BBC Radio 1 Dance is a British online-only radio stream, owned and operated by the BBC and run as a spin-off from Radio 1. The station plays a mix of back-to-back current, future and classic electronic dance music, and broadcasts exclusively on

BBC Sounds BBC Sounds is a walled garden streaming media and audio download service from the BBC that includes live radio broadcasts, audio on demand, and podcasts. The service is available on a wide range of devices, including mobile phones and tablets, ...

History and launch

From as early as November 2019, reports showed that the BBC was considering launching 'spin-off stations' of their popular music stations in order to gain more listeners. Jonathan Wall, controller of

, confirmed in February 2020 that Radio 1 Dance was to launch in spring 2020. The launch was delayed due to

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

and sister station

BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts black music and urban music, including hip hop and R&B and is a sister station to Radio 1. Launching at 18:00 on 16 August 2002, it had been ...

operating reduced broadcast schedules during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

. The BBC announced in September 2020 that the Dance music stream would launch on 9 October 2020 with

Annie Mac Annie Mac (born 18 July 1978), is an Irish DJ, broadcaster and writer. She hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1, including BBC Switch and ''Future Sounds''. She also DJed in various locations, including hosting her AMP (Annie Mac Presents ...

, Danny Howard and

Pete Tong Peter Michael Tong, (born 30 July 1960) is an English disc jockey who works for BBC Radio 1. He is the host of programmes such as '' Essential Mix'' and '' Essential Selection'' on the radio service, which can be heard through Internet radio s ...

hosting a 4-hour dance marathon from 6 pm, simulcast on Radio 1 and Radio 1 Dance. The launch of Radio 1 Dance was met with criticism from commercial bodies. Andy Carter, chair of the

All-party parliamentary group An all-party parliamentary group (APPG) is a grouping in the Parliament of the United Kingdom that is composed of members of parliament from all political parties, but have no official status within Parliament. Description and functions All-part ...

on Commercial Radio, said: "New services like Radio 1 Dance do not appear to meet the important public value tests that the BBC must observe." In late September 2020, following complaints from commercial bodies,

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

reviewed Radio 1 Dance, saying "we do not require the BBC to conduct a

Public Interest The public interest is "the welfare or well-being of the general public" and society. Overview Economist Lok Sang Ho in his ''Public Policy and the Public Interest'' argues that the public interest must be assessed impartially and, therefore ...

Test ..because we consider the impact of the Radio 1 Dance stream on the market is likely to be small, particularly given it will be online only and will contain no new or exclusive content." The BBC has since launched a further music stream on BBC Sounds in April 2021, Radio 1 Relax.

Programming

Programming on the 'stream' is primarily repeated dance shows from BBC Radio 1. Following the departure of

in July 2021, a refreshed schedule was launched in the following September.

Monday to Thursday

Daytime shows are hosted by

Arielle Free Arielle Free (born 29 March 1988) is a Scottish DJ and broadcaster. She is known for presenting on BBC Radio 1 and touring the world as a celebrated Electronic house DJ. She can also be found hosting the official podcast '' Love Island: The Morn ...

and Connor Coates, originally broadcast as part of Radio 1 Early Breakfast. There is a 60-minute non-stop mix at midday from '' Radio 1's Dance Anthems'', hosted by Charlie Hedges. At 8 am and 3 pm, the station broadcasts ''Radio 1's Workout Anthems'', a 60-minute mix centred around songs to workout to. The drivetime show (5–7 pm) is a repeat of

's Friday night Radio 1 show. Evening and night programming consists of ''Radio 1 Dance Presents...'' (7–8 pm), followed by ''Radio 1's Classic

Essential Mix The ''Essential Mix'' is a weekly radio show on BBC Radio 1 currently broadcast between 0:00 and 2:00 a.m. UK time on Saturday morning. Originally broadcast on 30 October 1993, the ''Essential Mix'' features contemporary Disc jockey, DJs and m ...

'' (8-10 pm), then ''Radio 1's Drum & Bass Show'' with Charlie Tee (10 pm – 12 am). ''Radio 1's Residency'' airs from 12-2 am.

