BBC Radio Megathread

Itssoeasy

I've starting listening to BBC radio 2 due to IMO Irish radio having gotten worse.

The BBC radio app that is now available in Ireland helps a lot.

My question is what BBC radio station do other members of the radio forum listen ?

I've really liked Sara cox covering for Chris evans this week on breakfast. She has a very cheerful demenor at 6am in the morning.

And I listened to Chris moyles when he was of that parish. Grimmy not so much.

Scott mills is very good also.

DopeTech

Itssoeasy wrote: »

I've starting listening to BBC radio 2 due to IMO Irish radio having gotten worse.

The BBC radio app that is now available in Ireland helps a lot.

My question is what BBC radio station do other members of the radio forum listen ?

I've really liked Sara cox covering for Chris evans this week on breakfast. She has a very cheerful demenor at 6am in the morning.

And I listened to Chris moyles when he was of that parish. Grimmy not so much.

Scott mills is very good also.

When I'm in the car if I've no podcast to listen to and I have exhausted my Spotify playlists then I usually turn on BBC R1 via TuneIn. They just have better presenters in general I think than Irish radio. No ads either which is good. Better mix of songs too most of the time.

el_gaucho

5 Live is great for news and sport. Radio 4 if you like documentaries. These days I've started listening to the World Service.

Technocentral

Radio 4, excellent current affairs and comedy. R6 for excellent new and older alternative music.

yiddo59

Itssoeasy wrote: »

My question is what BBC radio station do other members of the radio forum listen ?

R4 for news and documentaries 5live for sport and R2 for Johnny Walker's Sound of the 70s

yosser hughes

I listen to Radio 4 in the mornings and Radio 6 for music. Both are excellent.
Radio 6 in particular. I've heard music both new and old that I'd never hear on Irish radio.
No advertising is great too. You don't realise how much you are being bombarded with advertising until you switch to BBC.

Mr Snow

BBC radio ulster is quite good i like listen The Nolan Show, Good Morning Ulster, Talkback, Kerry McLean, Evening Extra,Across the Line,The Mickey Bradley Record Show, and Gerry Kelly.

BBC radio Manchester Allan Beswick's Late Night Phone-In.

BBC radio 2 Huey Morgan, Ken Bruce, Paul Jones, Jamie Cullum, Tony Blackburn, and Pick of the Pop sounds of 70

BBC radio 4 Today and Six O'Clock News.

BBC radio 5 5 live Investigates, 5 live sport, 606, and 5 live Drive

in no orderi like a bit of mix

Itssoeasy

What I like about the BBC, besides the whole thing being as slick and polished as you'd like is that none of the channels step on each others toes in what they put out. I mean if you tune into BBC Radio 1 you know what you are getting. You're not going to be taken by surprise by something.

Just in case it sounds like I've only just started listening to the BBC I haven't. It's just the bbc radio player app has made it much easier to listen to.

Itssoeasy

Also I've had a chance to listen to up all night on 5live and Rhod Sharp is such a pro. I love the thing he does on the hour when he gives the time in different time zones and has a bit of a spiff about a certain place.

Skid X

Radio 4 Extra has some gems from the extensive BBC Radio Comedy and Drama archives. If you have any interest in that, it's the place to go (and they can be replayed on the Radio IPlayer is available in Ireland, thankfully).


Outside of that, a bit of Radio 2, 6Music, Radio 4, 5Live and Radio 1 in that order.

Itssoeasy

Sorry I meant to say I'm in love with BBC radio Wales and Eleri Siôn is a goddess and her accent is like silk.

greenflash

I do a lot of work/driving in the north and pretty much always end up listening to BBC Radio 4. Great current affairs, drama and comedy. BBC's programming is genuinely diverse and engaging. I cannot listen to RTE as I find it so painfully insular and introspective in terms of Irishness.

Drag00n79

I listen to the Today show on Radio 4 every morning. I like Eddie Mair's PM show from 5pm - 6pm, no waffle like on the Irish equivalents. At the weekends I enjoy Radio 6 to educate me on a lot of music I wasn't aware of. I need to be armed with my Shazam app! Lastly, I listen to footy on 5Live in my car via my VPN. Great service. I don't listen to Irish radio at all any more.

