Radio 4’s Today programme loses half a million listeners in a year, new data shows

Radio 4’s Today programme has lost the most listeners of all of the BBC’s breakfast shows in the past year, official figures show.

The flagship news and current affairs programme has suffered a drop of more than half a million listeners, part of a wider trend of declining listeners across BBC radio stations.

The average audience for Today, from 6am to 9am with presenters including Mishal Husain and Nick Robinson, fell from 6.5million listeners in July to September 2021 to 5.9million in the same period this year – a fall of 9 per cent.

BBC Radio 5 Live’s breakfast show also lost around 300,000 listeners over the same period, down 20 per cent from 1.7million to 1.4million. 

The drop coincides with Rick Edwards replacing Nicky Campbell as lead presenter in November last year.

BBC Radio 2’s breakfast show, presented by Zoe Ball, 51, was the only one of the broadcaster’s early morning radio shows to see an increase in those tuning in – rising by 151,000 listeners in a year. 

The average audience for Today, from 6am to 9am with presenters including Mishal Husain (pictured) and Nick Robinson, fell from 6.5million listeners in July to September 2021 to 5.9million in the same period this year – a fall of 9 per cent

BBC Radio 5 Live’s breakfast show also lost around 300,000 listeners over the same period, down 20 per cent from 1.7million to 1.4million. The drop coincides with Rick Edwards (above) replacing Nicky Campbell as lead presenter in November last year

Both Radio 4 and 5 Live have seen their total average audience fall by around one million listeners year-on-year, a drop of 9 per cent and 18 per cent respectively.

The average audience for Radio 3, which plays classical music, fell by 21.1 per cent from 2.2million to 1.7million.

The figures were published by research body Rajar and show all the major BBC stations saw a decline in listeners over the past 12 months. 

But the drop is smaller for Radio 1 and Radio 2, whose audience dipped by 1 per cent.

While BBC radio stations have seen listeners tune in less frequently, commercial radio brands including Global and Bauer have experienced a rise.

Combined, BBC stations have been listened to for 37million hours less than last year, while commercial stations attracted listeners for an additional 43.5million hours this year, according to Rajar.

BBC Radio 2’s breakfast show, presented by Zoe Ball, 51, was the only one of the broadcaster’s early morning radio shows to see an increase in those tuning in – rising by 151,000 listeners in a year

The BBC has seen a shakeup in presenters in recent months with Radio 1’s Scott Mills (pictured), 49, replacing Radio 2’s Steve Wright on his 2pm to 5pm slot after 23 years

The BBC has seen a shakeup in presenters in recent months with Radio 1’s Scott Mills, 49, replacing Radio 2’s Steve Wright on his 2pm to 5pm slot after 23 years. 

The veteran broadcaster, 68, hosted his final show in September, but continues to present Sunday Love Songs on Radio 2.

In August, Vanessa Feltz, 60, also stepped back from her BBC Radio shows after almost 20 years to join TalkTV. 

The same month also saw the departure of presenter Paul O’Grady, 67, who quit his Radio 2 show months after he was forced to share his time slot with younger comedian Rob Beckett, 36.

Boom Radio, which only went on air in February last year, has almost doubled its listenership, with its popularity drawing plaudits from Sir Cliff Richard, 82.

Boom Radio, which only went on air in February last year, has almost doubled its listenership, with its popularity drawing plaudits from Sir Cliff Richard, 82

While BBC radio stations have seen listeners tune in less frequently, commercial radio brands including Global and Bauer have experienced a rise

The digital station, broadcast by veteran DJs from bedrooms and garden sheds, pulled in 443,000 weekly listeners from July to September 2022. 

Sir Cliff said: ‘It is so difficult for me to listen to radio these days because I can’t always relate to rap and things like that. But our generation was filled with fantastic songs and let’s hope that some of the young folks that tune in will get the feeling that we got when we used to listen to these records as the originals.’

The latest figures also show the BBC World Service experienced a jump in listeners in this spring, possibly due to the war in Ukraine, but its audience fell 15 per cent in the most recent three months and is down 14 per cent on the same period last year.

A BBC spokesman said: ‘Millions of listeners continue to turn to the Today programme for trusted and impartial news… some fluctuation, particularly over summer months, can be expected.’