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BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

. It replaced the

BBC Third Programme The BBC Third Programme was a national radio station produced and broadcast from 1946 until 1967, when it was replaced by Radio 3. It first went on the air on 29 September 1946 and quickly became one of the leading cultural and intellectual f ...

in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

, with

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, world music,

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

and

the arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

also featuring. The station describes itself as "the world's most significant commissioner of new music", and through its New Generation Artists scheme promotes young musicians of all nationalities. The station broadcasts the

BBC Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

concerts, live and in full, each summer in addition to performances by the

BBC Orchestras and Singers BBC Orchestras and Singers refers collectively to a number of orchestras, choirs and other musical ensembles, maintained by the BBC. Current operation All of the BBC’s Orchestras and Singers record performances primarily for BBC Radio 3, wi ...

. There are regular productions of both classic plays and newly commissioned drama. Radio 3 won the Sony

Radio Academy The Radio Academy is a registered charity dedicated to "the encouragement, recognition and promotion of excellence in UK broadcasting and audio production". It was formed in 1983 and is run via a board of trustees, with a chair and a deputy chair ...

UK Station of the Year Gold Award for 2009 and was nominated again in 2011. According to

RAJAR Radio Joint Audience Research Limited (RAJAR) was established in 1992 to operate a single audience measurement system for the radio industry in the United Kingdom. RAJAR is jointly owned by the BBC and RadioCentre. RAJAR's predecessor was call ...

, the station broadcasts to a weekly audience of 1.7 million with a listening share of 1.3% as of September 2022.

History

Radio 3 is the successor station to the

Third Programme The BBC Third Programme was a national radio station produced and broadcast from 1946 until 1967, when it was replaced by Radio 3. It first went on the air on 29 September 1946 and quickly became one of the leading cultural and intellectual f ...

which began broadcasting on 29 September 1946. The name Radio 3 was adopted on 30 September 1967 when the BBC launched its first pop music station,

Radio 1 Radio 1 or Radio One most commonly refers to: *BBC Radio 1, a music radio station from the BBC ** BBC Radio 1Xtra, a digital radio station broadcasting black music *CBC Radio One, a talk radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporatio ...

and rebranded its national radio channels as Radio 1, Radio 2 (formerly the Light Programme), Radio 3, and Radio 4 (formerly the

Home Service Home Service is a British folk rock group, formed in late 1980 from a nucleus of musicians who had been playing in Ashley Hutchings' Albion Band. Their career is generally agreed to have peaked with the album ''Alright Jack'', and has had an ...

). Radio 3 was the overall label applied to the collection of services which had until then gone under the umbrella title of the Third Network, namely: *the Third Programme proper (as launched in 1946, an evenings-only offering of demanding cultural fare, both musical and spoken) *the Music Programme (a daytime service of classical music) *sports coverage (chiefly on Saturday afternoons) and adult educational programming in the early part of weekday evenings (known as Network Three). All these strands, including the Third Programme, kept their separate identities within Radio 3 until 4 April 1970, when there was a further reorganisation following the introduction of the structural changes which had been outlined the previous year in the BBC document ''Broadcasting in the Seventies''.

''Broadcasting in the Seventies''

On 10 July 1969 the BBC published its plans for radio and television in a policy document entitled ''Broadcasting in the Seventies''. Later described in 2002 by

Jenny Abramsky Dame Jennifer Gita Abramsky, (born 7 October 1946) is a British media producer and philanthropist. She was chairman of the UK's National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF). The NHMF makes grants to preserve heritage of outstanding national importanc ...

, Head of Radio and Music, as "the most controversial document ever produced by radio", the document outlined each station's target audience and what content should be broadcast on each channel. This concept went against the earlier methods laid out by the BBC's first Director General John Reith and caused controversy at the time, despite laying out the radio structure that is recognisable today. At the time of the review, Radio 3 faced several problems. An early option to cut costs, required under the proposals, was to reduce the number of networks from four to three, so that Radio 3 would not broadcast during the day and would use the frequencies of either Radio 1 or 2 as the two stations would merge content. However "Day-time serious music would be the casualty" of these proposals and caused some controversy. A further rumour was expressed that Radio 3 could be closed altogether as a strong statistical case existed against the station according to ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''. However, the Director-General, Charles Curran, publicly denied this as "quite contradictory to the aim of the BBC, which is to provide a comprehensive radio service". Curran had earlier dismissed any suggestion that Radio 3's small audience was a consideration: "What is decisive is whether there is a worthwhile audience, and I mean by worthwhile an audience which will get an enormous satisfaction out of it." As a result of ''Broadcasting in the Seventies'', factual content, including documentaries and current affairs, were moved to

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

and the separate titled strands were abolished. The document stated that Radio 3 was to have "a larger output of standard classical music" but with "some element in the evening of cultural speech programmes – poetry, plays". Equally, questions were being asked by the poet Peter Porter about whether other spoken content, for example poetry, would remain on the station. These concerns also led to the composer

Peter Maxwell Davies Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (8 September 1934 – 14 March 2016) was an English composer and conductor, who in 2004 was made Master of the Queen's Music. As a student at both the University of Manchester and the Royal Manchester College of Musi ...

and the music critic

Edward Greenfield Edward Harry Greenfield OBE (3 July 1928 – 1 July 2015) was an English music critic and broadcaster. Early life Edward Greenfield was born in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. His father, Percy Greenfield, was a manager in a labour exchange, while his ...

to fear that "people would lose the mix of cultural experiences which expanded intellectual horizons".''Radio Times'', 4–10 April 1970, BBC Magazines However, Radio 3 controller

Howard Newby Sir Howard Joseph Newby (born 10 December 1947) is a British sociologist. He was appointed vice-chancellor of the University of Liverpool in 2008 and retired in December 2014. He was vice-chancellor of the University of Southampton from 1994 to ...

reassured these concerns by replying that only the coverage of political and economic affairs would be passed to Radio 4, and Radio 3 would keep drama, poetry, and talks by scientists, philosophers and historians. The ''Broadcasting in the Seventies'' report also proposed a large cutback in the number and size of the BBC's orchestras. In September 1969, a distinguished campaign group entitled the Campaign for Better Broadcasting was formed to protest, with the backing of Sir Adrian Boult,

Jonathan Miller Sir Jonathan Wolfe Miller CBE (21 July 1934 – 27 November 2019) was an English theatre and opera director, actor, author, television presenter, humourist and physician. After training in medicine and specialising in neurology in the late 1 ...

