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''The Commercial Radio Chart Show'' was a radio programme that was broadcast across commercial
adult contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...
and
contemporary hit radio Contemporary hit radio (CHR, also known as contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top ...
stations across the United Kingdom, from 30 September 1984 to 30 December 2018. It had many different names over the years, beginning with ''The Network Chart Show'' (later sponsored by
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), before securing sponsorship with
Pepsi Pepsi is a Carbonated water, carbonated soft drink with a cola flavor, manufactured by PepsiCo which serves as its flagship product. In 2023, Pepsi was the second most valuable soft drink brand worldwide behind Coca-Cola; the two share a long ...
between 1993 and 2003, which led to the birth of '' The Pepsi Chart''. Since then, it has been known as '' Hit40UK'', '' The Big Top 40 Show'', ''The Vodafone Freebees Big Top 40'', ''The Vodafone Big Top 40'' and, finally, ''The Official Vodafone Big Top 40'' between October 2017 and December 2018. The show was cancelled at the end of 2018, after the producers
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 ...
withdrew it from syndication following
Bauer Radio Bauer Media Audio UK is a UK-based radio division of Bauer Media Group owning brands; Absolute Radio, Greatest Hits Radio, Jazz FM, Hits Radio, KISS, Planet Rock, Magic, Kerrang! Radio and Heat Radio. History In early 2008, German ma ...
's decision to stop broadcasting the programme. The final syndicated commercial radio chart show was broadcast on 30 December 2018 by Marvin Humes and Kat Shoob. It was replaced on Global-owned stations by '' The Official Big Top 40''.


Background

Originally, the main presenter was David Jensen (known then as "Kid Jensen") with holiday cover provided by Timmy Mallett and
Alan Freeman Alan Leslie Freeman MBE (6 July 1927 – 27 November 2006), nicknamed "Fluff", was an Australian-born British disc jockey and radio personality in the United Kingdom for 40 years, best known for presenting '' Pick of the Pops'' from 1961 to 20 ...
, and in later years,
Pat Sharp Patrick Sharpin known professionally as Pat Sharp, is an English radio presenter, television presenter and DJ. He worked on the children's ITV programme '' Fun House'', was one of the Sky Channel's VJs and presented the Coca-Cola Eurochart T ...
. Jensen would record trailers to run on local stations during the week which famously started with the words "''Hi Chart Fans!!''". The programme featured the Network Top 30 and ran from 5-7pm, competing directly with
BBC Radio One 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, hi ...
's Top 40 chart show. It was produced by
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 ...
from their studios on Euston Road in London. ''The Network Chart Show'' aired on
Independent Local Radio Independent Local Radio is the collective name given to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. As a result of the buyouts and mergers permitted by the Broadcasting Act 1990, and deregulation resulting from the Communications Act 2 ...
(ILR) stations using the transmission circuits of
Independent Radio News Independent Radio News provides a service of news bulletins, audio and copy to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom and beyond. The managing director, Tim Molloy, succeeded long-term MD John Perkins in November 2009. Perkins had been ...
, which meant it was originally broadcast in mono in most areas (some stations near to the London area were able to receive Capital on FM well enough for 'off air' rebroadcast). Later, some circuits were upgraded to enable stereo transmission, followed by a satellite distribution service later on. The programme went on air at exactly 5:00 pm, displacing IRN's hourly national news bulletins at 5 pm and 6 pm, originating from LBC. Each station carrying the programme would play their own 10-second ident before linking up with the network feed. The final song faded out shortly before the 7pm networked news, allowing each station to opt-out for an ident before either presenting their own news or re-joining the network for the IRN bulletin. Eventually, on Sunday 21 October 1990, the programme was extended to start following the 4 pm IRN bulletin, with the chart expanded to a Top 40 – although not all of the stations took the extra hour to begin with. From 1985, the programme was sponsored by Nescafe.


