Boom Radio (also Boom Radio UK) is an independent, commercial, national radio station in the United Kingdom. Owned by Boom Radio Ltd, the station is aimed at

baby boomers Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the demographic cohort preceded by the Silent Generation and followed by Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964 during the mid-20th century baby boom that ...

, the generation of people born between 1946 and 1964. Launched on 14 February 2021, Boom Radio broadcasts nationally on the

Sound Digital Sound Digital is a semi-national commercial digital radio multiplex in the United Kingdom, owned by Arqiva, Bauer Media Group and News Broadcasting. The multiplex covers 73% of the population from a total of 45 transmitters. History Follow ...

DAB multiplex and is also available online. The station was developed and launched by Phil Riley and David Lloyd, two commercial radio executives who felt older listeners were being overlooked by stations such as

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

in favour of a younger audience. Boom's content features a mixture of music, conversation and radio personality, with presenters including many who have previously made their name in national and commercial radio, such as Graham Dene, David Hamilton and Diana Luke. The programming for Boom Radio is recorded and presented remotely by its presenters from their own homes, rather than being done in a traditional in-house studio setting. Boom's launch against the backdrop of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

influenced its decision to operate without a central studio.

History

Launch

The idea for Boom Radio was conceived and developed by Phil Riley and David Lloyd, two radio executives with lengthy careers in commercial radio, who felt there was a gap in the market for a station aimed at the baby boomer generation, which they felt was being overlooked by other stations. Riley's background in radio includes his role as Chief Executive of Chrysalis Radio, where he oversaw the launch of

Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...

, and the network's eventual sale to

Global Radio Global Media & Entertainment Limited, trading as Global, is a British media company formed in 2007. It is the owner of the largest commercial radio company in Europe having expanded through a number of historical acquisitions, including Chrysal ...

, while Lloyd has worked both in presenting and executive roles at stations such as LBC and

Virgin Virginity is a social construct that denotes the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. As it is not an objective term with an operational definition, social definitions of what constitutes virginity, or the lack thereof ...

. Plans for the launch of Boom Radio were announced on 23 November 2020, when Riley and Lloyd confirmed the station would launch on DAB early the following year. Named after the generation it planned to cater for, Boom Radio would initially be available in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Portsmouth and Glasgow, as well as broadcasting online, and offer a mix of music, conversation and presenter personality. Speaking about Boom Radio, Riley said, "Our own research has found radio is still the most popular medium for the Boomer generation, yet the majority feel that the industry is geared more towards younger people. We see Boom Radio filling that gap". On 2 December 2020 the station announced a round of executive appointments to its commercial team, drawing on people with experience at large media companies such as

Global Global may refer to: General *Globe, a spherical model of celestial bodies *Earth, the third planet from the Sun Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 198 ...

and

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

. Dawn Le Men, former Head of Media Partners at Sky, was appointed as Boom's Head of Sales, while Ali Page, former Director of Client and Category Development for Global, was appointed to be Client Development Adviser. It was also announced that Don Thomson, a former Chief Operations Officer at Global, and who had also worked in roles for

Yorkshire Television ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...

and Chrysalis Radio, would join the board of Boom Radio as a non-executive director. On 11 January 2021 the station unveiled its inaugural schedule and list of presenters, with Graham Dene (formerly of Smooth Radio and

Capital Radio Capital London is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Global Media & Entertainment as part of its national Capital (radio network), Capital Network. As Capital Radio it was launched in the London area in 1973 as one of Bri ...

) presenting the weekday breakfast show. Other weekday presenters would include David Hamilton,

Nicky Horne Nicky Horne (born 3 September 1950) is an English DJ, who has worked for a variety of radio stations, including Capital London, Capital Radio, BBC Local Radio and Boom Radio. Career Horne worked as a road manager for Emperor Rosko in 1969, b ...

and Diana Luke, while Greg Edwards would present a soul programme and

Anna Raeburn Anna Raeburn (born 3 April 1944) is a British broadcaster, author and journalist who is best known for her role as a radio agony aunt, giving advice on relationships and more general life problems. As a broadcaster, she has worked for Capital L ...

would relaunch her ''Talk to Anna'' programme. Other programmes planned for Boom Radio included a show with

Esther Rantzen Dame Esther Louise Rantzen (born 22 June 1940) is an English journalist and television presenter who presented the BBC television series ''That's Life!'' for 21 years, from 1973 until 1994. She works with various charitable causes and founded t ...

and her daughter, Rebecca Wilcox, ''Still Busy Living'', described as the station's own version of ''

Desert Island Discs ''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942. Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight audio recordin ...