, Henry Moore and

George Melly Alan George Heywood Melly (17 August 1926 – 5 July 2007) was an English jazz and blues singer, critic, writer, and lecturer. From 1965 to 1973 he was a film and television critic for ''The Observer''; he also lectured on art history, with an ...

. The campaign objected to "the dismantling of the Third Programme by cutting down its spoken word content from fourteen hours a week to six" and "segregating programmes into classes". Mention of the campaign even reached debate in the House of Commons.

The "arts" controllers

From the launch until 1987, the controllers of Radio 3 showed preferences towards speech and arts programming as opposed to focus on classical music and the Proms. The first controller, Newby, made little contribution to the station, focusing on the transition from the Third programme to Radio 3 and as a result of the ''Broadcasting in the Seventies'' report. The second controller, Stephen Hearst who assumed the role in 1972, was different. As Hearst had previously been head of television arts features his appointment was seen with scepticism among the staff who viewed him as a populariser. According to Hearst when interviewed for

Humphrey Carpenter Humphrey William Bouverie Carpenter (29 April 1946 – 4 January 2005) was an English biographer, writer, and radio broadcaster. He is known especially for his biographies of J. R. R. Tolkien and other members of the literary society the Inkl ...

's book, the main rival candidate for controller

Martin Esslin , birth_date = , birth_place = Budapest, Austria-Hungary , death_date = , death_place = London, England, UK , education = University of Vienna Reinhardt Seminar , o ...

, head of Radio Drama, had said to the interviewing panel that audience figures should play no part in the decision making process over programming. Hearst said he responded to the same question about this issue by commenting that as the station was financed by public money it needed to consider the size of its audience – there was a minimum viable figure but this could be increased with "a lively style of broadcasting". Hearst attempted to make the content of the channel more accessible to a wider audience, but his efforts, which included the evening drivetime programme ''Homeward Bound'' and Sunday phone-in request programme ''Your Concert Choice'' (the former an uninterrupted sequence of musical items identified only at the end of the programme; the latter a resurrection from the old

), were criticised. However, during this time the long running arts discussion programme ''Critics' Forum'' was launched as well as themed evenings and programmes of miscellaneous music including ''Sounds Interesting''. In 1978, Ian McIntyre took over as controller of Radio 3 but quickly faced uncomfortable relationships between departments. At approximately the same time

Aubrey Singer Aubrey Edward Singer CBE (21 January 1927 – 26 May 2007) was a British broadcasting executive who spent most of his career at the BBC. He has been described as "''the greatest director general that the BBC never had''". Singer was born in Bra ...

became managing director of Radio and began to make programming on the station more populist in a drive to retain listeners in face of possible competition from competitors using a "streamed format". An example of this is the replacement of ''Homeward Bound'' in 1980 with an extended, presenter-driven programme called ''Mainly for Pleasure''. The same year an internal paper recommended the disbandment of several of the BBC's orchestras and of the Music Division, resulting in low morale and industrial action by musicians that delayed the start of the Proms. Senior management was also getting dissatisfied with listening figures leading to the Director-General Alasdair Milne to suggest that presentation style was "too stodgy and old-fashioned".

The "music" controllers

In 1987 the positions of Controller of Music and Controller of Radio 3 were merged, and with it the operation of the Proms, under the former Music Controller John Drummond. Drummond, like Hearst, believed that the music programmes' presentation was too stiff and formal and he therefore encouraged announcers to be more natural and enthusiastic. Repeats of classic drama performances by the likes of

John Gielgud Sir Arthur John Gielgud, (; 14 April 1904 – 21 May 2000) was an English actor and theatre director whose career spanned eight decades. With Ralph Richardson and Laurence Olivier, he was one of the trinity of actors who dominated the Brit ...

and

Paul Scofield David Paul Scofield (21 January 1922 – 19 March 2008) was a British actor. During a six-decade career, Scofield achieved the US Triple Crown of Acting, winning an Academy Award, Emmy, and Tony for his work. He won the three awards in a seve ...

were also included because, in his view, newer drama was "gloomy and pretentious". He also introduced features and celebrations of the anniversaries of famous figures including

William Glock Sir William Frederick Glock, CBE (3 May 190828 June 2000) was a British music critic and musical administrator who was instrumental in introducing the Continental avant-garde, notably promoting the career of Pierre Boulez. Biography Glock was bo ...

Michael Tippett Sir Michael Kemp Tippett (2 January 1905 – 8 January 1998) was an English composer who rose to prominence during and immediately after the Second World War. In his lifetime he was sometimes ranked with his contemporary Benjamin Britten ...

and Isaiah Berlin. Drummond also introduced the show '' Mixing It'' which targeted the music genres that fell between Radios 1 and 3, often seen as a precursor to the programme ''

Late Junction ''Late Junction'' is a music programme broadcast weekly on Friday nights by BBC Radio 3. Billed as "Experimental music for adventurous listeners.", the programme has a wide musical scope. It is not uncommon to hear medieval ballads juxtaposed wi ...

