHF and on the Radio 4 medium wave Plymouth relay until 31 December 1982.

The launch of Radio 5 on 27 August 1990 saw the removal of Open University, schools programming and the "Study on 4" adult education slot to the new station resulting in the full Radio 4 schedule being available on FM for the first time. Between 17 January 1991 and 2 March 1991 FM broadcasts were replaced by a continuous news service devoted to the Gulf War, Radio 4 News FM, with the main Radio 4 service being exclusively on long wave. In September 1991 it was decided that the main Radio 4 service would be on FM as coverage had extended to cover almost all of the UK. Opt-outs were transferred to long wave: currently *Test Match Special*, extra shipping forecasts, *The Daily Service* and *Yesterday in Parliament*. Long wave very occasionally opts out at other times, such as to broadcast special services, the most recent being when Pope Benedict XVI visited Britain in 2010.

The longwave signal is part of the Royal Navy's system of Last Resort Letters. In the event of a suspected catastrophic attack on Britain, submarine commanders, in addition to other checks, check for a broadcast signal from Radio 4 on 198 longwave to verify the annihilation of organised society in Great Britain.

## Programmes and schedules

### Daily schedule

The simulcast from the BBC World Service begins at 01:00 and ends at 05:20 with a brief introduction from the early shift continuity announcer. The five-minute *Radio 4 UK Theme* composed by Fritz Spiegl followed this for 28 years until April 2006. It was replaced by an extension to the early news bulletin, despite public opposition and a campaign to save it. After a continuity link and programme trail there are a shipping forecast, weather reports from coastal stations for 04:00 GMT and the inshore waters forecasts, followed at 05:30 by a news bulletin, a review of British and international newspapers, and a business report. On weekdays at 05:45, *Farming Today*, which deals with news of relevance to the agricultural sector, is followed by *Tweet of the Day*, a 2-minute feature looking at different species of birds through their songs and calls. The morning news and current affairs sequence *Today* then runs for three hours from 06:00 to 09:00 on weekdays (for two hours from 07:00 on Saturdays).

The remainder of the day's schedule is determined by the day of the week, with the following 'fixtures' on weekdays: *Book of the Week* at 09:45 (the *Daily Service* on LW), *Woman's Hour* at 10:02 (including a *15 Minute Drama* at 10:45), *You and Yours* at 12:15, *The World at One* and a repeat of the previous day's *The Archers* at 14:02, the Afternoon Drama at 14:15. At 17:00 another current affairs programme, *PM*, is broadcast. At 18:30 there is a regular comedy 'slot', *The Archers* at 19:02, *Front Row* at 19:15 and a repeat of the *15 Minute Drama* at 19:45. *The World Tonight* airs at 22:00, followed by *Book at Bedtime* at 22:45. At weekends the schedule is different, with other fixed features at various times.

News is broadcast at the top of each hour: a two-minute summary, a longer bulletin as part of a current affairs programme, or a 30-minute programme on weekdays at 18:00 and midnight. At 12:00, FM carries a four-minute bulletin while long wave has the headlines followed by a shipping forecast; on weekdays, long wave also leaves *PM* for a three-minute shipping forecast at 17:54.

There is a news programme or bulletin (depending on the day) at 22:00. A report on the day's proceedings in the Westminster Parliament is broadcast (as *Today in Parliament*) at 23:30 and repeated (as *Yesterday in Parliament*), on LW only, at 08:31 the following morning. The midnight news is followed on weekdays by a repeat of *Book of the Week*. The tune *Sailing By* is played until 00:48, when the late shipping forecast is broadcast. As the timing of the forecast is critical, the *Sailing By* theme must be started at a set time and faded in as the last programme ends. Radio 4 finishes with *God Save the Queen*, and the World Service takes over from 01:00 until 05:20.

Timing is sacrosanct on the channel. Running over the hour except in special circumstances or the occasional scheduled instance is unheard of, and interrupting the Greenwich Time Signal on the hour (known as 'crashing the pips') is frowned upon.

An online schedule page lists the running order of programmes.