'', and programming covering topics such as gardening and book reviews. Later in January 2021, ''Travel Weekly'' reported that Silver Travel Advisor, a mature travel information hub, had signed an exclusive deal to provide travel content for Boom Radio. As part of this deal, it was announced that a weekly Silver Travel Show would air on Sunday evenings, as well as a monthly podcast presented by Jennie Carr, Silver Travel Advisor's creative director. Also in January, Boom Radio confirmed it had signed a deal with online dating platform provider White Label Dating to launch Boom Singles, a dating website for its target audience. Boom Radio was officially launched at 10:00 on 14 February 2021, with Graham Dene being the first presenter to be heard on the station. The first song to be played was " All You Need is Love" by

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

. The station also dedicated its own poem, ''An Ode to Boomers'', to its audience.

Expansion

Following the initial launch the station planned to expand to DAB in other parts of the UK throughout 2021. But on 11 March it was confirmed the station would launch nationally on the

multiplex from the following day. The announcement was made on air by presenter David Hamilton and on social media with a letter to its listeners: "The response has been so strong that we've brought forward all our plans to grow. You told us you wanted us on DAB across the UK and from Friday – we will be!" The ''

Nottingham Post The ''Nottingham Post'' (formerly the ''Nottingham Evening Post'') is an English tabloid newspaper which serves Nottingham, Nottinghamshire and parts of Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire. The ''Post'' is published Monday to Saturday ...

'' subsequently reported that positive audience figures from the station's first two weeks on air, as well as feedback from listeners, had prompted Boom's investors to finance the national launch. On 19 October 2021, it was announced that David Elms, Head of Media at

KPMG KPMG is a multinational professional services network, based in London, United Kingdom. As one of the Big Four accounting firms, along with Ernst & Young (EY), Deloitte, and PwC. KPMG is a network of firms in 145 countries with 275,288 emplo ...

, had joined the board of Boom Radio as non-executive chairman. In October 2022 Boom launched a £1m television advertising campaign featuring presenter David Hamilton. On 21 November 2022, it was announced that

Paul O'Grady Paul James O'Grady (14 June 1955 – 28 March 2023) was an English comedian, broadcaster, drag queen, actor, and writer. He achieved notability in the London gay scene during the 1980s with his drag persona Lily Savage, through which he gained ...

would join Boom Radio to present a show on Christmas Day similar to the one he presented for

. Riley later described how the presenter "rocketed our audience", giving Boom record audience numbers on the day. He was scheduled to return for a show on Easter Sunday 2023, then to join the station for a weekly show on Sunday afternoons. But on 28 March, a few days before he was due to present the show, O'Grady died suddenly aged 67. Boom described the news of his death as "absolutely shocking". Boom subsequently announced it would repeat O'Grady's Christmas 2022 show on Easter Sunday, at the time he was scheduled to be on air, and following requests by listeners for them to do so. On 10 October 2023, it was reported that Boom Radio had been added to the DAB multiplex in the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They are divided into two Crown Dependencies: the Jersey, Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, ...

. On 4 December 2023, it was announced that Chris Tarrant would present his first Christmas show for Boom Radio on

Boxing Day Boxing Day, also called as Offering Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Boxing Day was once a day to donate gifts to those in need, but it has evolved to become a part ...

afternoon. Other highlights over Christmas 2023 would include a musical tribute to Paul O'Grady on Christmas Day, presented by his friend

Julian Clary Julian Peter McDonald Clary (born 25 May 1959) is an English actor, comedian, novelist and presenter. He began appearing on television in the mid-1980s. Since then, he has also acted in films, on television and in stage productions, including n ...

, and a show by

Angela Rippon Angela May Rippon (born 12 October 1944) is an English broadcaster, former newsreader, writer and journalist. Rippon presented radio and television news programmes in South West England before moving to BBC One's ''BBC Nine O'Clock News, Nine ...