''. During Drummond's time, Radio 3 also began to experiment with outside broadcasts, including an ambitious Berlin Weekend to mark the reunification of Germany in 1990, and a much praised weekend of programming that was broadcast from London and Minneapolis-St Paul – creating broadcasting history by being the first time a whole weekend had been transmitted "live from another continent". However, Drummond complained about the former that "not one single senior person in the BBC had listened to any part of it", reflecting his general feeling that the BBC senior management paid little attention stating: "I can't remember ever having a serious conversation with anyone above me in the BBC about Radio 3 ... I would much rather have had the feeling that they thought it mattered what Radio 3 did." Henry Purcell Closterman

Drummond's successor was Nicholas Kenyon, previously chief music critic of ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'', who took over in February 1992 and was immediately faced with the looming launch date for commercial competitor Classic FM who were, and still remain, Radio 3's biggest rivals. Kenyon, similar to

Singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

a decade earlier, believed that Radio 3 had to make changes to its presentation before the new station began broadcasting rather than react later. As a result, three senior producers were sent to study classical music stations in the United States and the station hired advertising agents

Saatchi & Saatchi Saatchi & Saatchi is a British multinational communications and advertising agency network with 114 offices in 76 countries and over 6,500 staff. It was founded in 1970 and is currently headquartered in London. The parent company of the agency gr ...

to help improve public perception. Kenyon's tenure was to meet with much controversy: in attempts to update the station's presentation, popular announcers Malcolm Ruthven, Peter Barker and Tony Scotland were axed as well as drama being cut by a quarter, resulting in a letter of protest to ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' signed by Harold Pinter,

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

and

Fay Weldon Fay Weldon CBE, FRSL (born Franklin Birkinshaw; 22 September 1931 – 4 January 2023) was an English author, essayist and playwright. Over the course of her 55-year writing career, she published 31 novels, including ''Puffball'' (1980), '' Th ...

among others; two new programmes for drive time, entitled ''On Air'' and '' In Tune'', were launched and a new three-hour programme of popular classics on Sunday mornings fronted by Brian Kay was also launched. These moves were defended by Kenyon who argued that the changes were not "some ghastly descent into populism" but were instead to create "access points" for new listeners. However, there was still "widespread disbelief" when it was announced in the summer that a new morning programme would take the 9am spot from the revered ''

Composer of the Week ''Composer of the Week'' is a long-running biographical music programme produced by BBC Cymru Wales and broadcast on BBC Radio 3. It is broadcast daily from Monday to Friday at 12 noon for an hour, each week's programmes being a self-containe ...

'' and would be presented by a signing from Classic FM – the disc jockey

Paul Gambaccini Paul Matthew Gambaccini (born April 2, 1949) is an American-British radio and television presenter and author in the United Kingdom. He has dual United States and British nationality, having become a British citizen in 2005. Known as "The Grea ...

. The criticism, especially once the programme went on air a few weeks later, was so unrelenting that Gambaccini announced the following spring that he would not be renewing his contract with Radio 3. However, Kenyon's controllership was marked by several highly distinguished programming successes. ''Fairest Isle'' was an ambitious project from 1995 which marked the 300th anniversary of the death of Henry Purcell with a year-long celebration of British music and the programme ''Sounding the Century'', which ran for two years from 1997, presented a retrospective of 20th-century music. Both won awards. He also introduced a number of well received specialist programmes including children's programme ''The Music Machine'', early music programme ''Spirit of the Age'', jazz showcase ''Impressions'', vocal music programme ''Voices'' and the arts programme ''

Night Waves ''Free Thinking'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 3 as part of their "After Dark" late night programming. The programme is a rebranded version of ''Night Waves'', "Radio 3's flagship arts and ideas programme". ''Night Waves'' was b ...

''. BBC Radio 3 began nighttime transmissions in May 1996 with the introduction of '' Through the Night'', consisting of radio recordings from members of the European Broadcasting Union and distributed to some of these other stations under the title ''Euroclassic Notturno'' since 1998. The introduction of 24-hour broadcasting resulted in the introduction of a fixed programming point at 22:00 so that if live programme overran, later programming could be cancelled to allow ''Through the Night'' to begin promptly. Max Reinhardt, radio broadcaster

In 1998, Roger Wright took over as controller of the station. Soon after his appointment some changes were made to showcase a wider variety of music; a new, relaxed, late-night music programme ''

'' featured a wide variety of genres; programmes focusing on jazz and world music were given a higher profile as were programmes presented by Brian Kay, focusing on light music, and

Andy Kershaw Andrew J. G. Kershaw (born 9 November 1959) is a broadcaster and disc jockey, predominantly on radio, and known for his interest in world music. Kershaw's shows feature a mix of country, blues, reggae, folk music, African music, spoken word ...

, whose show was previously dropped by Radio 1. In these changes, Wright believed that, in the case of the former, he was addressing "this feeling people had that they didn't want to put Radio 3 on unless they were going to listen carefully" and in the latter cases that he was "not

dumbing down Dumbing down is the deliberate oversimplification of intellectual content in education, literature, and cinema, news, video games, and culture. Originated in 1933, the term "dumbing down" was movie-business slang, used by screenplay writers, mean ...

but smarting up" the programmes. By 2004, Radio 3's programming and services were being recognised by the Corporation at large, as seen in the 2003/4 Charter renewal application and the Annual report for the year which reported that Radio 3 had "achieved a record udiencereach in the first quarter of 2004",BBC Annual Report 2003/04, p. 34. and by the government: the Secretary of State's foreword to the government's

Green Paper In the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth countries, Hong Kong, the United States and the European Union, a green paper is a tentative government report and consultation document of policy proposals for debate and discussion. A green paper represen ...

in 2005 made special mention of "the sort of commitment to new talent that has made Radio 3 the largest commissioner of new music in the world" as a model for what the BBC should be about. By 2008, however, the station faced pressures to increase its audience by making programmes more accessible while loyal listeners began to complain about the tone of these new changes. Presentation was described as "gruesome in tone and level" and global music output was mocked as "street-smart fusions" and "global pop". At the same time

began to record lower listening figures and decisions on policy were being changed resulting in the children's programme ''Making Tracks'', experimental music programme '' Mixing It'', theatre and film programme ''Stage and Screen'' and ''Brian Kay's Light Programme'' all being dropped, a reduction in the number of concerts and format changes to several other programmes. In spite of the changes, figures still continued to fall. The mid- to late 2000s did, however, offer new projects undertaken on the station: ''The

Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classic ...

