BBC Local Radio

BBC Local Radio is the local and regional radio division of the BBC. It operates 39 stations across England and the Channel Islands. These stations bring news, music, and information to communities in their areas.

As of December 2024, about 7.1 million people listen to BBC Local Radio, making up 4.6% of all radio listening time, according to RAJAR. This shows how important these local stations are to many people.

Unlike Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, which have their own national stations, BBC Local Radio focuses on serving smaller areas within England and the Channel Islands. This helps each community stay connected and informed.

History

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of BBC Local Radio.

The start of BBC Local Radio was an experiment to meet the needs of local areas, inspired by the popularity of pirate radio. The first station, Radio Leicester, began broadcasting on 8 November 1967, and was soon followed by others like Leeds, Stoke, and Sheffield. These stations were originally funded by both the BBC and local authorities, but this requirement was dropped in the early 1970s, allowing more stations to launch across the country.

Over time, BBC Local Radio grew to include many stations, reaching its current number by the mid-1990s. Even though they faced competition from other radio stations, BBC Local Radio continued to grow. Today, these stations provide local programming for most of the day, with some evening and weekend shows shared across nearby areas.

Current operation

The local radio stations are run from places around the country that also work with the BBC's regional TV news services. Each station is managed by the area where it is located and is part of the BBC English Regions department, which is a part of BBC News.

Each local radio station aims to give mostly talk-based shows that include news, information, and music. These stations mainly try to reach listeners who are older than fifty years old. Every station makes its own shows for local listeners from early morning until early afternoon on weekdays. In the afternoons, evenings, and on weekends, the shows may be shared between regions or be local, depending on where the station is and how many people live there. Since October 2023, all stations have also played a special evening show that comes from London or Manchester, and since November 2023, they all share a Sunday evening show as well.

All local BBC radio stations also show BBC Radio 5 Live very early in the morning, from 1:00 am until 6:00 am.

Transmission

All BBC Local Radio stations broadcast on FM, digital radio, Freeview and BBC Sounds in their local areas across England. BBC Radio London can also be found on Sky UK, Freesat and Virgin Media.

In the past, these stations also used to broadcast on medium wave, but many of these signals have been turned off over the years. By April 2026, only a few stations still use this older method of broadcasting. Sometimes, special sports events might not be available on BBC Sounds, and a different program will be shown instead.

Stations

BBC Local Radio serves many areas across England and the Channel Islands with 39 different stations. These stations bring local news, stories, and entertainment to communities up and down the country.

A list of the forty local radio stations by region. In addition to these stations, BBC Radio Solent operates an opt-out service covering Dorset. There were also opt-out services covering Milton Keynes (BBC Three Counties Radio), Peterborough and the Fens (BBC Radio Cambridgeshire), Plymouth (BBC Radio Devon), and Swindon (BBC Wiltshire); but these ceased in 2012 due to cutbacks as part of the BBC's "Delivering Quality First" programme.

BBC East

• BBC Essex (Broadcasts to Essex)
• BBC Radio Cambridgeshire (Broadcasts to Cambridgeshire)
• BBC Radio Norfolk (Broadcasts to Norfolk)
• BBC Radio Northampton (Broadcasts to Northamptonshire but does not broadcast to the South Northamptonshire District)
• BBC Radio Suffolk (Broadcasts to Suffolk)
• BBC Three Counties Radio (Broadcasts to Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire)

BBC East Midlands

• BBC Radio Derby (Broadcasts to Derbyshire and East Staffordshire)
• BBC Radio Leicester (Broadcasts to Leicestershire, and Rutland)
• BBC Radio Nottingham (Broadcasts to Nottinghamshire)

BBC London

• BBC Radio London (Broadcasts in Greater London)

BBC North East and Cumbria

• BBC Radio Cumbria (Broadcasts to Cumbria)
• BBC Radio Newcastle (Broadcasts to Tyne and Wear and Northern County Durham)
• BBC Radio Tees (Broadcasts to Central and South of County Durham and Northern parts of North Yorkshire including Whitby.)

