28 Oct 2010 | Liz Jaques

RAJAR Q3 2010: London Stations

Magic 105.4 has re-claimed the top spot in London after losing out to Heart 106.2 FM in last quarter’s RAJAR release.

Magic enjoyed small quarterly and yearly increases in its weekly reach, although 95.8 Capital FM was the real success story in Q3 – posting impressive yearly and quarterly rises to take it back to second place in London.

The Global-owned station is now able to boast a weekly reach of more than 2.1 million listeners for the first time since 2005. This bodes well for Global’s upcoming nationwide roll-out of the Capital brand and perhaps shows that listeners are switching loyalty from Heart to Capital.

Heart 106.2 FM, meanwhile, has dropped to the third spot in the London listings, after a disappointing quarterly loss in its weekly reach. However, on a positive note, the station still has an extra 164,000 listeners than this time last year.

Heart wasn’t the only station to see its reach decrease in Q3 – Kiss 100 FM and LBC 97.3 also posted declines compared to Q2 2010. However, both stations recorded year on year increases and Kiss’ reach continues to keep up with the top three London stations.

On the other hand, commercial stations Choice FM London and Smooth Radio London saw their reach drop off over the year but increase during the quarter. Smooth Radio enjoyed a significant quarterly boost in Q3, as did Premier Christian Radio and Kismat Radio 1035.

In terms of share of listening, Magic continues to take the highest share, while Heart and Capital tie in second place. But in terms of average hours per listener, it is a different story altogether, with LBC 97.3, Premier Christian Radio and Gold London taking the top three slots.

In fourth place, Kismat Radio 1035 posted stand-out results, with listeners staying with the station for much longer than last quarter. Absolute Radio and Total Absolute Radio also saw an increase in the amount of time people are tuning in compared with the same period last year.