The Network Chart

The chart was owned by Association of Independent Radio Contractors (AIRC)the trade body for ILR stations. The chart was distributed by Satellite Media Services, produced by
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 ...
and compiled by the Media Research Information Bureau (MRIB). The chart differed from the entirely sales-based "official" Gallup chart (now the OCC) used by the BBC as it included airplay statistics when compiling the chart. In 1987, sales data for a Thursday-to-Wednesday week was logged manually in diaries by 300 record shops and posted to MRIB. In 1991, data was being collected from around 300 independent record shops who were provided with a checklist of currently released singles. Sales were "checked off against ticks on the retailers' masterbags" and these figures would be collected by telephone on Thursdays. Airplay statistics were factored in by all Independent Local Radio stations providing which playlist (A, B, or C) the current releases were on. More weight was given to the larger stations at the time, such as Capital (17 per cent), BRMB, Clyde, GWR, Metro, and
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. If a record was on every Independent Local Radio station's A list the sales were boosted by 40 per cent. MRIB's ''Network Chart'' was a rival competitor to the self-proclaimed "official" UK chart that was compiled by Gallup and that is now published by the
Official Charts Company The Official UK Charts Company Limited (formerly Music Industry Chart Services Limited), trading as the Official Charts Company (OCC) or the Official Charts (formerly the Chart Information Network), is a British inter-professional organisation ...
(OCC). It was reported in March, 1991 that the ''Network Chart'' compiled by MRIB had a radio audience size that was gaining on the
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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
chart show which broadcast the chart that was compiled by Gallup for the OCC (then CIN). Later that month ''
Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later m ...
'' magazine reported that they were switching to publishing the MRIB charts for the UK which they would also use to compile the
European Hot 100 Singles The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...
and
European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart was the European adaptation of the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart. It ran from March 1984 until December 2010. Also commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums, the chart showcased the sales of an act in 19 E ...
charts. There were sometimes public disputes over accuracy between Gallup and MRIB such as when the former placed
Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...
's single " I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" at number 10 while the latter placed it at number 2 in the same week. MRIB's ''Network Chart'' used sales data starting from different days of the week from those Gallup used for its Radio 1 chart; thus the Network Chart's sales week straddled two Gallup chart sales weeks. However, in July 1993, when Pepsi took over sponsorship, it was announced that the Top 10 of the ''Network Chart'' would use the same sales data as Gallup's chart for CIN, but that the lower 11-40 positions would still combine sales with radio airplay data. This new ''Network Chart'' was compiled by
Spotlight Publications ''Spotlight Publications'' was a music business information company based in London, England that published music magazines in the United Kingdom from 1953 to 2010, with some expansion into the United States. Publications *''Gavin Report'', US mag ...
who beat MRIB to the contract. For its first three years, the Network Chart was more up-to-date than the BBC chart broadcast simultaneously (which had been around since the previous Tuesday), with many singles entering, and reaching their peak on, Sunday's new Network Chart before they did so on the official chart announced two days later. From 4 October 1987 the official (Gallup/OCC) chart which was broadcast by the BBC was brand new on a Sunday afternoon and was more up-to-date, using a Monday-to-Saturday sales week compared to the Network Chart's Thursday-to-Wednesday one. Even when the Network Chart was more up-to-date, though, the Gallup chart was always considered the industry-recognised "official" Top 40, and was promoted as such by the BBC. In compiling the chart MRIB employed a sliding scale, meaning that for the lower reaches of the Top 40, airplay counted almost as much as sales. This often meant that the 40-to-20 positions could be very different between the Network and BBC charts. The weight given to airplay diminished the higher one went in the chart, and the Top 10 was meant to be entirely sales-based, although the Network Chart did not register sales from Saturday, the single most important record-buying day, until a week later. It was not unusual for the MRIB and Gallup charts to have different songs at number one. Because the chart did not include sales from the likes of Woolworths and WHSmith, some songs with more specialised appeal (including many by
The Smiths The Smiths were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1982, composed of Morrissey (vocals), Johnny Marr (guitar), Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (musician), Mike Joyce (drums). Morrissey and Marr formed the band's songwrit ...
) peaked higher than on the official chart, whereas some songs with more middle-of-the-road appeal (such as
Su Pollard Susan Georgina "Su" Pollard (born 7 November 1949) is a British actress, singer, songwriter and author whose career has spanned over 50 years. Pollard is most known for her role in the sitcom '' Hi-de-Hi!'' She also appeared in the sitcoms '' Y ...
's "Starting Together") might sometimes peak lower. This had also been the case with the '' Record Business'' magazine chart used by ILR in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which also did not include data from the more family-friendly shops. As with the ''Record Business'' chart, regional charts were also produced by MRIB for individual ILR stations.


