RADIO

Classic FM hits bum note with listeners as 400,000 turn off

Dr Alex George, of Love Island, presents a show with “practical advice and tips on living everyday life in a positive way”
Dr Alex George, of Love Island, presents a show with “practical advice and tips on living everyday life in a positive way”

Classic FM has fallen to its lowest audience levels on record after losing more than 400,000 listeners.

Britain’s most popular classical music station had 4.5 million listeners a week as of March this year, compared with 4.9 million in the three months to Christmas. Some 940,000 listeners have turned off since March 2020, a 17.1 per cent drop from the pre-pandemic figure of 5.48 million.

Classic FM has been shedding listeners since the turn of the century, when 6 million tuned in a week. This is its smallest audience in the 23 years that Rajar, the industry body, has been publishing quarterly figures, with over-65s recording the sharpest recent fall.

The station has made changes to its schedule to attract younger audiences. One show, called