. On 13 April 2024, Boom Radio announced the launch of a £500,000 advertising campaign on

ITV1 ITV1 (formerly known as ITV) is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the British media company ITV plc. It provides the ITV (TV network), Channel 3 ...

, its first on the channel. It was also confirmed that

Jo Brand Josephine Grace Brand (born 23 July 1957) is an English actress, comedian, presenter and writer. Starting her entertainment career with a move from psychiatric nursing to the alternative comedy stand-up scene and early performances on '' Satur ...

had been hired to present a series of programmes in which she would interview prominent television personalities, including

Michael Grade Michael Ian Grade, Baron Grade of Yarmouth (born 8 March 1943) is an English Media proprietor, television executive and businessman. He has held a number of senior roles in television, including controller of BBC1 (1984–1986), chief executive ...

. In December 2024, Boom launched a new jingles package, which had been devised by TM Studios. The package also included a station song, something that was popular on radio stations during the 1980s. On 1 June 2025, and following the death of presenter John Peters the previous week, Boom played a final edition of his programme, ''The Vintage Chart'', which he had recorded shortly before his death. The programme was preceded by a tribute from David Lloyd, who had been a friend and colleague of Peters' for many years.

Sister stations

Boom Light

On 3 June 2022, Boom Radio announced plans to launch a spin-off station in July. Boom Light plays music from the 1950s, standards and easy listening, and was initially available online and via smart devices, as well as on DAB in Salisbury with plans to expand its DAB output. The station was launched in response to listener requests for more 1950s music content, and is aimed at those aged 75 and over, although Boom has said it believes there is also a lot of interest in 1950s music among younger listeners. Boom Light has a playlist of 10,000 tracks, and plays music often no longer heard on mainstream radio. On 2 June 2025, Boom Light was launched on

DAB+ Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) is a digital radio international standard, standard for broadcasting digital audio radio services in many countries around the world, defined, supported, marketed and promoted by the WorldDAB organisation. T ...

in several major UK cities, including London, Birmingham, Cardiff, Manchester, Leeds and Edinburgh, with plans for further expansion. Pete Murray announced the switch-on at 10am. Fran Godfrey and Don Black joined the station as presenters.

Boom Rock

On 7 January 2024, Boom Radio announced that a sister station, Boom Rock, would be launched in February, playing genres including

album rock Album-oriented rock (AOR, originally called album-oriented radio) is an FM broadcasting, FM radio format created in the United States in the late 1960s that focuses on the full repertoire of Rock music, rock albums and is currently associated ...

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...

, new wave and West Coast rock. The station would be available on DAB in Nottingham, as well as online. Boom Rock was launched on 14 February 2024, Boom Radio's third anniversary. Presenters on the station include

Gary Burton Gary Burton (born January 23, 1943) is an American jazz Vibraphone, vibraphonist, composer, and educator. Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the prevailing two-mallet technique. This approach caused ...

presenting weekday mid mornings and

, who presents the Friday Rock Show, as well as a revival of his 1970s

show ''Your Mother Wouldn't Like It'' on Saturday afternoons. Boom Rock's station ID also features the voice of Tommy Vance, who died in 2005, but whose voice was recreated using

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...

with permission from his family.

Broadcasting

Boom Radio went on air against the backdrop of the

and opted to follow a model whereby its presenters were presenting their shows remotely from home-based studios. Riley has described this approach as "taking advantage of what's been happening in lockdown to completely rethink how you run a radio station". Kevin Hilton of the International Broadcasting Convention writes that Boom Radio is believed to be the first national UK radio station not to have a central studio building. In order to put together the technology needed to establish a radio station with this model of broadcasting, Riley and Lloyd employed the services of Quentin Howard, an executive with experience in launching in excess of 30 stations. Following research, Boom Radio chose RCS Sound Software to host its content. Some of the presenters already had home studios, but for those who did not, a package including a laptop, microphones and acoustic foam was provided to them. Once the station's infrastructure was established, it was then possible for content to be assembled using scheduling software that enables presenters to record spoken content to correspond with scheduled tracks – known as

Voice-tracking Voice-tracking, also called cyber jocking and referred to sometimes colloquially as a robojock, is a technique employed by some radio stations in radio broadcasting to produce the illusion of a live disc jockey or announcer sitting in the radio stu ...

