How can I find out what track is playing?

Here's how you can find out what's currently playing on the programme you're listening to.

Listening Live

On the BBC Sounds app

The track information will appear on the scrolling programme info on the playback bar at the bottom of the screen.

You can also tap on the playback bar to see the song currently playing. It will be displayed underneath the play/pause button.

Recently played tracks are not listed for live programmes on the BBC Sounds app, only the track currently playing.

Images from the BBC Sounds mobile app. The First shows the playback screen for a liv programme. The 'Now playing' track is highlighted. The second image is of the BBC Sounds app with the live playback minimised. The 'Now playing' track is highlighted on the playback bar at the bottom.

On the BBC Sounds website

You'll see the currently-playing track in Now Playing at the bottom left of the playback area, just under the 'Recent Tracks' heading: 

Image of the live playback screen on the BBC Sounds website with the recent tracks displayed and the 'Now playing' track highlighted
 

Listening on-demand

On the BBC Sounds app

Tap on the black playback bar at the bottom of the screen to open the full playback screen. The song currently playing will be displayed underneath the play/pause button

You can also see the current track on the scrolling programme information on the black playback bar, and if you're looking at the programme information, you'll see orange sound waves next to the song that's playing.

Two screenshots from the BBC Sounds mobile app. The first is of the playback screen when listening to an on-demand programme. The currently-playing track is highlighted. The second shows the track listing for that episode. The 'Now playing' track is highlighted both on the track list and on the playback bar at the bottom of the screen.

On the BBC Sounds website

If you're listening to an on-demand programme on the BBC Sounds website, you can see what track is currently playing in the tracklist. Look for the orange sound waves: 

Screenshot of the on demand playback page on the BBC Sounds website with the now playing track highlighted from the tracklist below
Why isn't Now Playing available?

Now Playing will only show on a live stream if you're listening to a radio station at the exact live point. If you've paused the live stream at any point or the stream has been interrupted (by a phone call or a drop in signal), you'll be listening slightly behind. To catch up: 

  1. Tap or click 'Pause'
  2. Then tap or click the 'LIVE' button to the right 

Aside from that, there are some other reasons why Now Playing might not be available on either live or on-demand programmes, for example there could be a temporary technical fault. For live programmes, the track might be taken from a rare album, DJ mix, or a live concert; there might be changes to the running order; or a DJ is playing newly-found tracks. For on-demand programmes, Now Playing may not be available for all content. 

Now Playing is available on the following stations:

Radio 4, Radio 4 Extra and Radio 5 live do not currently have the technical capability to support Now Playing.

Is the Now Playing feature available for live concerts and specialist shows?

These events sometimes struggle to provide Now Playing information in time. The challenge is not just having someone available to add the information, it’s also knowing what the correct information should be. Occasionally there are changes to live events which complicate matters, too.

When we can't provide Now Playing information for the live programme, we do our best to provide tracklists and the Now Playing feature once the programme is available on-demand.