Friday

The daytime shows are hosted by the rotational Friday presenter(s) on Radio 1 Early Breakfast. These are broadcast until 4 pm when Charlie Hedges broadcasts two hours of ''Dance Anthems''. Friday night dance shows on BBC Radio 1 are simulcast on the Dance stream from 6 pm, this includes ''Radio 1's Dance Party'' with Danny Howard (6–8 pm), ''Radio 1's Future Dance'' with Sarah Story (8–10 pm), ''

'' (10 pm-midnight), Radio 1's ''

'' (midnight – 2 am) and ''Radio 1 Dance Presents...'' (2–3 am).

Saturday

On Saturdays, '' Radio 1's Dance Anthems'' with Charlie Hedges (4–8 pm) is simulcast from BBC Radio 1. This is followed by '' Danny Howard's Club Mix'' (8–9 pm), Radio 1's ''Essential Mix'' (9–11 pm), Radio 1's Residency'' (11 pm – 1 am) and Radio 1's ''Classic Essential Mix'' (1 am – 3 am).

Sunday

The stream broadcasts usual daytime shows with added artist-curated mixes from ''Radio 1's Wind Down'' throughout the day. At 9 am and 3 pm, Charlie Hedges hosts 60-minutes of '' Radio 1's Dance Anthems'', with 60-minutes of ''Workout Anthems'' broadcast at midday.

Events and specials

Radio 1's Big Weekend

Since 2019, Radio 1 Dance has had a presence at Radio 1's flagship music festival,

Radio 1's Big Weekend BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend (R1BW) (previously known as One Big Weekend, for 2012 as Radio 1's Hackney Weekend, and for 2018 as BBC Music's Biggest Weekend) is a British music festival run by the BBC's radio station. It is held once a year, in a ...

, hosting the line-up for the Friday night in

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

. Following the launch of the

stream, the brand has played a bigger part in ''Big Weekend'' events. At the 2022 festival in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed ...

, Radio 1 Dance hosted a stage across the full weekend and curated the Friday night line-up.

Radio 1's Dance Weekend

Radio 1 has annually held a dance music weekend broadcast live from Ibiza since the 1990s, formally called ''Radio 1 in Ibiza''. In 2020, the event was renamed ''Radio 1's Dance Weekend'', hosted entirely virtually due to the

. The event is usually the first weekend in August and has performances from world-famous DJs and Radio 1 Dance talent such as

, Danny Howard and Sarah Story. Radio 1 Dance simulcast 2021's and 2022's events on the main Radio 1 network.

Europe's Biggest Dance Show

'' Europe's Biggest Dance Show'' is a series of radio specials produced by Radio 1. First broadcast in October 2019, Radio 1 joined with several European radio stations, all members of the

European Broadcasting Union The European Broadcasting Union (EBU; french: Union européenne de radio-télévision, links=no, UER) is an alliance of public service media organisations whose countries are within the European Broadcasting Area or who are members of the Co ...

. The third installment, Europe's Biggest Dance Show 2020, was broadcast on Friday 23 October 2020 on Radio 1 Dance for the first time, as well as Radio 1 and the other stations across Europe, with

hosting. Following the departure of Annie Mac, Danny Howard has since hosted ''Europe's Biggest Dance Show'' on Radio 1 Dance and Radio 1 in

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

, and 2022 with

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian invas ...

joining the line-up.

Radio 1 Dance at The Warehouse Project

Radio 1 Dance has curated line-ups at '' The Warehouse Project'' in Manchester, following its reopening after

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...

lockdown restrictions. These have included an event in November 2021 headlined by

CamelPhat CamelPhat are an English DJ and production duo, consisting of Dave Whelan and Mike Di Scala, formed in Liverpool in 2004. They are best known for the 2017 single "Cola", which peaked at number 3 in the UK Dance Chart, and at number 18 in the UK ...

, and in October 2022 that was headlined by Fisher.

References

{{BBC Radio 1 Dance Digital-only radio stations 1 Dance Radio stations established in 2020