Virgin Signs O’Connell As New Breakfast Host

Virgin Radio has signed Xfm’s breakfast host, Christian O’Connell, to present its new morning show, taking over from Pete and Geoff who announced earlier this week that they were to leave the high-profile slot.

The move will allow O’Connell to reach a much wider audience through Virgin’s FM and AM signals, as well as via its digital broadcasts, but will come as a blow to Xfm, which has held O’Connell as something of a poster-boy for the past six years.

A long-time favourite of the radio and media industry, O’Connell won three Gold Sony awards this year alone, including the Best Breakfast Show and Best Entertainment Awards.

The move will give O’Connell a substantially larger audience. While Xfm attracts 258,000 listeners for its breakfast show in London, Virgin commands an audience of 597,000 in the same time slot (see RAJAR Results Q1 2005: Listeners Hungry For Breakfast Shows) RAJAR Results Q1 2005: Listeners Hungry For Breakfast Shows) .

Nationally, Virgin’s audience is also much larger, at 2.59 million, while Xfm’s figure is much lower, at 651,000. Commenting on the move, O’Connell said: “I can’t wait to reach out to the country and beckon them to join me each morning with the combination of my show and the music we all love. Virgin Radio is a huge station, with a huge reputation. It’s the station I have always wanted to be on, I am an avid listener and fan. It’s a dream come true and I can not wait.”

Paul Jackson, acting chief executive at Virgin Radio added: “Christian O’Connell is the leading radio talent of his generation and this signing positions the station at the top of the radio game in London and across the country. This is a very exciting time for Virgin Radio.”

The move will place O’Connell in much closer competition with rivals in the breakfast market, as the irreverent DJ goes head-to-head with Capital’s Johnny Vaughan and Heart’s recently acquired Jamie Theakston, both of which have been backed by high-profile advertising campaigns.

Virgin’s Pete and Geoff Breakfast Show currently ranks fifth in terms of weekly reach in London, with the two presenters scheduled to remain at its helm until the end of the year before switching to a different time slot, but remaining with Virgin (see Pete & Geoff Step Down From Virgin Breakfast).

Virgin Radio: 020 7434 1215 www.virginradio.co.uk