BBC North West

• BBC Radio Lancashire (Broadcasts to Lancashire and Western parts of North Yorkshire)
• BBC Radio Manchester (Broadcasts to Greater Manchester, North-East Cheshire and North-West Derbyshire)
• BBC Radio Merseyside (Broadcasts to Liverpool, North-West Cheshire and West Lancashire)

BBC South

• BBC Radio Berkshire (Broadcasts to Berkshire, South Oxfordshire, North Hampshire and Marlow in Buckinghamshire)
• BBC Radio Oxford (Broadcasts to Oxfordshire, South Northamptonshire and Princes Risborough in Buckinghamshire)
• BBC Radio Solent (Broadcasts to Hampshire, Dorset and the Isle of Wight)

BBC South East

• BBC Radio Kent (Broadcasts to Kent)
• BBC Radio Surrey (Broadcasts to Surrey, North East Hampshire and Northern parts of West Sussex)
• BBC Radio Sussex (Broadcasts to East Sussex and West Sussex except for northern parts including Crawley)

BBC South West

• BBC Radio Cornwall Broadcasts to Cornwall)
• BBC Radio Devon (Broadcasts to Devon)
• BBC Radio Guernsey (Broadcasts to the Island of Guernsey, Alderney and Sark)
• BBC Radio Jersey (Broadcasts to the Island of Jersey)

BBC West

• BBC Radio Bristol (Broadcasts to Bristol City, Bath, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire)
• BBC Radio Gloucestershire (Broadcasts to Gloucestershire except for areas in South Gloucestershire)
• BBC Radio Somerset (Broadcasts to Somerset)
• BBC Radio Wiltshire (Broadcasts to Wiltshire)

BBC Midlands

• BBC Radio WM (Broadcasts to the West Midlands, Central Staffordshire and South Staffordshire areas including Tamworth)
• BBC CWR (Broadcasts to Coventry and Warwickshire)
• BBC Hereford & Worcester (Broadcasts to Herefordshire and Worcestershire)
• BBC Radio Shropshire (Broadcasts to Shropshire)
• BBC Radio Stoke (Broadcasts to North Staffordshire and South Cheshire)

BBC Yorkshire

• BBC Radio Leeds (Broadcasts to West Yorkshire)
• BBC Radio Sheffield (Broadcasts to South Yorkshire, North Nottinghamshire and North Derbyshire)
• BBC Radio York (Broadcasts to North Yorkshire except for the northern area, including Whitby, and areas west of Craven).

BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire

• BBC Radio Humberside (Broadcasts to East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire)
• BBC Radio Lincolnshire (Broadcasts to Lincolnshire but does not broadcast to Northern and North East Lincolnshire)

Former stations

• BBC Dorset FM
• BBC Radio Durham
• BBC Southern Counties Radio
• BBC Thames Valley FM

The stations were launched progressively; starting with BBC Radio Leicester on 8 November 1967, with the last station to launch being the short-lived BBC Dorset FM on 26 April 1993. Since then, many stations have been merged and renamed but no new stations have been created where no service previously existed, as plans to launch stations in unserved areas, most notably in Cheshire, have not materialised.

Imaging

From October 2009 to April 2012, a special three-note jingle package made by Mcasso Music Production was slowly added to all BBC Local Radio stations. In October 2015, Mcasso updated the jingles, starting with BBC Radio London on its 45th anniversary, changing to a six-note package.

In January 2020, BBC Radio Leicester introduced a new custom jingle package made by Reelworld in MediaCity UK, Salford. This new package was gradually used by all BBC Local Radio stations throughout the year. It also brought a fresh "on air" sound to attract younger listeners. The new branding includes the tag line, "The Sound of area of coverage, and all the music you love". This jingle package was the first in ten years to include "sung jingles" in the stations' branding.

Dave and Sue

Dave and Sue are two made-up characters created by the BBC to help local radio presenters understand their audience. They were used as examples of typical listeners during the 2000s.

Dave and Sue are both 55 years old. Sue works as a school secretary, and Dave is a self-employed plumber. They are both divorced and have grown-up children. They shop at Asda and prefer casual clothes. They don’t spend much time on high culture or politics, and they see the world as a serious place. They hope that radio will make them smile and laugh.

BBC Local Radio staff were given details about Dave and Sue to help them create shows that these listeners would enjoy. The BBC even made photos of the couple and used actors to represent them at an awards event.

BBC Sounds

BBC Local Radio can be enjoyed again later through BBC Sounds. In 2019, a program called England Unwrapped started, featuring stories created by the Local Radio teams.