GB News Radio has reached a remarkable milestone, surpassing Times Radio in ratings, according to the latest RAJAR ratings released today.
The station, which has only been on the air for three years, has seen a 63 percent increase in listeners over the past 12 months.
In the second quarter of this year GB Newsradio attracted 518,000 weekly listeners, compared to Times Radio’s 478,000, which saw an 8.5 percent decline. Total weekly listening hours for GB News Radio rose to 3.315 million, an increase of 53 percent year-on-year, cementing GB News Radio’s position as the fastest growing radio station in Britain.
This increase in viewership puts GB News Radio ahead of other news channels including talkRADIO, LBC News UK and Times Radio, all of which recorded single-digit growth or lost listeners.
The core programming at GB News Radio continues to thrive. The Breakfast show, hosted by Eamonn Holmes, Isabel Webster, Stephen Dixon, Anne Diamond and Ellie Costello, saw its listenership increase by 60 per cent year-on-year. Britain’s Newsroom, presented every weekday morning by Andrew Pierce and Beverley Turner, saw an audience growth of 89 percent. Good Afternoon Britain, led by Tom Harwood and Emily Carver, saw a 96 per cent increase, while the Martin Daubney show’s listenership grew by 99 per cent.
Commuters are increasingly tuning into GB News Radio, with in-car listening increasing by 20 percent quarter-on-quarter and 160 percent year-on-year. The channel has also seen a significant increase in female listeners, up 44 percent in the last quarter, representing 45 percent of its total audience.
The ABC1 demographic grew by 33 percent last quarter, while the AB audience grew by 52 percent and up 76 percent last year. The number of listeners aged 15 to 44 increased by 32 percent in the last quarter, and 90 percent of GB News listeners are the top buyers in their households.
Digital platforms have also contributed to GB News Radio’s success, with DAB radio listening up 72 per cent year-on-year, smart speaker numbers up 106 per cent and internet streaming up 41 per cent.
GB News continues to innovate, with AI-powered sports news bulletins now delivered by the virtual voice of presenter Tatiana Sanchez. These bulletins are generated using AI summaries of the latest sports stories on the channel’s website and are broadcast every hour and half hour from 6:30 am to 11:30 pm daily.
Nicole O’Shea, Commercial Director of GB News, commented: “These figures underline the strong continued growth of GB News Radio in the UK. To do this in just three years is an amazing achievement, and we are now reaching more listeners than ever across the UK. Overtaking Times Radio is a milestone for GB News, but our aim is to build on this success and reach and connect with even wider audiences.”