BBC Radio 5 (former)
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BBC Radio 5 was a national
radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...
that broadcast sports, children's and educational programmes. It ran from 1990 to 1994 and was transmitted via analogue radio on 693 and 909 kHz AM. On 28 March 1994, three years and seven months after the station started, it was replaced by Radio 5 Live, following the success of rolling news coverage of the
Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...
on
Radio 4 News FM Radio 4 News FM was the national BBC station devoted to rolling news service that was on air during the Gulf War from 16 January until 2 March 1991. It was broadcast on Radio 4's FM frequencies, whilst regular scheduled service continued on ...
.


History


Launch

A new fifth national radio station was first announced 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. ...
...
on 9 October 1988. In line with the Conservative government's broadcasting policy at the time, the BBC ended its longstanding practice of
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 ...
ing its services on both AM and FM, freeing the medium wave frequencies which Radio 2 had been using since 23 November 1978 for another use. On 15 August 1990, Radio 2 began to draw to a close its medium wave transmissions by broadcasting a daytime information service providing advice about how to listen on FM as well as advertisements for the new station. This continued until 2.00pm on the day before Radio 5's launch, and Radio 2 ended its medium wave transmissions at midnight on Sunday 26 August. Nine hours later, at 9.00am on Monday 27 August, Radio 5 launched with five-year-old boy Andrew Kelly uttering the words: Prior to this, the new station's frequencies broadcast a long sequence of programming trails linked by Jon Briggs (one of the station's launch presenting team) and pre-recorded sketches from comedians Trevor Neal and Simon Hickson (consisting of the two larking about in the studio amid the strains of " Sailing By", and Trevor suddenly being cut off while he was reading his so-called "Ode to Radio 5"). The official first programme was ''Take Five'', a pre-recorded program by
Bruno Brookes Trevor Neil "Bruno" Brookes (born 1959 in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire) is an English former radio presenter who became prominent on British radio in the 1980s. He was CEO of in-store radio company Immedia from 2000–2020. Early life and care ...
.


Structure

Many believed that BBC Radio 5 was a service the four other main BBC stations did not want, reflected in a speech 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 ...
, News International Visiting Professor of Broadcast Media 2002 at Exeter College,
Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...
. Abramsky described the service, In 1991,
Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...
was launched, as part of the multinational response to the
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...
i
invasion of Kuwait The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait was an operation conducted by Iraq on 2 August 1990, whereby it invaded the neighboring State of Kuwait, consequently resulting in a seven-month-long Iraqi military occupation of the country. The invasion and Ira ...
. From 16 January, Radio 4's FM frequencies were used to provide an all-news network for the coverage of the war, dubbed '
Radio 4 News FM Radio 4 News FM was the national BBC station devoted to rolling news service that was on air during the Gulf War from 16 January until 2 March 1991. It was broadcast on Radio 4's FM frequencies, whilst regular scheduled service continued on ...
' (or more popularly in the media as ''Scud FM''), but despite protests mainly received praise for the quality of this service and the speed with which it was established. Following the end of the conflict, Radio 4 resumed its normal schedule but the positive response to commencing review into the possibility of providing a full-time news station, leading to the broadcast of a similar service on
longwave In radio, longwave, long wave or long-wave, and commonly abbreviated LW, refers to parts of the radio spectrum with wavelengths longer than what was originally called the medium-wave broadcasting band. The term is historic, dating from the e ...
during the 1992 general election campaign. Due to the resistance to any use of Radio 4 FM (or LW) frequencies, it was decided that Radio 5, criticized by John Birt as "improvised and disjointed", would relaunch as a combined news and sports channel.


Demise

The "old" Radio 5 signed off at midnight on Sunday 27 March 1994 with a pre-recorded ''Nigel and Earl'' sketch at the end of one of the network's Irish music magazine program '' Across the Line''. Ten minutes later, the frequencies closed down for the night following a generic ''BBC Radio News and Sport'' bulletin and the new Radio 5 Live began its 24-hour service at 5.00am on Monday 28 March.