. Commercials and breaks for news and weather updates are then inserted by an automated system as the shows are broadcast. A live two-minute news bulletin from IRN is broadcast on the hour, followed by a national weather forecast from Radio News Hub. Although Boom Radio's content is automated in this way, many of the presenters record their spoken content shortly before it is aired to enable them to respond to real-time information, such as listener requests, and to provide reviews of the day's newspaper headlines.

Music content

The launch of Boom Radio came at a time when

, a station favoured by the boomer generation, began to reduce the number of older songs it was playing in an attempt to attract a younger audience, and in particular a demographic it described as "Mood Mums"; women in their 30s and 40s with busy lives and children. On the topic of its BBC rival, Riley has said Boom Radio wants "to step on the toes of Radio 2", adding "Our view is that Radio 2 is almost relentlessly being dragged younger, so that they can appeal to people over the age of 30". In a statement issued prior to going on air, Boom Radio said that its music output would feature music "from across the decades, peppered with selected contemporary hits". '' City A.M.'' describes Boom Radio's music output as including groups and artists such as

, Tom Jones and

ABBA ABBA ( ) were a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. They are one of the most popular and successful musical groups of all time, and are one of the List ...

"as well as favourites from contemporary artists" such as

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (; born 5 May 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. Regarded as a British cultural icon, icon, she is known for her mezzo-soprano vocals and sentimental songwriting. List of awards and nominations received by Adele, ...

and George Ezra. On 2 December 2023, it was announced that Boom Radio would play the uncensored version of

The Pogues The Pogues are an English Celtic punk band founded in King's Cross, London, in 1982, by Shane MacGowan, Spider Stacy and Jem Finer. Originally named Pogue Mahone—an anglicisation of the Irish language, Irish phrase :wikt:póg mo thóin, ''p� ...

' Christmas hit "

Fairytale of New York "Fairytale of New York" is a song written by Jem Finer and Shane MacGowan and recorded by their London-based band the Pogues, featuring English singer-songwriter Kirsty MacColl on vocals. The song is an Irish folk-style ballad and was writ ...

" after 91% of listeners who contributed to a poll said they would not be offended by it. The decision came after a number of radio stations began playing an edited version that removes the homophobic slur in the lyrics.

Concerns about Radio 2 spin-off station

In February 2024, and following the BBC's announcement that it would launch four new national digital radio stations, including a Radio 2 spin-off playing similar music content, Boom Radio co-founder Phil Riley urged

Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, internet, telecommunications and mail, postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-rang ...

to block the planned launch, describing the BBC's decision as a "panic" move to try to win back older listeners. Boom subsequently asked its listeners to write to the BBC and to their MPs to complain about the planned new service, which Boom said "sounds remarkably" like its own. On 9 July 2024, Ofcom ordered the BBC to pause a planned launch of the service on

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is an Over-the-top media service, over-the-top audio streaming media, streaming and download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, Streaming media, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide ...

pending a full public interest test. Ofcom also announced plans to launch its own investigation to determine whether the launch of the Radio 2 spin-off station would lead to a "significant adverse impact" for stations like Boom. Revised proposals for the spin-off station were submitted to Ofcom on 22 November 2024, but were criticised by Boom's CEO, Phil Riley, after the BBC acknowledged that the station would have an impact on Boom. Riley also suggested the station could have a financial impact on Boom that would means its sister stations, Boom Light and Boom Rock, were no longer financially viable. On 10 April 2025, Ofcom provisionally indicated that it would reject the BBC's planned spin-off, citing the potential impact on Boom as one of the reasons for this decision. Riley welcomes Ofcom's decision to reject the Radio 2 spin-off, and thanked Boom Radio's listeners for their support.