Lovely Bloke

Love it, ever since some Dublin Pirate relayed BBCR1 back in the late 90s from morning to afternoon - Zoe Ball/Sara Cox/Moyles, Marc & Lard such quality radio back then.

I got an internet radio over 10 years ago (Logik IR100, still going strong), and discovered R4, comedy and current affairs without peer.

Used to always listen to the commentary on 5Live via MW/AM too, and still to this day will choose that over Today/Newstalk via VPN.

I'm more of a 6Music and R2 man nowadays though, but still listen back to the odd Essential Mix if the dj is interesting.

World Service is also great for quirky stories from anywhere, especially when comforting a sick child in the small hours or something.

Yeah, the good ol' Beeb knows how to do radio, make no mistake.

Mint Sauce

BBCR2 pretty much all the time. Have an internet Radio at home, and when in house during day have it on, also if out in car, often travel towards Enniskillen or Derry and will return once I can pick it up. Occasionally listen to R4, and sometimes R5Live. R5 sometimes also broadcast on the red button with the TV cameras, and will watch listen to that.

wnolan1992

I've been a fiend for BBC 5 Live since last September. (You can make your own judgement as to what event in Irish radio led me to make that switch)

Sarah Brett and Nihal are quality in the afternoons, Breakfast is what I want from a current affairs breakfast show - a mix of decent coverage and a not overly serious tone (except when required) and 5 Live Daily is brilliant. I'm not a massive fan of Adrian Childs, but he's listenable, and Emma Barnett is fantastic. As mentioned earlier, Up All Night is great too if I'm having trouble sleeping (that's not a dig, I literally mean if I can't sleep, I'll turn it on to keep me entertained).

I listen to R1 at the weekends if I'm looking for some background music, and occasional snippets from R4, mostly the comedy stuff.


What I love about the BBC stations is the production values are so high. It always feels like everyone knows what they're doing. It helps that they've no advert breaks, I didn't fully realise how restrictive they were until I started listening to NewsTalk and 5 Live back to back.

dxhound2005

wnolan1992 wrote: »

What I love about the BBC stations is the production values are so high. It always feels like everyone knows what they're doing. It helps that they've no advert breaks, I didn't fully realise how restrictive they were until I started listening to NewsTalk and 5 Live back to back.

Everyone except Zoe Ball when she tries to do Popmaster on Radio 2 (filling in for Ken Bruce). I happened to hear her first time years ago, when it went to a tiebreak. She hadn't a clue what was happening and it was quite obvious that production values were non existent. Ever since then when there is a tie break, she has a mini nervous breakdown.

https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/2062679/zoe-ball-popmaster-disaster/p2

And predictably, while BBC presenters are in the main being lauded here, UK forums are full of diatribes railing against them being juvenile/irritating/obnoxious/boring/biased or whatever you are having yourself. And of course questioning their value for money. Just the way of the world I suppose.

An Ciarraioch

Best thing about the BBC Radio App is that virtually every programme is available as a podcast - Brain of Britain is right up there with University Challenge and Mastermind in the quizzing stakes.

dxhound2005

An Ciarraioch wrote: »

Best thing about the BBC Radio App is that virtually every programme is available as a podcast - Brain of Britain is right up there with University Challenge and Mastermind in the quizzing stakes.

And Round Britain Quiz running since 1947. One for the cryptic crossword types like myself.

The Black Oil

Radio 4, for the most part. I wake up to Today. Commuting is podcasts as I don't want to listen to hacks and TDs on Morning Ireland. I wind down to Radio 4 as well, World Tonight, etc. Used to listen to Gardeners' Question Time on Sundays. Apart from that, Moral Maze, Broadcasting House and documentaries, I sometimes listen to the World Service. Don't really listen to it during the middle of the day or early evening. Fairly addicted to 4.

Lovely Bloke

I really miss Tony Livesey in the evenings.

Dotun though, the man is brilliant for the night shift at the weekend, and the callers in to the Football show he does are all kinds of bizarre wonderful people.

