BBC Trust

Many of the participants listened to Radio 1, with the perception of many being that Radio 1 was targeted at their age group.  As one participant said “it is normally the first station I tune in to, and it is the easiest one to get hold of in terms of reception”. Another participant said “I always put it on in the car, because I know it is going to play songs which are out now”.

Radio 1 was also seen as a good ‘background music’ station with several participants saying that it was the station of choice at their workplace, or at home. “Radio 1 is always on in the canteen”.

There was some discussion on the relative merits of Chris Moyles and his successor Nick Grimshaw as presenters of the station’s breakfast show, with some participants mourning the loss of Chris Moyles from the station but others positive about Nick Grimshaw’s style of presenting.

Most participants listened to the station during the day, though some specifically tuned in during the evenings, to access more specific genres and programmes – “I listen in the evenings for rock and DubStep music, though it would be nice if there was a bit more of a variety in terms of genres during the day as well.”.

Participants were generally positive about the talk between songs, with some saying how much they enjoyed the games on Radio 1 (with Scott Mills’ Innuendo Bingo being specifically mentioned by one participant).  However, others were critical of the balance of conversation and music, with one participant saying “Too much chit chat, not enough music gets boring very quickly. I’m not interested in hearing their conversations”

Radio 1’s Newsbeat programme was praised as a means of accessing the day’s news in an easily digestible way, with participants following up on news stories of interest on-line – “I enjoy Newsbeat because I don’t choose to watch news on TV. When it’s on the radio it just appears and you have no choice, but it’s short enough to keep your interest and gives you information in a short space of time.”

Radio 1 was praised for encouraging new bands and for those programmes within its schedules which introduced listeners to new musical talent. It was also praised for its live music with Live Lounge receiving particular praise in this regard as did Radio 1’s Big Weekend. Participants said how wonderful it had been to see big international names performing locally at the Big Weekend in Bangor in 2010.

Participants used a variety of methods for accessing Radio 1, with the main means being through an FM radio set, but other means being via TV, on-line via the Radio 1 web-site, via the radio app on a smartphone and via the BBC iPlayer. The Radio 1 website was also used “to find out about the Charts, playlists and so on”. Technology and music related technology was important to many of the participants, with a high proportion of them using apps such as Spotify, Sound Cloud and Shazam to access and find out more about songs.

There was a consensus that it was important for the station to ensure it featured “younger more relevant presenters and artists for young people”.

One participant mentioned Radio 1Xtra, saying that he listened to the station in the mornings, and occasionally at other times of day, but that the evening programming was “much more niche” and not to his particular taste.

There were some Radio 2 listeners amongst participants, with one expressing his affection for the station because he could access “old metal music and other genres” in the station’s output. Others listened to the station because it was the parental station of choice when travelling by car.

Another participant said that he appreciated Huey Morgan’s show, because of the range of musical genres within it.

Radio 2 was felt to be a good choice for family listening. However, one participant said that the news programmes on Radio 2 were unintelligible and so switched off during news bulletins.

None of the participants listened to BBC Radio 3.

None of the participants listened to BBC Asian Network.

There were several participants who listened to BBC 6 Music, with one of them having been introduced to the station by a parent. One participant said “6 Music has a better variety of music as well as some talking, but it is relevant. I got the listening habit from Dad who prefers 6 Music”.

Amongst the participants, none listened to either Radio 3 or BBC Asian Network. 

Amongst some participants, the radio station of choice was commercial radio station Heart FM, because it played a mixture of Welsh and English songs, and many of the programmes were in Welsh.  Heart was praised in particular for playing some ‘classic songs’ in Welsh, while Radio Cymru’s C2 programme was criticised for playing too many contemporary songs, which some participants felt were not as good as the older ones. “The new songs on Radio Cymru aren’t as good as the old ones played on Heart FM”.

Real Radio was also mentioned by some participants, though it was felt that its playlist – like Radio 1’s playlist – was too repetitive and focused on the current music charts.

The absence of adverts on the BBC’s radio output was praised.

BBC Three was mentioned since the BBC announcement that it was considering the option of making the channel accessible on-line only had only been made a few days before the event. Many of the participants said it was their BBC channel of choice with the comedies being particularly popular.

The channel’s educational content, and in particular the Factual programmes for young adults, was felt to be great in terms of informing and educating a particular section of the audience (with programmes such as Tough Young Teachers, Junior Paramedics and Brain Surgery mentioned in this regard). There was concern that if the channel were to disappear from the TV, that this aspect of its output would be lost or become inaccessible as a result of inadequate broadband bandwidth or speed.

Others felt BBC Three was “one of the main channels for young people, but you can watch it with your parents too and it brings families together”.

Some participants said if the channel was in future only to be accessible on-line, they would continue to access it, but it would stop being part of their everyday habit. As one put it “I don’t want to go looking for specific programmes – if it’s on TV you can just switch to it.” The importance of channel surfing in finding material on BBC Three was mentioned by more than one participant.

The consensus was that it would be better if BBC Parliament was to go, or the plans mentioned for establishing a BBC One+1 service, which participants felt was completely unnecessary in the world of the iPlayer.

BBC Four was mentioned by one participant in relation to the series A Year with English National Ballet, which had been enjoyed. BBC One and BBC Two were mentioned in relation to specific programmes such as Doctor Who, Mrs Brown’s Boys, Call the Midwife, Death in Paradise, Waterloo Road and Mr Selfridge.

Some of S4C’s provision was praised, such as Rownd a Rownd and Gwlad yr Astra Gwyn, but on the whole participants felt that the channel’s output was more suitable for their parents or grandparents. It was also felt to be targeted at a south Wales rather than a north Wales audience.