Programming

The station was on air daily from 6.00 am until just after midnight although initially, apart from sports coverage, original programming was restricted to key times of the day – breakfast, mid-mornings and on weekdays drive and evening programmes for young people. The rest of the day was filled with simulcasts of other BBC stations and with programmes from the
World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...
which were broadcast for several hours each day. World Service programmes were aired at 6.00am, 11.00pm and for two hours on weekday afternoons, Radio 3 was broadcast on weekday lunchtimes, and Radio 4 on Saturday evenings, and on Sunday lunchtime and teatime. Radio 1 and Radio 2 were also simulcast on Sundays – Radio 2 in the afternoon when there was no sports coverage and Radio 1 during the early evening as a replacement for
Open University The Open University (OU) is a British public research university and the largest university in the United Kingdom by number of students. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off- ...
programmes. From spring 1991, the station started to expand its original programming and this replaced the rebroadcasting of programmes from other BBC networks. The first to be discontinued, at the end of March 1991, was the 11.00pm World Service block, followed in autumn by the simulcasts of other BBC stations, and May 1992 saw the removal of the weekday afternoon block of World Service programmes. This meant that the station was now producing its own programming every day from 6.30am until just after midnight. The 6.00am World Service news bulletin simulcast remained throughout the station's time on air. The new network allowed the BBC to significantly enhance its sports coverage, especially in its later years. For example, during the
1992 Barcelona Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
, the network devoted its entire output to the eventBBC Genome - An example of Radio 5's schedule during the 1992 Olympic Games
/ref> and during the summer months, sports coverage was broadcast all afternoon every day of the week.


Weekdays

* ''
Morning Edition ''Morning Edition'' is an American radio news program produced and distributed by NPR. It airs weekday mornings (Monday through Friday) and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 5:00 to 9:00 A ...
'' – with Sarah Ward, Jon Briggs,
Danny Baker Danny Baker (born 22 June 1957) is an English comedy writer, journalist, radio DJ and screenwriter. Throughout his career he has largely presented for London's regional radio and television. Baker was born in Deptford to a working-class fami ...
and Michele Stephens * ''This Family Business'' and ''
The AM Alternative ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' – with
Johnnie Walker Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch whisky now owned by Diageo that originated in the Scottish burgh of Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire. The brand was first established by grocer John Walker. It is the most widely distributed brand of blended Sc ...
* '' The Health Show'' – with
Angela Rippon Angela May Rippon (born 12 October 1944)"Angela Rippon," ''Contemporary Authors Online'', Detroit: Gale, (2008) ''Gale Biography In Context'' is an English television journalist, newsreader, writer and presenter. Rippon presented radio and tele ...
* '' Sound Advice'' – with Guy Michelmore,
Daire Brehan Daire Brehan (7 August 1957, in Dublin – 30 August 2012, in London) was an Irish actress, broadcaster and barrister who presented a variety of BBC Radio programmes during the 1990s including ''Language Live'', for BBC Radio 5, '' You and Yo ...
and Liz Barclay * ''The Crunch'' – with
Liz Kershaw Elizabeth Marguerita Mary Kershaw (born 30 July 1958) is an English radio broadcaster. She is the second longest serving female national radio DJ in the UK (after Annie Nightingale), celebrating 30 years on national BBC Radio in 2017. Career Af ...
* '' BFBS Worldwide'' * '' Sportsbeat'' – with Ross King and
Tommy Boyd Timothy Leslie Boyd (born 14 December 1952), better known as Tommy Boyd, is a British radio presenter. Television From 1977 to 1980, Boyd was co-presenter of the ITV children's magazine programme ''Magpie'' replacing Douglas Rae. In 1981, ...
* '' A Game of Two Halves'' – with
John Inverdale John Inverdale (born 27 September 1957) is an English broadcaster who works for both the BBC and ITV. During his radio career, he has presented coverage of many major sporting events including the Olympic Games, Wimbledon, the Grand Nationa ...
,
Frances Edmonds Frances Eileen Edmonds is a British writer. She is known for her books ''Another Bloody Tour: England in the West Indies'' (1986) and ''Cricket XXXX Cricket'' (1987) about touring with her husband, the former England cricketer Phil Edmonds. She ...
,
Caron Keating Caron Louisa Keating (5 October 1962 – 13 April 2004) was a Northern Irish television presenter. Early life and education Keating was born on 5 October 1962 in Fulham, west London, to an English father with southern Irish roots and a Northern ...
and Mark Kermode * '' Five Aside'' – with Sue McGarry and
Julian Worricker Julian Gordon Worricker (born 6 January 1963 in Woking, Surrey) is an English journalist, currently working as one of the main presenters of ''Weekend'' on the BBC World Service, as stand in presenter of '' Any Answers'' on BBC Radio 4 and a relie ...
* '' John Inverdale's Drive-in''


