BBC Radio 1 listener numbers hit lowest point since 2003

Current Breakfast Show host Nick Grimshaw lured 5.4 million listeners per week - unchanged since the start of 2016, and only down 0.1 million since 2015.

The station has lost a million listeners just over the past year, falling to 9.5 million adults between April and June compared with 10.4 million over the same period in 2015.

This new report comes from Rajar, who track radio audiences and monitor listenership.

Responding to the new data, a spokesperson for BBC Radio 1 controller Ben Cooper says: "Rajars are only part of the picture for Radio 1, and our listeners should be seen alongside increases on our YouTube channel as it goes past one billion views and our growing social media platforms with over 8.5 million users. To focus solely on Rajars is similar to looking at how many newspapers have been sold without looking at their online presence or national influence."

Last year, when Grimshaw's Breakfast Show numbers painted a bleak picture, Cooper said: "Since Radio 1 has been completely focused on younger audiences – and the most common age of a Radio 1 listener is 21 – it was highly likely some older listeners would move on, like the half a million over-30s that left us this quarter. I’m pleased that Grimmy is doing what I’ve asked of him by keeping his young audience happy and scaring off the over-30s.”

The Rajar data also reveals that BBC 6 Music and Radio 4 both had record ratings, with 6 Music hitting almost 2.3 million listeners per week (April-June). Radio 4 put their new highs down to a "Brexit Boost", with audiences looking to the station to "[give] them a deeper understanding of the stories of the day."

Capital, Smooth, and Classic FM also saw success in the new report.

[via BBC News]