Experience'' in June 2005 saw the broadcast of his works broadcast non-stop for six days. A similar project occurred six months later when ''A

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...

Christmas'' was run for ten days in the lead to Christmas and in February 2007 when a week was similarly given over to the works of

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

& Stravinsky, and

Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...

in March 2012. As part of the original Beethoven Experience, the BBC trialled its first music downloads over the internet by offering free music downloads of all nine symphonies as played by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra under

Gianandrea Noseda Gianandrea Noseda (born 23 April 1964, Sesto San Giovanni, Italy) is an Italian conductor. Biography Noseda studied piano and composition in Milan. He began conducting studies at age 27. He furthered his conducting studies with Donato Renzet ...

. The stated aim was "to gauge audiences' appetite for music downloads and their preferred content, and will inform the development of the BBC strategy for audio downloads and on demand content". The experiment was wildly successful, attracting 1.4 million downloads but was met with anger from the major classical record labels who considered it unfair competition and "devaluing the perceived value of music". As a result, no further free downloads have been offered, including as part of the BBC iPlayer service, and the BBC Trust has ruled out any classical music podcasts with extracts longer than one minute. BBC Radio 3

In 2007, Radio 3 also began to experiment with a visual broadcast as well as the audio transmissions. In October 2007, Radio 3 collaborated with

English National Opera English National Opera (ENO) is an opera company based in London, resident at the London Coliseum in St Martin's Lane. It is one of the two principal opera companies in London, along with The Royal Opera. ENO's productions are sung in English ...

in presenting a live video stream of a performance of Carmen, "the first time a UK opera house has offered a complete production online" and in September 2008, Radio 3 launched a filmed series of concerts that was available to watch live and on demand for seven days "in high quality vision". This strategy was also introduced to some of the BBC Proms concerts. BBC Radio 3 live 2016

By the latter years of the 2000s, Radio 3's prospects were improving. The year 2008/9 saw the introduction of more concerts and other innovations had introduced Radio 3's largest event to a wider audience. The introduction of family orientated concerts to the

, which are broadcast live on Radio 3, helped the station to introduce itself to a younger audience. Innovations of this type began in 2008 with the introduction of a concert celebrating the music from the television programme '' Doctor Who'' as composed by

Murray Gold Murray Jonathan Gold (born 28 February 1969) is an English composer for stage, film, and television and a dramatist for both theatre and radio. He is best known as the musical director and composer of the music for ''Doctor Who'' from 2005, unti ...

and was later followed by a further ''Doctor Who'' prom in 2010, a free family prom in 2009, another free ''

Horrible Histories ''Horrible Histories'' is an educational entertainment franchise encompassing many media including books, magazines, audio books, stage shows, TV shows, and more. In 2013, Lisa Edwards, UK publishing and commercial director of Scholastic Corpor ...

'' prom in 2011 and a ''

Wallace and Gromit ''Wallace & Gromit'' is a British stop-motion comedy franchise created by Nick Park of Aardman Animations. The series consists of four short films and one feature-length film, and has spawned numerous spin-offs and TV adaptations. The series ce ...

'' prom in 2012. These particular concerts were introduced by Wright, who became Proms Director in addition to his duties at Radio 3 in October 2007, and many were also televised for broadcast at a later date. The mix in these proms of classical music to combine with music of a classical nature from the programmes was hoped to introduce a much younger audience to the genres catered for by Radio 3. Radio 3 was having to undergo further changes as a result of recent findings from the

BBC Trust The BBC Trust was the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) between 2007 and 2017. It was operationally independent of BBC management and external bodies, and its stated aim was to make decisions in the best interests of ...

. In the station's latest service review, carried out in 2010, the Trust recommended the station become more accessible to new audiences, easier to navigate through the different genres and to review the output of the BBC's orchestras and singers. Soon after this verdict, the license fee was capped and the BBC given more services to pay for with the same level of income. As a result, the corporation had to reduce its costs. In the proposal entitled ''Delivering Quality First'', the BBC proposed that Radio 3 contribute by broadcasting 25% fewer live or specially recorded lunchtime concerts and reducing the number of specially recorded evening concerts. The Trust did recognise, however, that "Radio 3 plays a vital role in the cultural and creative life of the UK" and as a result, the report did agree to reinvest in the Proms, to retain the long dramas found on the station and to continue to broadcast a new concert live each evening. The current controller of Radio 3 is Alan Davey, since January 2015. In September 2022, the BBC announced that Davey is to stand down as controller of BBC Radio 3 in March 2023.

Operation

BBC Radio 3 broadcasts from studios inside the 1930s wing of Broadcasting House in central

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. However, in addition to these studios, certain programmes and performances are broadcast from other BBC bases including from

BBC Cymru Wales BBC Cymru Wales is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Wales. It is one of the four BBC national regions, alongside the BBC English Regions, BBC Northern Ireland and BBC Scotland. Established in 1964, BBC Cymru Wales is b ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

headquarters and

BBC North BBC North (Group) is an operational business division of the BBC. It is also a brand that has been used by the BBC to mean: *The large ''BBC North'' region, centred on Manchester, that was active from the late 1920s until 1968 and was based u ...