### Production

Many programmes are pre-recorded. Programmes transmitted live include *Today*, magazine programme *Woman's Hour*, consumer affairs programme *You and Yours*, and (often) the music, film, books, arts and culture programme *Front Row*. Continuity is managed from Broadcasting House with news bulletins, including the hourly summaries and longer programmes such as the *Six O'Clock News* and *Midnight News*, and news programmes such as *Today*, *The World at One* and *PM*, which by early 2013 had returned to Broadcasting House after 15 years at BBC Television Centre in White City. The news returning to Broadcasting House has also meant that newsreaders can provide cover for continuity, which regularly occurs at 23:00 each night and 16:00 on a Sunday. This has reduced the total number of continuity announcers required each day down from four to three.

The Time Signal, known as 'the pips', is broadcast every hour to herald the news bulletin, except at midnight and 18:00, where the chimes of Big Ben are played.

### Programmes

Main article: List of BBC Radio 4 programmes
Radio 4 programmes cover a wide variety of genre including news and current affairs, history, culture, science, religion, arts, drama and light entertainment. A number of the programmes on Radio 4 take the form of a "magazine" show, featuring numerous small contributions over the course of the programme—*Woman's Hour*, *From Our Own Correspondent*, *You and Yours*. The rise of these magazine shows is primarily due to the work of Tony Whitby, controller of Radio 4 from 1970 to 1975.

The station hosts a number of long-running programmes, many of which have been broadcast for over 40 years.

Most programmes are available for four weeks after broadcast as streaming audio from Radio 4's *listen again* page and via BBC iPlayer. A selection of programmes is also available as podcasts or downloadable audio files. Many comedy and drama programmes from the Radio 4 archives are rebroadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra (formerly BBC Radio 7).

Due to the capacity limitations of DAB and increasing sport broadcasts on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, BBC Radio 4 DAB has to reduce its bit rate most evenings, such that after 7pm its DAB output is usually in mono, even though many of its programmes are made in stereo (including its flagship drama "The Archers"), these can only be heard in stereo on FM, Digital TV on Freeview & Freesat (Ch. 704), Sky, Virgin and on line via BBC i-player radio. BBC World Service which uses BBC Radio 4 FM & DAB frequencies between 01:00am and 05:20am is in stereo, but only on Radio 4 FM & DAB and not on its own dedicated DAB channel. BBC Radio 4 Extra broadcasts in mono on DAB, but has always been in stereo on Digital TV (Freeview / Freesat Ch 708), Sky, Virgin and online.

## Notable continuity announcers and newsreaders

Announcers link programmes and read trails for programmes and the Shipping Forecast. Newsreaders read hourly summaries and longer bulletins. In 2012 the BBC announced that it would be reducing its main presentation team from 12 to ten.

### Main newsreaders/continuity announcers

The following are primarily newsreaders (including reading the bulletins on the *Today* programme) but also contribute to much of the continuity output:

* Kathy Clugston
* Corrie Corfield
* Caroline Nicholls
* Susan Rae

* Neil Sleat
* Zeb Soanes

### Newsreaders (non-*Today* programme)/continuity announcers

* Jim Lee
* David Miles
* Alan Smith

### Continuity announcers

* Neil Nunes
* Andrew Peach

### Former staff

* Alice Arnold (1994-2012)
* Carolyn Brown (left 2015)
* Harriet Cass (left 2013)
* Peter Donaldson (1973-2005 [Senior Announcer 1988-2003]; freelance 2005-2013; died 2015)
* Marian Foster now presenting Garden Mania on BBC Newcastle
* Charlotte Green (1988-2013)
* Peter Jefferson (left 2009)
* Astley Jones (left 2006)
* Laurie Macmillan (died 2001)
* Rory Morrison (died 2013)
* Jamie Owen
* Brian Perkins
* Howard Philpott (died 2017)
* Iain Purdon (now with BBC World Service)
* Moira Stuart (left 1981 to TV; now with BBC Radio 2)

## Frequencies and other means of reception

Radio 4 is broadcast on:

* 92–95 MHz FM in England, and from some transmitters in Wales
	+ 94.6–96.1 and 103.5–104.9 MHz in Scotland
	+ 93.2–96.0 and 103.5–104.6 MHz in Northern Ireland
	+ 103.0–104.5 MHz from other transmitters in Wales
* 198 kHz longwave (Droitwich, Burghead, and Westerglen)
* Medium wave in some areas:
	+ 603 kHz in Newcastle upon Tyne
	+ 720 kHz in London, Derry and Belfast
	+ 756 kHz in Redruth
	+ 774 kHz in Plymouth and Enniskillen
	+ 1449 kHz in Aberdeen
	+ 1485 kHz in Carlisle
* DAB
	+ Standard FM content
	+ Subsidiary LW content, where applicable
* Freeview channel 704 (FM only)
* The Internet
	+ iPlayer live streaming
		- Freesat channel 704
		- Sky channel 0104
	+ Radio 4 LW:
		- Freesat channel 710
		- Sky channel 0143
* Virgin Media channel 904 (FM), channel 911 (LW)
* Selected other cable television providers (Also on various frequencies on analogue cable networks)
	+ Virgin Media Ireland channel 910 in Republic of Ireland
* TalkTalk TV channel 604

## Criticisms

There have been criticisms voiced by newspapers in recent years over a perceived left-wing bias across a range of issues such as the EU and the Iraq War, as well as sycophancy in interviews, particularly on the popular morning news magazine *Today* as part of a reported perception of a general "malaise" at the BBC. Conversely, the journalist Mehdi Hasan has criticised the station for an overtly "socially and culturally conservative" approach.

There has been frequent criticism of Radio 4—and *Today* in particular—for a lack of female broadcasters. In September 1972, Radio 4 employed the first female continuity announcers—Hylda Bamber and Barbara Edwards (an event which caused the *Daily Mail* to proclaim that Radio 4 had "fallen" to women's liberation). For quite some time, the introduction of female newsreaders led to complaints from listeners; women discussing topics of feminist interest led to similar complaints.

This led the satirical magazine Private Eye to lampoon *Woman's Hour* as "Women's Whinge", and the network as FemFM.

Radio 4 has also been frequently criticised for being too middle class and being of little interest to non-white listeners.

## See also

* ABC Radio National
* CBC Radio One - Canadian talk radio station from CBC
* List of BBC newsreaders and reporters
* National Public Radio
* Radio New Zealand National
* RTÉ Radio 1 - Irish talk and music radio station from RTÉ
* Sveriges Radio P1