Lovely Bloke

dxhound2005 wrote: »

And Round Britain Quiz running since 1947. One for the cryptic crossword types like myself.

BoB, RBQ and Counterpoint are great quizzes.

Harry Palmr

I'm listening to very little radio these days but Radio 4 Extra is always worth keeping an eye on (ear on?) for some comedy and offbeat stuff like Neil Innes

Itssoeasy

https://forums.digitalspy.com/discussion/2142007/radio-1-studio-tour

Some of the lads here who are radio anoraks might like this, there is a link above to a tour of radio 1 and 1 extra of the BBC using google maps. It looks like someone had a blank cheque and asked what the DJs wanted.

looie

I tune in to a few BBC podcasts:

BBC World Service/Global News Podcast (listen to most days)
5 live's Football Daily (can be painful at times but normally nod off to this)
Front Row (haven't listened to an ep in a while but it's a well produced show)

looie

Lovely Bloke wrote: »

BoB, RBQ and Counterpoint are great quizzes.

Having a look for Brain of Britain on Pocket Casts but not finding it

Lovely Bloke

looie wrote: »

Having a look for Brain of Britain on Pocket Casts but not finding it

look for Radio 4 General Knowledge Quizzes, that updates with whatever of the three is currently running.

speedbird834

Quite like Today on R4. Then R6 onwards, especially Radcliffe and Maconie in the afternoons. Just love the broad spread of music and have discovered many new artists to listen to

Itssoeasy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XiEVHpYU_is

An interesting video done by chris moyles talking about the radio 1 breakfast show from 1981 onwards. And he talked to them all bar chris evans who refused to talk about his time on the show.

Euphoria Intensifies

Thanks for starting this thread itsoeasy. I downloaded the radio iPlayer app and have been listening to a lot of BBC radio since then. Lots of Radio 1 and Radio 4 mostly, although I have listened to a small bit of 6Music too. Far ahead of anything we have here due to the sheer diversity of content and production​ values.

Tabnabs

I've listened to BBC radio since working in the UK in the early 2000s. I bought an internet radio that's now pretty much glued to BBC 6 Music and listen on the daily commute to Radio 4 (after finding Irish shows lacking in appeal and with long sports news and/or adverts). I have become bizarrely addicted to 'Yesterday in Parliament" on Radio 4 LW at 08.30. I love it.

Eddie Mair is also a great presenter on PM, always ready with a quip that brings a bit of humanity and life to the show. The recent interview series with the late Steve Hewlett about his journey dealing with throat cancer was both inspiring and heart-breaking. Again, plenty of humour amongst the pain. You really couldn't imagine auld Mary Wilson dealing with that subject on a one to one level with anywhere near the level of humanity.

Technocentral

Tabnabs wrote:

Eddie Mair is also a great presenter on PM, always ready with a quip that brings a bit of humanity and life to the show. The recent interview series with the late Steve Hewlett about his journey dealing with throat cancer was both inspiring and heart-breaking. Again, plenty of humour amongst the pain. You really couldn't imagine auld Mary Wilson dealing with that subject on a one to one level with anywhere near the level of humanity.

"Today" and "PM" must listens for me on way in and home from work, breath of topics and quality of journalism and presenters SO much better than Irish radio, then BBC6 at weekends, thanks BBC for so much entertainment and information over the years.

lertsnim

5 Live and Radio 2 usually.

Harry Palmr

BBC Radio 4 is broadcasting the Dawn Chorus through the night this Sunday er night/morning

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08pdfyw

Alas I can only listen on LW in my leaba and I suppose that'll be with the World Service as usual unless they join the two up (after all its dawn somewhere all the time).

dxhound2005

A Point of View usually has a bit of a slant, as does Thought for the Day and Moment of Reflection.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qng8

limnam

Good idea for a thread.
Radio 4 mostly and some 5 live.

The only negative thing about BBC Radio is the constant reminder you're paying 180e a year for the rubbish on RTE.

Greenman

If I was left on a desert island and could choose only one station it would be
BBC Radio 4 Xtra.