's headquarters at MediaCityUK, Salford. The BBC also has recording facilities at the Royal Albert Hall, the Royal Festival Hall and the Queen Elizabeth Hall which can be used to record and broadcast performances at these venues. BBC Radio 3 is broadcast on the FM band between 90.2 and 92.6

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

, on

DAB Digital Radio Digital radio is the use of digital technology to transmit or receive across the radio spectrum. Digital transmission by radio waves includes digital broadcasting, and especially digital audio radio services. Types In digital broadcasting syst ...

, the digital television services

Freeview Freeview may refer to: * Freeview (Australia), the marketing name for the digital terrestrial television platform in Australia * Freeview (New Zealand), a digital satellite and digital terrestrial television platform in New Zealand *Freeview (UK), ...

Freesat Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Digital UK. The service was formed as a memorandum in 2007 and has been marketed since 6 May 2008. Free ...

Sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...

Virgin Media Virgin Media is a British telecommunications company which provides telephone, television and internet services in the United Kingdom. Its headquarters are at Green Park in Reading, England. It is owned by Virgin Media O2, a 50:50 joint ventu ...

TalkTalk TV TalkTalk TV is a UK-based consumer television and video on demand service, operated by the TalkTalk Group that originally launched in 2000. In September 2012, the current TalkTalk TV was launched in partnership with YouView. Its television a ...

and

Virgin Media Ireland Virgin Media Ireland is Liberty Global's telecommunications operation in Ireland. It is the largest digital cable television provider within the country. As of 31 December 2014, the company offers broadband internet, digital television and d ...

and on BBC Sounds both online and on the app, where Radio 3 programmes can be listened back to. On its FM frequencies, the station uses less

dynamic range compression Dynamic range compression (DRC) or simply compression is an audio signal processing operation that reduces the volume of loud sounds or amplifies quiet sounds, thus reducing or ''compressing'' an audio signal's dynamic range. Compression is ...

of the volume of music than rival station Classic FM. On DAB it uses dynamic range control (DRC) which allows compression to be defined by the user. The station also uses a BBC-designed

pulse-code modulation Pulse-code modulation (PCM) is a method used to digitally represent sampled analog signals. It is the standard form of digital audio in computers, compact discs, digital telephony and other digital audio applications. In a PCM Stream (comp ...

digitisation technique similar to

NICAM Near Instantaneous Companded Audio Multiplex (NICAM) is an early form of lossy compression for digital audio. It was originally developed in the early 1970s for point-to-point links within broadcasting networks.Croll, M.G., Osborne, D.W. and Spi ...

, which is used for outside broadcasts running through a telephone line. This runs at a sample rate of 14,000 per second per channel. A similar technique was later used for recording at the same rate. In September 2010, for the final week of the Proms broadcasts, the BBC trialled XHQ (Extra High Quality), a live

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

stream transmitted at a rate of 320 kbit/s, instead of Radio 3's usual 192kbit/s, using its AAC-LC 'Coyopa' coding technology. This technology was later developed further, and Radio 3 became the first BBC Radio station to broadcast permanently in this High Definition Sound (as it has been termed) format.

Notable programmes

''Choral Evensong''

Westminster, London, UK - panoramio (10)

The Anglican service of sung evening prayer is broadcast every Wednesday at half past three during the ''Afternoon Concerts'' block on Radio 3 live from cathedrals, university college chapels and churches throughout the UK. On occasion, it broadcasts Choral Vespers from

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

cathedrals, (such as

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral is the mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It is the largest Catholic church in the UK and the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster. The site on which the cathedral stands in the City o ...

), Orthodox Vespers, or a recorded service from choral foundations abroad. ''Choral Evensong'' is the BBC's longest-running outside broadcast programme, the first edition having been relayed from

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the Unite ...

on 7 October 1926. Its 80th anniversary was celebrated, also live from Westminster Abbey, with a service on 11 October 2006. When ''Choral Evensong'' was moved from Radio 4 to Radio 3 with effect from 8 April 1970 and reduced to just one broadcast per month, the BBC received 2,500 letters of complaint, and weekly transmissions were resumed on 1 July. In 2007 the live broadcast was switched to Sundays, which again caused protests. The live transmission was returned to Wednesdays in September 2008, with a recorded repeat on Sunday afternoons in approximately the same time. ''Choral Evensong'' forms part of Radio 3's remit on religious programming though non-religious listeners have campaigned for its retention.

''Composer of the Week''

'' was launched in the BBC Home Service on 2 August 1943 under its original title of ''This Week's Composer''.Paul Donovan, ''Roll over, Beethoven'', Sunday Times, Culture supplement, 10 August 2003, pp. 14–15 From 15 December 1964 the programme became a regular feature in the schedule of the newly established daytime "Third Network" classical music service, the Music Programme (later to be absorbed into Radio 3). The programme was renamed ''Composer of the Week'' on 18 January 1988. Each week, in five daily programmes, which air at midday, the work of a particular composer is studied in detail and illustrated with musical excerpts.

Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions to musical form have led ...

, Mozart and Handel have all featured once most years, a different aspect of their work being chosen for study each time. However, the programme also covers more 'difficult' or less-widely known composers, with weeks devoted to Rubbra,

Medtner Nikolai Karlovich Medtner (russian: Никола́й Ка́рлович Ме́тнер, ''Nikoláj Kárlovič Métner''; 13 November 1951) was a Russian composer and virtuoso pianist. After a period of comparative obscurity in the 25 years immedi ...

Havergal Brian Havergal Brian (born William Brian; 29 January 187628 November 1972) was an English composer. He is best known for having composed 32 symphonies (an unusually high total for a 20th-century composer), most of them late in his life. His best-known ...