Audience

Upon its launch Boom Radio described itself as "a new radio station for an adventurous generation" and one that is "run by baby boomers for baby boomers". With an estimated baby boomer population of 14 million at the time of the station's launch, Boom Radio aims to attract half a million listeners within its first two to three years on air. In October 2021,

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 c ...

published its first set of audience figures since the COVID pandemic, and the first to include Boom listenership. These showed a weekly audience of 233,000 with an average listening time of eight hours per week. RAJAR figures for the first quarter of 2022 indicated Boom Radio had increased its audience by 20%, with an average weekly listenership of 290,000. Figures for the second quarter of 2022 showed a weekly average audience of 336,000, an increase of 44% on its inaugural figures. RAJAR figures for the final quarter of 2022 showed that as of December 2022, the station was broadcasting to a weekly audience of 531,000, having doubled its audience to half a million in a year. RAJAR figures for the first quarter of 2023 showed Boom with an average weekly audience of 635,000. Figures published for the second quarter of 2023 showed Boom to have a weekly audience of 641,000, compared to 336,000 listeners during the same quarter of 2022, meaning the station had virtually doubled its audience in a year. Figures for the third quarter of 2023, released on 26 October, showed another increase, from 641,000 weekly listeners to 662,000, giving the station its biggest audience so far. Figures for the final quarter of 2023, released on 1 February 2024, indicated a fall in listener numbers to 627,000 average weekly listeners, 504,000 of them in the over-55 age bracket.

Ofcom complaint

On 15 July 2024, Boom Radio was reprimanded by

for playing the uncensored version of "

You Oughta Know "You Oughta Know" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette, released as the lead single from her third studio album, ''Jagged Little Pill'', on July 10, 1995. After releasing two studio albums, Morissette left MCA Records, MCA Re ...

" by

Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, musician, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, she became a cultural phenomenon during the mid 199 ...

, which contains the word "fuck", during the afternoon school run after receiving two complaints. Boom responded that the song had been downloaded in error and accepted it should not have played the track but argued that 94% of its listeners are over 55 and its "under 18 audience registers as zero", and therefore it was unlikely that children would have been listening. Boom also commented that Ofcom had not pursued three similar instances of uncensored tracks being played on air that occurred during 2021.

All day features

On 26 November 2021 the station counted down its Boom Beatles Chart, a top 40 chart of Beatles tracks voted for by its listeners, with the most popular hit being "

In My Life "In My Life" is a song by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles, released on their 1965 studio album, ''Rubber Soul''. Credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership, the song is one of only a few in which there is dispute ...

". The chart was compiled to coincide with the release of

Peter Jackson Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand filmmaker. He is best known as the director, writer, and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy (2012–2014), both of which ar ...

's documentary series '' The Beatles: Get Back''. On 14 August 2022, Boom presented a day of programming dedicated to

pirate radio Pirate radio is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license, whether an invalid license or no license at all. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are rec ...

to coincide with the 55th anniversary of the Marine, &c., Broadcasting (Offences) Act 1967 that had made pirate radio stations illegal. The programming included shows presented by

Johnnie Walker Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch whisky produced by Diageo in Scotland. It was established in the Scottish burgh of Kilmarnock, East Ayrshire in 1820, and continued to be produced and bottled at the town's Hill Street plant, once the world's ...

, John Peters (who recreated the last '' Big L Fab 40'' countdown as broadcast on

Wonderful Radio London Radio London, also known as Big L and Wonderful Radio London, was a top 40 (in London's case, the "Fab 40") offshore commercial station that operated from 23 December 1964 to 14 August 1967, from a ship anchored in the North Sea, off Frin ...

in 1967), Roger Day, Dave Lee Travis, and Keith Skues (with a three hour show with interviews with Colin Berry,

Tony Blackburn Anthony Kenneth Blackburn (born 29 January 1943) is an English disc jockey, singer and television presenter, whose career spans over 60 years. Blackburn first achieved fame broadcasting on the pirate stations Radio Caroline and Radio Londo ...

, Paul Burnett and Roger Gale). On 20 November 2022, Boom Radio celebrated the 70th anniversary of the UK Singles Chart, with a day of programming dedicated to the charts presented by John Peters, Simon Bates,

Mike Read Michael David Kenneth Read (born 1 March 1947) is an English radio disc jockey, writer, journalist and television presenter. Read has been a broadcaster since 1976, best known for having been a DJ with BBC Radio 1, and television host for mus ...

and David Jensen. The shows included a countdown of the first chart from November 1952 presented by Peters. On 8 October 2023, Boom Radio celebrated 50 years of commercial radio with a day of programming, including a show presented by

Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television presenter and newsreader. He hosted programmes such as '' Crackerjack!'', '' Ask Aspel'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', '' This Is Your Life'', '' Strange ...

