Smooth Radio is the station to listen to for the ultimate ‘relaxing music mix’. As an artist, you’ll be in tune with some of the greatest music, and Smooth radio will bring you top hits from the past five decades.
The station brings a blend of excellent music and charming personalities to keep you entertained. It’s the music which creates the listening experience and each song played is chosen to take you on a trip down memory lane.
Smooth Radio is the soundtrack to your life, with the greatest hits from the past years brought to you!
What Is Smooth Radio?
Smooth radio is part of Global Radio, which is the biggest commercial radio group based in the UK as well as one of the biggest in Europe. The company owns some of the top brands in commercial radio including Heart, Capital and Classic FM, with Smooth being the third largest commercial station. The station targets listeners mainly over the age of 40, quite similar to BBC Radio 2. According to official quarterly figures from Radio Joint Authority Research Limited (RAJAR) Smooth Radio is listened to on average by 3 million listeners per week.
How To Listen
You can listen to Smooth radio via the player at the top of this page! You can also access it across the country on FM and AM, Digital Radio, online or the Smooth Radio mobile app via the links below:
Smooth Radio aims to bring to you a relaxing music mix across the UK. Jenni Falconer is just one of many star presenters on Smooth, together with Kate Garraway, Myleene Klass, Margherita Taylor, Tina Hobley and Angie Greaves (who previously hosted the early breakfast show on Smooth’s sister station, Heart). The station recently launched a new schedule on 6 January 2020, consisting of the following features:
London’s Smooth Breakfast
Jenni Falconer hosts weekdays from 6 am to 10 am. It is the ultimate wake-up call for London residents! The all-new breakfast show is also available nationwide via Smooth Extra on DAB digital radio.
Weekend Line Up
Saturday afternoons are also hosted by Jenni Falconer (1-4 pm) throughout the network, and playing the perfect soundtrack to relax you on a Sunday morning, Angie Greaves, joined Smooth September 2019 to host a brand-new nationwide Smooth Drive Home and also presents a 3-hour Sunday show from 10 am.
The Smooth Sanctuary at Seven
You can listen to three hours of soothing music seven days a week (7-10 pm), hosted every Saturday by Tina Hobley and by Gary Vincent Sunday – Friday.
Who Owns Smooth Radio?
Smooth Radio is led by Ashley Tabor (Founder and Executive President), Stephen Miron (Global Group CEO) and Richard Park (Director of Broadcasting). Sir Charles Allen chairs the radio group.
Global owns and operates one of the leading Outdoor (OOH) companies in the UK through its Outdoor Division, as well as a radio network including Smooth, Capital, Capital, Heart, Classic FM, LBC, LBC News, Radio X and Gold.
History Of Smooth Radio
The station was previously operated by a number of regional licenses by GMG radio until it merged its five stations into one quasi-national station launched on Digital One national DAB in 2010. In 2012, GMG Radio’s owners sold its radio division to Global for around £50 million. Global then decided to rename GMG Radio to ‘Real and Smooth Radio Ltd.’
Due to the takeover being so big, various rival radio groups stated their concerns over the takeover and the impact it could have on commercial radio in the UK as it gave Global a monopoly over the radio market. In 2013, the Competition Commission wanted Global to sell radio stations in seven locations. Global, however, appealed this decision but this was rejected by the Competition Appeal Tribunal. Then in February 2014, Global were given permission to take away Smooth from the Digital One platform. Then they were able to replace it with a service that played music from 70s, 80s and 90s. Smooth continued to broadcast on regional frequencies, but needed to play seven hours of local output each day.
Global sold eight of its regional stations including those with the Smooth Radio brand in the North West, North East and East Midlands to Communicorp. Under a franchise agreement, the two companies agreed to retain the Smooth Radio name but relaunched with a mixture of regional content and networked programming from London. Smooth took over Gold’s medium wave frequencies with the exception of London, Manchester and the East Midlands.
Global added former Lakeland Radio to the network as Smooth Lake District On 5 March 2018. The weekend afternoon programme ended locally on 25 August 2019 and Angie Greaves became the new host of the national Smooth Drive Home, which started broadcasting 2 September 2019.
Smooth Radio Events
Smooth radio has sponsored many events over the years with GMG announcing a deal in 2011 with the magazine publisher IPC for Smooth radio to sponsor the TV Times Awards. In 2013 Smooth teamed up with high street retailer Boots for ‘The Feel-Good Forum’, which was a health and beauty programme which aired for 8 weeks on Real and Smooth radio. Presented by Kate Thornton it saw a collaboration between Boots and Mumsnet. The same year Smooth also secured a deal with the 2014 Commonwealth Games as an Official Media Partner for Ticketing.
Blackpool Illuminations
Each year since 2010, Smooth has been one of the official broadcasters for the Blackpool Illuminations switch-on celebrations. The station won the rights from BBC Radio 2, which had aired it since 1997. It aired for the first time on commercial radio in 2010 with the annual event at a purposely-built arena. It featured a concert from popular artists such as Alesha Dixon, Gabriella Cilmi, The Wanted, Olly Murs, and Robbie Williams, who switched on the lights that year. The 2012 switch-on was performed by Greg Rutherford, Luke Campbell and Beth Tweddle following the 2012 Olympics.
Smooth has hosted various free live gigs called ‘Love Live Music’ at venues throughout the UK. Artists which have played include Adele, Beverley Knight, Eliza Doolittle, Katie Melua, Will Young amongst many others. In 2011 the station celebrated its first year as a national broadcaster with a series of concerts including one at Café de Paris in London, and they also held another evening of entertainment attended by 20,000 people at Liverpool’s Waterfront on 21 July 2012.
In December 2012, Smooth secured exclusive rights to broadcast the ‘Christmas Hit Factory Live’ concert. This was a show which featured artists who achieved success with the Stock Aitken and Waterman and PWL record labels. Those appearing at the concert on 21 December included Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan and Dead or Alive. The concert aired on New Year’s Eve.
Charity Fundraising Events
Smooth Radio along with other GMG radios, holds an annual fundraising event for Help for Heroes. This a UK charity which provides support to injured British service personnel. The first ‘Help for Heroes Day’ took place in 2009, and collectively the stations raised £200,000. An 18-hour special featured Ronan Keating, Simon Cowell, Spandau Ballet and The Soldiers. Even Chris Tarrant returned to the network for the special event.
‘Smooth Radio Starlight Supper’, was another fundraising initiative. Here, listeners were encouraged to host a dinner party with guests donating money for various cancer charities. The event began in 2010 when the Smooth network raised money for multiple charities across Britain. Breast Cancer Care in London, Macmillan Cancer Support in the North West, North East and West Midlands, the Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People in the East Midlands and Marie Curie’s Big Build in Glasgow.
Your Music on Smooth Radio
Smooth Radio is becoming more popular than ever before with a massive 5.7 million people listening every week. The audience for each weekday show has increased in the last 12 months, and Smooth Breakfast is bigger than ever. To get your song played on the radio, you will need to approach the radio station’s music directors. You will then need to promote your song to them. Competition to be played on a national station is always fierce however that’s not to say you can’t try. Target the stations with specialist shows and DJs. Send copies to show producers and presenters and research as much as possible!
So, next time you’re looking for a way to wind down, tune in to Smooth Radio!
