Radio 1 Shakes Up Its Schedule

BBC Radio 1 has announced a number of line-up changes to its schedule, with Sara Cox and Edith Bowman returning and Dick and Dom leaving.

The station said the pair would leave their Sunday morning show next month to “pursue other projects”.

Their departure has made way for a number of changes, including the introduction of two weekend shows for DJ Grimshaw and Nihal.

Nick Grimshaw, who presented some of BBC’s Glastonbury coverage earlier this year, has been promoted to the weekend breakfast show, while BBC Asian Network’s Nihal is set to host the weekend afternoon slot.

Sara Cox will cover the weekday morning show while Jo Whiley goes on maternity leave, before returning to her regular Sunday morning slot in the new year.

Edith Bowman will fill the Sunday morning show for the next two months until she returns to her 1pm to 4pm afternoon slot in November.

The station has also re-jigged its late-night schedule, creating new shows for a number of DJs including MistaJam and Kissy Sell Out, while seeing the departure of Dave Pearce and Eddie Halliwell.

BBC Radio 1 reported a 1.7% year on year decline in weekly reach the latest Rajar figures, which were released last month (see BBC Radio 2 Weekly Reach Declines But Still On Top).

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