, who presented the morning show on

from 1974 to 1984. Other presenters that appeared included Roger Day, who was the first presenter to be heard on

Piccadilly Radio Greatest Hits Radio Manchester & The North West is an Independent Local Radio station based in Manchester, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester and North West En ...

when it launched in 1974, Les Ross, the first presenter on

Radio Tees Hits Radio Teesside, formerly TFM, is an Independent Local Radio station for Teesside, England, based in Newcastle upon Tyne. The station is owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to areas of ...

in 1975, and John Peters, the first presenter to be heard on Radio Trent in 1975. A day of special programming to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the launch of

Radio Caroline Radio Caroline is a British radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly and Allan Crawford, initially to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music broadcasting in the United Kingdom and the BBC's radio broadcasting monopol ...

aired on 28 March 2024, with programmes presented by Nick Bailey, Roger Day, Tom Edwards and Emperor Rosko. Keith Skues also featured on the station through the day reading 1964 press coverage of the Radio Caroline launch. Boom's All Time Top 200, a chart voted for by listeners, was presented over the 2024 Easter Weekend, and was noted for including only one song by a female artist in its top 30 –

Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), better known by her stage name Dusty Springfield, was a British singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano voice, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, Pop mus ...

's 1966 track "

Goin' Back "Goin' Back" (also recorded and released as "Going Back") is a song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King in 1966. It describes the loss of innocence that comes with adulthood, along with an attempt, on the part of the singer, to recapture tha ...

". On 6 May, Boom marked 60 years of

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

with special programmes presented by

Jenni Murray Dame Jennifer Susan Murray, (''née'' Bailey; born 12 May 1950) is an English journalist and broadcaster, best known for presenting BBC Radio 4's '' Woman's Hour'' from 1987 to 2020. Early life Murray was born in Barnsley, West Riding of Yo ...

and Len Groat.

Notable Presenters

Presenters on Boom Radio include: * Simon Bates * Don Black * Roger Day * Graham Dene * Steve England * Fran Godfrey * David Hamilton * Jenny Hanley * Guy Henry *

* David 'Kid' Jensen * David Lloyd * Susie Mathis * Phil Riley * Les Ross * Judi Spiers * Graham Torrington

Past presenters

* David Symonds (February – August 2021) *

(February 2021) * Pete Murray (December 2021; December 2022; June 2025) * Bob Harris (January 2022 – February 2022) *

(February 2021 – March 2022) * Rebecca Wilcox (February 2021 – March 2022) * Keith Skues (August 2022; October 2023; March 2024) * Dave Lee Travis (August 2022; December 2022) *

(August 2022; December 2022; August 2023; December 2023) *

(November 2022; October 2023; January 2024) *

(December 2022) *

(May 2023; December 2023) * Paul McKenna (September 2023) *

(October 2023; December 2024) * Tom Edwards (October 2023; March 2024) *

(December 2023) *

Stephen McGann Stephen Vincent McGann (born 2 February 1963) is an English actor, best known for portraying Physician, Dr Patrick Turner in the BBC One medical period drama series ''Call the Midwife''. He is one of a family of acting brothers, the others bei ...

(December 2023) * Chris Tarrant (December 2023) * Paul Burnett (December 2023; August 2024; October 2024; December 2024; April 2025; May 2025) * Tom Browne (December 2023) * Emperor Rosko (March 2024) * Sir Tim Rice (April 2024) *

(April 2024 – May 2024) * Dame Jenni Murray (May 2024; December 2024) * Phil Swern (May 2024; August 2024) * Gyles Brandreth (July 2024; December 2024) * Tony Prince (January 2025) * John Peters (February 2021 – May 2025) * Nina Myskow (May 2025)

References

External links

Official website

Boom Radio Ltd
at

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the British Government that maintains the Company register, register of companies, employs the company registrars and is responsible for Incorporation (business), incorporating all forms of Company, co ...

{{coord missing, United Kingdom Radio stations established in 2021 Radio stations in the United Kingdom Nostalgia radio stations Baby boomers 2021 establishments in the United Kingdom COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom Digital-only radio stations Classic hits radio stations