, Kapralova, and the Minimalists among others. The programme is written and presented by Donald Macleod. On 2 August 2013, in honour of the station's 70th year, listeners were asked to nominate a composer who had never before been featured for a special broadcast at Christmas. The composer listeners chose was

Louise Farrenc Louise Farrenc (née Jeanne-Louise Dumont; 31 May 1804 – 15 September 1875) was a French composer, virtuoso pianist and teacher of the Romantic period. Her compositions include three symphonies, a few choral works, numerous chamber pieces and a ...

''Lunchtime / Afternoon Concerts''

These two programs showcase live or recorded performances from venues across the country. ''Lunchtime'' is from 1to 2pm and ''Afternoon'' is later on until 5 with presenters being rotated weekly for the latter program. The live Monday edition of ''Lunchtime'' is repeated on Sunday at the same time.

''The Early Music Show''

''The Early Music Show'' presents European music dating up to the time of Bach, broadcast at 2pm each Sunday. Episodes cover the music, the performers, and occasional discussions of musical style. Regular presenters include

Lucie Skeaping Lucie Skeaping (née Finch) is a British singer, instrumentalist, broadcaster and writer. She was a founder of the early music group the City Waites and the pioneering klezmer band the Burning Bush. She presents BBC Radio 3's '' Early Music ...

and Hannah French.

''In Tune''

BBC Radio 3 at Southbank Centre (14729656794)

'' In Tune'' is "Radio 3’s flagship early evening music programme". It was first broadcast on 13 July 1992 and was launched in response to the forthcoming launch of the competitor radio station Classic FM. Since 1997 the programme has been presented by

Sean Rafferty Sean Rafferty MBE is a Belfast-born, Northern Irish broadcaster, now best known for his work on BBC Radio 3. Early life Rafferty was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and spent his childhood in Newcastle, County Down. He went on to study law a ...

and (since 2017)

Katie Derham Catherine Beatrice Margaret Derham (born 18 June 1970) is a British newscaster and a presenter on television and radio. Early life and education Derham was born on 18 June 1970 in Canterbury, Kent to Margaret, a teacher, and John Derham, a chem ...

, and features a mix of live and recorded classical and

music, interviews with musicians, and arts news. The show is noted for its relaxed, convivial style of presentation.

''Jazz Record Requests''

''Jazz Record Requests'' was the first weekly jazz programme on the Third Programme. First presented by the jazz musician

Humphrey Lyttelton Humphrey Richard Adeane Lyttelton (23 May 1921 – 25 April 2008), also known as Humph, was an English jazz musician and broadcaster from the Lyttelton family. Having taught himself the trumpet at school, Lyttelton became a professional ...

, the 30-minute programme was launched on 12 December 1964 and is still running. Now an hour long, it was broadcast on Saturdays, usually in the late afternoon, until October 2019 when it moved to Sunday afternoon. Presenters on Radio 3 have included

Ken Sykora Ken Sykora (13 April 1923–7 March 2006), born Charles Kenneth Sykora, was an English jazz guitarist and radio presenter. Sykora had two older sisters: Rose M. Sykora, born in 1911, shortly after her parents' marriage, and Clara Phyllis ...

Steve Race Stephen Russell "Steve" Race OBE (1 April 192122 June 2009) was a British composer, pianist and radio and television presenter. Biography Born in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, the son of a lawyer, Race learned the piano from the age of five.Spencer ...

Peter Clayton Peter James Clayton (25 June 1927 – 10 August 1991) was an English jazz presenter on BBC Radio, jazz critic, and author. From October 1968 until his death in August 1991, Clayton presented jazz recordings, interviews, studio performances, and ...

, Charles Fox and Geoffrey Smith.

Alyn Shipton Alyn Shipton (born 24 November 1953) is an English jazz author, presenter, critic, and jazz bassist. Early life Shipton became interested in jazz in his youth and formally studied cello, but also played double bass in a school jazz band. He pla ...

became the presenter in May 2012.

''Pied Piper''

''Pied Piper'' was a children's programme, presented by early music specialist,

David Munrow David John Munrow (12 August 194215 May 1976) was a British musician and early music historian. Early life and education Munrow was born in Birmingham where both his parents taught at the University of Birmingham. His mother, Hilda Ivy (né ...

, with the sub-title Tales and Music for Younger Listeners and ran from August 1971 until 1976. Lively and varied, it was aimed at the 6–12 age group, though much older children and adults also listened. The programme ran for five series and a total of 655 episodes until Munrow's death in May 1976.

''Opera on 3''

Broadcast on Saturday nights between 6:30 and 10pm, featuring live performances by the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is oper ...

from the Metropolitan Opera House in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

''The Proms''

The annual

concerts are broadcast live each summer on Radio 3. Broadcasting the Proms began in 1927, when the Third Programme transmitted the Thirty-Second Season of the Promenade Concerts live from the

Queen's Hall The Queen's Hall was a concert hall in Langham Place, London, Langham Place, London, opened in 1893. Designed by the architect Thomas Knightley, it had room for an audience of about 2,500 people. It became London's principal concert venue. Fro ...

, conducted by Sir

Henry Wood Sir Henry Joseph Wood (3 March 186919 August 1944) was an English conductor best known for his association with London's annual series of promenade concerts, known as the The Proms, Proms. He conducted them for nearly half a century, introd ...

. The BBC's involvement with the Proms led to the creation of the

BBC Symphony Orchestra The BBC Symphony Orchestra (BBC SO) is a British orchestra based in London. Founded in 1930, it was the first permanent salaried orchestra in London, and is the only one of the city's five major symphony orchestras not to be self-governing. T ...

and the BBC Wireless Orchestra to perform music. Television transmission began in 1947 and today, selected concerts are also

simulcast Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simulta ...

on BBC Four. Promenade concerts are centred on the Royal Albert Hall with broadcasts from other venues around the UK.