So many gems and no news weather and current affairs.

cml387

Us Radio 2 listeners were taken aback a bit when the changes happened to weekend radio and Zoe Ball took over the afternoon slot on Saturdays moving Dermot O'leary to the morning and moving Sounds of the sixties back to 6AM.
Sad to relate that only a fortnight after that Zoe's partner was found dead at his home.

Itssoeasy

I've been listening to the BBC world service today and my god it's a superb service. It's such a diverse output.

twinklerunner

Greenman wrote: »

If I was left on a desert island and could choose only one station it would be
BBC Radio 4 Xtra.

So many gems and no news weather and current affairs.

I couldn't agree more. Irish radio stations are repetitive with news, weather, sport, traffic, travel, ads, sponsored programmes, sponsored weather, etc etc etc.

Itssoeasy

I've been looking at the iplayer radio app and just searched documentaries. ðŸ˜ðŸ˜ it's like radio porn. The amount of radio 4 and world service stuff that covers a huge range of stuff is insane. It's amazing and you can download them to listen on the go.

Euphoria Intensifies

I recommend checking out Paul Temple and the Margo Mystery on the app. It's a crime serial from the 60s and very over the top and cheesy, but by Timothy it is so, so good. I hope they've more Paul Temple stuff on soon.

Currently listening to John Cleese on R4 playing extracts from his autobiography (audiobook version).

Itssoeasy

Listening to pick of the pops on BBC radio 2 at the moment and I've not been listening to it as long as others but it really is a great show. I mean there's no waffle and social media shilling. And I've heard a version of a song I've never heard before.

I think John creedon would do well on the BBC. That's about it really.

Mr Snow

behind the scenes of BBC R2 jingle

twinklerunner

Itssoeasy wrote: »

Listening to pick of the pops on BBC radio 2 at the moment and I've not been listening to it as long as others but it really is a great show. I mean there's no waffle and social media shilling. And I've heard a version of a song I've never heard before.

I agree, very enjoyable show with tunes that haven't been heard in a while - plus no ads, weather, sport etc. I think that Paul Gambaccini is a bit wasted on it though. His American music shows down the years were always a great listen.

Mr Snow

BBC R4 Desert Island Discs

Itssoeasy

This thread has gone a bit silent. i was listening to a bit of Mr Sharp several weeks ago on bbc five live and in the space of 30 minutes he flew through several topics and his guest were well versed on the topics and Rhod was alway well read on the topics. It was so refreshing to listen to. It just further shows how unprepared the rte 1 people are in general.

I'm currently listening to bbc radio 2 and sara cox from earlier and it's good music played from the 80's with no ****e talk from presenters who rabbit on instead of playing the songs.

Itssoeasy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbOkQTIeaaI

The BBC radio 2 jingles from 2015. I love the different ways they sing 88 to 91fm bbc radio 2, and yet you still know it's the beeb you're listening to.

dxhound2005

Itssoeasy wrote: »

This thread has gone a bit silent. i was listening to a bit of Mr Sharp several weeks ago on bbc five live and in the space of 30 minutes he flew through several topics and his guest were well versed on the topics and Rhod was alway well read on the topics. It was so refreshing to listen to. It just further shows how unprepared the rte 1 people are in general.

I'm currently listening to bbc radio 2 and sara cox from earlier and it's good music played from the 80's with no ****e talk from presenters who rabbit on instead of playing the songs.

I don't think it would matter too much what RTE put on between 1 am and 5 am. How many of that audience are looking for an Up All Night type of output?

Rhod Sharp has the advantage of being in America, so he doesn't have to actually stay up all night to broadcast. Would RTE let current affairs presenters go to America to do programmes for night owls?

yosser hughes

Radio 6 as I said before is great. Iggy Pop has a show on Friday nights which is really enjoyable, Craig Charles on Saturday evenings is another;
Liz Kershaw on Saturday afternoons.
Cerys Matthews on a Sunday annoys me a bit, but overall it's light years ahead of anything here and is proper public service broadcasting. RTE just is not and shouldn't claim to be.What RTE offer is unacceptable. Joe Duffy? FFS!
Radio 4 has so much to offer it's hard to know here to start. I start the day listening to the Today show which also airs on a Saturday morning.