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "History of the BBC: 1960s" (PDF).
2. ↑ "BBC - Controllers for Pop Music, BBC Sounds and Radio 4 have been appointed - Media Centre". *bbc.co.uk*.
3. ↑ "Radio stations ranked by listeners weekly UK 2018 | Statistic". *Statista*. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
4. ↑ "RAJAR". *www.rajar.co.uk*. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
5. ↑ "Radio 4's Shipping Forecast reaches 150-years-old". *BBC News*. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
6. ↑ "RAJAR".
7. ↑ "Listening Figures – Quarterly Listening – All Individuals 15+ for period ending March 2012". RAJAR. April 2012. Archived from the original on 1 June 2012. Unknown parameter `|deadurl=` ignored (`|url-status=` suggested) (help)
8. ↑ Guardian 12 May 2011 Retrieved 16 May 2011]
9. ↑ The Sony Radio Academy Awards: Winners 2004 Archived 6 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine
10. ↑ "Sony Radio Academy Awards — Winners 2008". Radioawards.org. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
11. ↑ 62nd Annual Peabody Awards, May 2003.
12. ↑ "BBC Annual Report and Accounts 2005/2006, page 106" (PDF). Retrieved 19 March 2010.
13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 John Plunkett (10 October 2008). "Channel 4 has abandoned its entire radio project, as it seeks to make £100m in savings". *The Guardian*. London. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
14. ↑ "Gwyneth Williams appointed BBC Radio 4 controller" The Guardian 15 July 2010 Retrieved 15 July 2010
15. ↑ "BBC News — Radio 4 controller Mark Damazer leaves the BBC". 12 April 2010. Archived from the original on 13 April 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010. Unknown parameter `|deadurl=` ignored (`|url-status=` suggested) (help)
16. ↑ "Met Office Shipping Forecast key". Metoffice.gov.uk. 19 November 2008. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
17. ↑ "Radio silence puts subs on nuclear alert" 28 November 2003 Manchester Evening News Retrieved 27 July 2010
18. ↑ BBC Press Office. "The Today Programme". BBC.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "BBC Radio Norfolk's 25th anniversary". BBC. 9 September 2005. Retrieved 10 February 2012.
20. ↑ Rosenbaum, Ron (9 January 2009). "Nuclear apocalypse and the Letter of Last Resort. – By Ron Rosenbaum — Slate Magazine". Slate.com. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
21. ↑ "Press release: New early morning schedule for Radio 4". BBC. 23 January 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
22. ↑ "UK Theme to be dropped by Radio 4". London: BBC News. 23 January 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
23. ↑ "Today: The UK Theme". BBC. 13 April 2007. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
24. ↑ "savetheradio4theme.co.uk". savetheradio4theme.co.uk. 28 March 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
25. ↑ "Pip pip". London: BBC. 6 February 2004. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
26. ↑ "Radio 4 Daily Schedule page". BBC. 8 February 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
27. ↑ "New era for Broadcasting House". London: BBC News. 31 October 2000. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
28. ↑ Hendy, David (2007). *Life on Air: A History of Radio Four*. Oxford University Press. pp. 78–79. ISBN 9780199248810.
29. ↑ "Radio 4: Listen Again". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
30. ↑ "Radio 4 – Downloading and Podcasting". BBC. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
31. ↑ "''Being a newsreader'' by Harriet Cass". BBC. 30 April 2008. Archived from the original on 28 June 2008. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
32. ↑ "List of BBC Radio newsreaders". London: BBC News. 11 July 2007. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
33. ↑ Charlotte Green and Harriet Cass to leave BBC Radio 4
34. ↑ "Ways of Listening to Radio 4". BBC. 15 April 2006. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
35. ↑ "BBC analogue broadcast frequencies". BBC. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
36. ↑ BBC Radio 4 on Freeview
37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 "Free Channels on the Sky Digital Satellite Platform". Wickonline.com. Archived from the original on 5 April 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2010. Unknown parameter `|deadurl=` ignored (`|url-status=` suggested) (help)
38. ↑ Fisk, Tracy (6 February 2007). "Is Radio 4 alienating its core audience?". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
39. ↑ BBC report damns its ‘culture of bias’ – Times Online Archived 26 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine
41. ↑ Leonard, Tom (27 October 2006). "The BBC's commitment to bias is no laughing matter". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
42. ↑ "BBC Bias". Labour-watch.com. Archived from the original on 16 April 2010. Retrieved 19 March 2010. Unknown parameter `|deadurl=` ignored (`|url-status=` suggested) (help)
43. ↑ "Stephen Pollard: I don't want bias with my cornflakes — Commentators, Opinion". *The Independent*. London. 20 October 2003. Retrieved 19 March 2010.
44. ↑ Hasan, Mehdi (27 August 2009). "Bias and the Beeb". *New Statesman*. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
45. ↑ Barnett, Emma (16 July 2013). "Another woman on Radio 4's Today programme? The BBC ain't joking". London: The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
46. ↑ Hendy, David (2007). *Life on Air: A History of Radio Four*. Oxford University Press. pp. 99–100. ISBN 9780199248810.
47. ↑ Midgley, Neil (8 February 2011). "BBC Radio 4 'too middle class and London-centric'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
48. ↑ Mair, John (22 February 2008). "Am I bovvered that Radio 4 is too middle class? No!". The Guardian Organ Grinder Blog. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
49. ↑ "Radio 4's Woman's Hour is 'too middle class and there's too much cooking', says new presenter". London: Mail Online. 4 February 2008. Retrieved 4 January 2014.

## Further reading

* d'Arcy, Kevin (2007). *The voice of the brain of Britain: a portrait of Radio Four*. Rajah Books. ISBN 978-0-9556706-0-2.

* Elmes, Simon (2007). *And Now on Radio 4*. Random House. ISBN 978-0-09-950537-2.

* Hendy, David (2007). *Life on Air: A History of Radio Four*. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-924881-0.

* Mullen, L (29 September 2007). "20 things you didn't know about Radio 4". *The Times*. TV & Radio. London. Retrieved 2 October 2007. (subscription required)

## External links

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