''Radio 3 in Concert''

''Radio 3 in Concert'' (originally ''Live in Concert'') is a weeknight programme, broadcast between 7:30 and 10pm, with recorded concerts from various venues around the country and Europe. Regular presenters include Nicola Heywood Thomas, Martin Handley and

Petroc Trelawny James Edward Petroc Trelawny (born 27 May 1971) is a British classical music radio and television broadcaster. Since 1998 he has been a presenter on BBC Radio 3. Career James Edward Petroc Trelawny was born in Worcester and grew up in the Mene ...

. The last broadcast with the ''Live in Concert'' name was on 15 July 2015.

''Record Review''

''Record Review'' is a Saturday morning programme (usually airing from 9am to 11:45am) dealing with recent classical music releases, topical issues and interviews. The programme title is a return of ''Record Review'' which was broadcast on Network Three occasionally from 1949, then weekly from 1957. the regular presenter of ''Record Review'' is Andrew McGregor. From 1998 to 2015 it became ''CD Review'', until on 2 January 2016, its title reverted to ''Record Review'' to reflect the diversity of media proliferating (CDs, downloads, streaming, and so forth). It includes the feature ''Building a Library'' which surveys and recommends available recordings of specific works.

''Through the Night''

The show broadcasts for 6 hours, beginning weekdays at 0:30 and weekends at 1 in the morning. It currently has three regular presenters: Catriona Young, John Shea and Jonathan Swain. The show is a national version of the BBC's ''

Euroclassic Notturno ''Euroclassic Notturno'' is a six-hour radio sequence of classical music recordings assembled by BBC Radio from material supplied by members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and distributed, via the EBU's Euroradio satellite network, to a ...

''.

''The Verb''

This show, presented by poet Ian McMillan, is described as a "cabaret of the word, featuring the best poetry, new writing and performance". It broadcasts for 44 minutes at 10pm on Friday nights.

News broadcasts

BBC Radio 3's remit focuses mainly on music and the arts, and news is a minor part of its output, though the station does provide concise news bulletins every half hour from 06:30 to 08:00 throughout the ''Breakfast'' programme and also at 13:00, 17:00 and 18:00 to give listeners the chance to switch to a more news-oriented station should they want more details about a particular news item. Following the ''Delivering Quality First'' proposals, it was suggested that Radio 3 share bulletins with Radio 4, so that the same bulletins would be broadcast on both channels. During weekdays the 1pm, 5pm and 6pm news bulletins are read by a member of the Radio 4 presentation team. From 30 March until 12 July 2020 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, the Radio 3 bespoke bulletins were replaced by network news bulletins from BBC Radio 2. These were broadcast at 08:00, 13:00 and 18:00 on weekdays, and at 08:00 and 13:00 on weekends. This format came back into effect from 24 December 2020 until 4 April 2021.

Performing groups

BBCSO rehearsing for the last night of the Proms

Much of Radio 3's orchestral output is sourced from the BBC's Orchestras and Singers. These groups are: * The

and BBC Symphony Chorus, based in

* The

BBC Concert Orchestra The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British concert orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five BBC orchestras which is not a full-scale sym ...

, based in

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

* The

BBC Philharmonic The BBC Philharmonic is a national British broadcasting symphony orchestra and is one of five radio orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation. The Philharmonic is a department of the BBC North Group division based at Med ...

, based in

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

* The

BBC National Orchestra of Wales The BBC National Orchestra of Wales (BBC NOW) ( cy, Cerddorfa Genedlaethol Gymreig y BBC) is a Welsh symphony orchestra and one of the BBC's five professional radio orchestras. The BBC NOW is the only professional symphony orchestra organisatio ...

and the BBC National Chorus of Wales, based in

* The

BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (BBC SSO) is a Scottish broadcasting symphony orchestra based in Glasgow. One of five full-time orchestras maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC), it is the oldest full-time professional r ...

, based in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

* The

BBC Singers The BBC Singers are a British chamber choir, and the professional chamber choir of the BBC. One of the six BBC Performing Groups, the BBC Singers are based at the BBC's Maida Vale Studios in London. The only full-time professional British ...

, based in London. In addition to the BBC's own orchestras it also has broadcast commitments to the

BBC Big Band The BBC Big Band, originally known as the BBC Radio Big Band is a British big band, previously run under the auspices of the British Broadcasting Corporation ( BBC). The band broadcasts exclusively on BBC Radio, particularly on BBC Radio 2's long ...

, which is externally managed, and also broadcasts some works of the

Ulster Orchestra The Ulster Orchestra, based in Belfast, is the only full-time professional orchestra in Northern Ireland. The orchestra plays the majority of its concerts in Belfast's Ulster Hall and Waterfront Hall. It also gives concerts across the United K ...

, which it part funds.

Controllers

* 19671971

: An author, he published four novels during his time at the Third Programme/Radio 3, winning the first Booker Prize for fiction in 1969. Oversaw the implementation of ''Broadcasting in the Seventies'' and an increase in the amount of classical music on Radio 3. * 19721978 Stephen Hearst : Previously head of BBC's television music and arts department, Hearst attempted to make Radio 3 more accessible to a wider audience by introducing drivetime and request programmes as well as themed weekends. Some of these ventures were poorly viewed by critics. * 19791987 Ian McIntyre : Previously controller of Radio 4, McIntyre faced budgetary cuts that closed several orchestras and uncomfortable relations with the Music Division. The possibility of future competition to Radio 3 also resulted in more programmes viewed as populist by critics in an attempt to retain listeners. * 19871992 John Drummond : Previously an artistic administrator for events including the

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

, Drummond introduced repeats of classic drama performances and celebrations of artists anniversaries. His work also included programmes targeting fringe genres and ambitious outside broadcasts. * 19921998 Nicholas Kenyon : Kenyon, previously chief music critic of ''

'', made many controversial decisions relating to accessibility to the service in light of the launch of Classic FM including new drive time programmes. However several celebrated programmes and series of programmes were launched and Radio 3 began 24-hour broadcasting. * 19982014 Roger Wright : Wright attempted to ensure that all of the station's musical genres were represented more equitably, and to "smarten up" programmes. While some of these measures were recognised by the BBC and Government, the audience began to decrease, and attempts by Wright to make programmes more accessible were met with complaints from listeners. It was announced in March 2014 that Wright would step down in early September 2014. * 2015present Alan Davey : Davey became Controller in January 2015, having been chief executive of Arts Council England since 2008.