Weekends

* '' On Your Marks'' – with Mark Curry * ''Get Set'' – with Steve Johnson * ''Go!'' – with Ross King and
Garth Crooks Garth Anthony Crooks, (born 10 March 1958) is an English football pundit and former professional player. He played from 1976 to 1990, for Stoke City, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, West Bromwich Albion and Charlton Athletic. Throughout h ...
* ''
Sportscall {{notable, date=December 2018 ''SportsCall'' is a regional sports call-in show centered in Auburn, Alabama. SportsCall host JJ Jackson and the guys offer insight into the world of sports, interview guests, and take phone calls from listeners. Esta ...
'' – with Dominik Diamond * '' Sunday Edition'' – with Barry Johnston * '' Simon Fanshawe's Sunday Brunch''


Evenings

* ''Fabulous'' – with Mark Lamarr/
Johnny Vaughan Jonathan Randal Vaughan (born 16 July 1966) is an English television and radio presenter and a film critic. He was the main presenter of '' Capital Breakfast'' alongside Lisa Snowdon on 95.8 Capital FM between 2004 and 2011. Vaughan currently ...
* ''
Fantasy Football League ''Fantasy Football League'' is a British television comedy programme hosted by David Baddiel and Frank Skinner. It was inspired by the Fantasy Football phenomenon which started in the early 1990s and followed on from a BBC Radio 5 programme hos ...
'' – with Dominik Diamond * '' Trevor Brooking's Football Night'' * '' 6-0-6'' – with
Danny Baker Danny Baker (born 22 June 1957) is an English comedy writer, journalist, radio DJ and screenwriter. Throughout his career he has largely presented for London's regional radio and television. Baker was born in Deptford to a working-class fami ...
/ David Mellor * '' Formula Five'' * ''
Room 101 The Ministry of Truth, the Ministry of Peace, the Ministry of Love, and the Ministry of Plenty are the four ministries of the government of Oceania in the 1949 dystopian novel ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'', by George Orwell. The use of contradictory ...
'' – a later transfer to
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
* ''
They Think It's All Over "They think it's all over" is a quote from Kenneth Wolstenholme's BBC TV commentary in the closing moments of the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, when England beat West Germany 4–2 after extra time to win the FIFA World Cup. In the final few seco ...
'' – with
Des Lynam Desmond Michael Lynam, (born 17 September 1942) is an Irish-born television and radio presenter. In a broadcasting career spanning more than forty years, he has hosted television coverage of many of the world's major sporting events, presentin ...
, another transfer to television * ''Cult Radio'' – with
Marc Riley Marc Riley (born 10 July 1961 in Manchester) is an English radio DJ, alternative rock critic, musician, and former music businessman. He currently presents on BBC Radio 6 Music. Formerly a member of the Fall, he co-owned a record label, In-Ta ...
* '' Le Top'' – a translated version of the French chart show on
Europe 1 Europe 1, formerly known as Europe n° 1, is a privately owned radio station created in 1955. Owned and operated by Lagardère Active, a subsidiary of the Lagardère Group, it is one of the leading radio broadcasting stations in France and its pr ...
* '' The Mix'' – with Mark Thomas * '' Hit the North'' – with Mark Radcliffe and
Marc Riley Marc Riley (born 10 July 1961 in Manchester) is an English radio DJ, alternative rock critic, musician, and former music businessman. He currently presents on BBC Radio 6 Music. Formerly a member of the Fall, he co-owned a record label, In-Ta ...
, who featured the first ever radio session from Oasis * ''Earshot'' – with John Kavanagh * '' Eastern Beat'' * '' Rave'' – with
Rob Brydon Robert Brydon Jones (; born 3 May 1965) is a Welsh actor, comedian, impressionist, presenter, singer and writer. He played Dr Paul Hamilton in the Australian/British comedy series ''Supernova'', Bryn West in the BBC sitcom '' Gavin & Stacey'' ...
* '' Across the Line'' * '' The Mark Steel Solution''