Spin-offs

MRIB's ''Network Chart'' was published in music publications ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'', ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...
'', and '' Sounds'', as well as on ITV's
ORACLE An oracle is a person or thing considered to provide insight, wise counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. If done through occultic means, it is a form of divination. Descript ...
teletext Teletext, or broadcast teletext, is a standard for displaying text and rudimentary graphics on suitably equipped television sets. Teletext sends data in the broadcast signal, hidden in the invisible vertical blanking interval area at the to ...
service. A TV version launched in 1987 called '' The Roxy'', presented by David Jensen and Kevin Sharkey using the chart data from ''The Network Chart''. The show itself tried and failed to compete with the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
, who had the long-established ''
Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...
''. Announcements in the press indicated that the Saturday repeat of ''The Roxy'' would unveil the new Network Chart, but this failed to materialise; the Saturday repeat was always identical to the initial Tuesday broadcast, and so carried only the chart that had been around since the previous Sunday. It ran for just under a year and was produced by
Tyne Tees Television ITV Tyne Tees, previously known as Tyne Tees, Channel 3 North East and Tyne Tees Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV television franchisee for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. Tyne Tees launched on 15 January 1959 from stu ...
, but was often beaten in the ratings by rival programmes on other channels such as ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''. The TV show was axed after industrial disputes saw the end of live performances. On 16 March 1989, Fantail Publishing released a tie-in book called ''The Network Chart Book Of Hits'', which was a review of the previous year (1988) in music. It featured a selection of the singles, albums and music videos charts, as well as interviews with some of the artists who had big hits that year. The book was introduced by David Jensen and the author was Mike Hrano. Teen magazine '' Number One'' used The Network Chart singles and albums charts from January 1985 until summer 1990, when it was sold by its publishers, IPC Media to BBC Magazines. From then on it featured the official national singles and albums charts until the magazine's demise in early 1992. In addition, the national Sunday newspaper '' The News of the World'' used to feature ''The Network Chart'' Top 20 singles chart in their music section in the late 1980s and early 1990s, whereas ''
The Sunday People The ''Sunday People'' is a British tabloid Sunday newspaper. It was founded as ''The People'' on 16 October 1881. At one point owned by Odhams Press, The ''People'' was acquired along with Odhams by the Mirror Group in 1961, along with the ' ...
'' featured the MRIB top 10 right up to MRIB's Singles/Album Chart demise in April 2008. However, Independent Radio stopped using it in August 1993.


Re-branding

From 1 August 1993, Neil Fox took over the rebranded ''Pepsi Network Chart'', which later became the '' Pepsi Chart'', and then '' Hit40UK''. On 15 June 2009, ''Hit40UK'' became '' The Big Top 40 Show''. All these shows mostly used the same Top 10 as ''
The Official Chart ''The Official Chart'' is a long-running United Kingdom music chart programme, airing each Friday afternoon on BBC Radio 1. It airs the UK singles chart compiled by the Official Charts Company. In July 2015 ''The Official Chart'' moved from ...
'' chart which is compiled by the
Official Charts Company The Official UK Charts Company Limited (formerly Music Industry Chart Services Limited), trading as the Official Charts Company (OCC) or the Official Charts (formerly the Chart Information Network), is a British inter-professional organisation ...
, except ''The Big Top 40'' which used the
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live top 10, at the end of the show, and kicks off with the full week's top 10 on iTunes. The 40–11 positions on all of them is a 50/50 sales/airplay chart. In January, 2019, all re-branded versions of ''The Network Chart'' were finally replaced with '' The Official Big Top 40'' which has more listeners than ''The Official Chart'' which is broadcast on
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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
and which is compiled by the Official Charts Company.


See also

* Timeline of chart shows on UK radio


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Network Chart Show GCap Media British music radio programmes British record charts Music chart shows 1984 radio programme debuts 2019 radio programme endings