Criticisms

Controller Nicholas Kenyon summed up the perennial problem of Radio 3 as "the tension between highbrow culture and popular appeal …the cost of what we do and the number of people who make use of it": elitism versus populism (or 'dumbing down') and the question of cost per listener. This argument has included members of the BBC, listeners and several different protest groups. In 1969, two hundred members of the BBC staff protested to the director general at changes which would 'emasculate' Radio 3, while managing director of radio

Ian Trethowan Sir James Ian Raley Trethowan (20 October 1922 – 12 December 1990) was a British journalist, radio and television broadcaster and administrator who eventually became Director-General of the BBC, Director-General of the BBC from 1 October 1977 ...

described the station in a memorandum as "a private playground for elitists to indulge in cerebral masturbation". Later, former Radio 3 controller John Drummond complained that the senior ranks of the BBC took no interest in what he was doing.Drummond (2001), p.365 In 1995/6 listeners and press critics protested against the introduction into a slot formerly used for

of a programme presented by

, a former

and Classic FM presenter. This was seen as part of a wider move towards popularisation, to compete with Classic FM and to increase ratings. Gambaccini is quoted as saying: "I had a specific mission to invite adio 4'sToday listeners to stay with the BBC rather than go to Classic FM." Several groups were formed to protest against any changes to the station. These have included: * The Third Programme Defence Society (1957) opposed cuts in broadcasting hours and the removal of what the BBC considered "too difficult and too highbrow". Supported by TS Eliot, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Laurence Olivier * The Campaign for Better Broadcasting (1969) opposed proposed cuts in Radio 3's speech output. Supported by

Sir Adrian Boult Sir Adrian Cedric Boult, CH (; 8 April 1889 – 22 February 1983) was an English conductor. Brought up in a prosperous mercantile family, he followed musical studies in England and at Leipzig, Germany, with early conducting work in London ...

, Henry Moore,

. * Friends of Radio 3 (FoR3), a listeners' campaign group set up in 2003 to express concern at changes to the station's style and scheduling, including the shift to presenter-led programmes stripped through the week, as on Classic FM and other commercial music stations. Officially, the BBC stated that "the network's target audience has been redefined and broadened and the schedule began to be recast to move towards this during 1999." The group's stated aim is "To engage with the BBC, to question the policies which depart from Radio 3's remit to deliver a high quality programme of classical music, spoken arts and thought, and to convey listener concerns to BBC management." The group is supported by

Dame Gillian Weir Dame Gillian Constance Weir (born 17 January 1941) is a New Zealand-British organist. Biography Weir was born in Martinborough, New Zealand, on 17 January 1941. Her parents were Clarice Mildred Foy ( Bignell) and Cecil Alexander Weir. She re ...

Robin Holloway Robin Greville Holloway (born 19 October 1943) is an English composer, academic and writer. Early life Holloway was born in Leamington Spa. From 1953 to 1957, he was a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral and was educated at King's College School, ...

, Andrew Motion, Dame Margaret Drabble. The BBC has rejected claims that the network has 'dumbed down'. In March 2019, more than 500 signatories including

Jarvis Cocker Jarvis Branson Cocker (born 19 September 1963) is an English musician and radio presenter. As the founder, frontman, lyricist and only consistent member of the band Pulp, he became a figurehead of the Britpop genre of the mid-1990s. Following P ...

Shabaka Hutchings Shabaka Hutchings is a British jazz musician, composer and bandleader. He leads the bands Sons of Kemet and Shabaka and the Ancestors. He is also a member of The Comet Is Coming, performing under the stage name King Shabaka. Hutchings has p ...

, and

Norma Waterson Norma Christine Waterson (15 August 1939 – 30 January 2022) was an English singer and songwriter, best known as one of the original members of The Watersons, a celebrated English traditional folk group. Other members of the group included ...

called on the BBC "to think again about changes to its schedules", as a result of proposed cuts to specialist music programming on the station.

References

Works cited

* BBC Annual Report and Accounts, 2003/2004, London: British Broadcasting Corporation, 2004 * Briggs, Asa, ''The BBC: The First Fifty Years'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985 * Carpenter, Humphrey, ''The Envy of the World: Fifty Years of the BBC Third Programme and Radio 3, 1946–1996'', London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1996 * Department for Culture, Media and Sport, ''Review of the BBC's Royal Charter: A strong BBC, independent of government'' (government Green Paper), 2005 * Drummond, John, ''Tainted by Experience: A Life in the Arts'', London: Faber & Faber, 2001 * ''Radio Times'', 1923–present, London: British Broadcasting Corporation 02

External links

*
Friends of Radio 3
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bbc Radio 3 3 Classical music radio stations Classical music in the United Kingdom Radio stations established in 1967 1967 establishments in the United Kingdom Radio stations in the United Kingdom

History

''Broadcasting in the Seventies''

The "arts" controllers

The "music" controllers

Operation

Notable programmes

''Choral Evensong''

''Composer of the Week''

''Lunchtime / Afternoon Concerts''

''The Early Music Show''

''In Tune''

''Jazz Record Requests''

''Pied Piper''

''Opera on 3''

''The Proms''

''Radio 3 in Concert''

''Record Review''

''Through the Night''

''The Verb''

News broadcasts

Performing groups

Controllers

Criticisms

See also

References

Works cited

External links