Presenters

*
Danny Baker Danny Baker (born 22 June 1957) is an English comedy writer, journalist, radio DJ and screenwriter. Throughout his career he has largely presented for London's regional radio and television. Baker was born in Deptford to a working-class fami ...
* Liz Barclay *
Tommy Boyd Timothy Leslie Boyd (born 14 December 1952), better known as Tommy Boyd, is a British radio presenter. Television From 1977 to 1980, Boyd was co-presenter of the ITV children's magazine programme ''Magpie'' replacing Douglas Rae. In 1981, ...
*
Daire Brehan Daire Brehan (7 August 1957, in Dublin – 30 August 2012, in London) was an Irish actress, broadcaster and barrister who presented a variety of BBC Radio programmes during the 1990s including ''Language Live'', for BBC Radio 5, '' You and Yo ...
* Jon Briggs *
Bruno Brookes Trevor Neil "Bruno" Brookes (born 1959 in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire) is an English former radio presenter who became prominent on British radio in the 1980s. He was CEO of in-store radio company Immedia from 2000–2020. Early life and care ...
*
Trevor Brooking Sir Trevor David Brooking, (born 2 October 1948) is a former England international footballer, manager, pundit and football administrator; he now works as director of football development in England. He spent almost his entire career at West ...
*
Rob Brydon Robert Brydon Jones (; born 3 May 1965) is a Welsh actor, comedian, impressionist, presenter, singer and writer. He played Dr Paul Hamilton in the Australian/British comedy series ''Supernova'', Bryn West in the BBC sitcom '' Gavin & Stacey'' ...
*
Garth Crooks Garth Anthony Crooks, (born 10 March 1958) is an English football pundit and former professional player. He played from 1976 to 1990, for Stoke City, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, West Bromwich Albion and Charlton Athletic. Throughout h ...
* Mark Curry * Dominik Diamond *
Frances Edmonds Frances Eileen Edmonds is a British writer. She is known for her books ''Another Bloody Tour: England in the West Indies'' (1986) and ''Cricket XXXX Cricket'' (1987) about touring with her husband, the former England cricketer Phil Edmonds. She ...
* Simon Fanshawe * Simon Hickson *
John Inverdale John Inverdale (born 27 September 1957) is an English broadcaster who works for both the BBC and ITV. During his radio career, he has presented coverage of many major sporting events including the Olympic Games, Wimbledon, the Grand Nationa ...
* Steve Johnson * Barry Johnston *
Caron Keating Caron Louisa Keating (5 October 1962 – 13 April 2004) was a Northern Irish television presenter. Early life and education Keating was born on 5 October 1962 in Fulham, west London, to an English father with southern Irish roots and a Northern ...
* Mark Kermode *
Liz Kershaw Elizabeth Marguerita Mary Kershaw (born 30 July 1958) is an English radio broadcaster. She is the second longest serving female national radio DJ in the UK (after Annie Nightingale), celebrating 30 years on national BBC Radio in 2017. Career Af ...
* Ross King * Mark Lamarr *
Des Lynam Desmond Michael Lynam, (born 17 September 1942) is an Irish-born television and radio presenter. In a broadcasting career spanning more than forty years, he has hosted television coverage of many of the world's major sporting events, presentin ...
* Sue McGarry * David Mellor * Guy Michelmore * Trevor Neal * Mark Radcliffe *
Miranda Rae Miranda Rae (born in the United Kingdom) is a British radio DJ, best known for her pioneering show on Galaxy Radio & Radio 5, Ujima Radio, and Soul Train Radio. She was the first full-time female radio presenter on UK radio. Radio career A ...
*
Marc Riley Marc Riley (born 10 July 1961 in Manchester) is an English radio DJ, alternative rock critic, musician, and former music businessman. He currently presents on BBC Radio 6 Music. Formerly a member of the Fall, he co-owned a record label, In-Ta ...
*
Angela Rippon Angela May Rippon (born 12 October 1944)"Angela Rippon," ''Contemporary Authors Online'', Detroit: Gale, (2008) ''Gale Biography In Context'' is an English television journalist, newsreader, writer and presenter. Rippon presented radio and tele ...
* Mark Steel * Michele Stephens *
Johnny Vaughan Jonathan Randal Vaughan (born 16 July 1966) is an English television and radio presenter and a film critic. He was the main presenter of '' Capital Breakfast'' alongside Lisa Snowdon on 95.8 Capital FM between 2004 and 2011. Vaughan currently ...
*
Johnnie Walker Johnnie Walker is a brand of Scotch whisky now owned by Diageo that originated in the Scottish burgh of Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire. The brand was first established by grocer John Walker. It is the most widely distributed brand of blended Sc ...
* Sarah Ward *
Julian Worricker Julian Gordon Worricker (born 6 January 1963 in Woking, Surrey) is an English journalist, currently working as one of the main presenters of ''Weekend'' on the BBC World Service, as stand in presenter of '' Any Answers'' on BBC Radio 4 and a relie ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bbc Radio 5 (Former) BBC history BBC Radio 5 (former) BBC Radio 5 Live Defunct BBC national radio stations Radio stations established in 1990 Radio stations disestablished in 1994 1990 establishments in the United Kingdom 1994 disestablishments in the United Kingdom 1990s in the United Kingdom Sports radio stations in the United Kingdom Educational broadcasting in the United Kingdom