PM (Radio 4)
Encyclopedia
PM, sometimes referred to as the PM programme to avoid ambiguity, is BBC Radio 4
's long-running early evening news and current affairs programme.
On weekdays PM is followed by another news programme, the Six O'Clock News, at the same time as the flagship television news programme of the same name broadcasts on BBC One
.
The weekday editions are usually presented by Eddie Mair
, although Carolyn Quinn
takes over when he deputises for Jonathan Dimbleby
on Any Questions. Paddy O'Connell
is also an occasional presenter. The Saturday edition has no fixed presenter, although Quinn and Ritula Shah
present frequently.
and Derek Cooper, promising a programme that "sums up the day, and your evening starts here". It made history for being the first radio news programme to feature its own theme tune
. Three have been used, with the last ending in 1997 in the aftermath of the death of Princess Diana.
, Brian Widlake
, Robert Williams, Chris Lowe
, Joan Bakewell, Susannah Simons and Valerie Singleton (a former Blue Peter
presenter — in pre-interview chats, junior ministers "inevitably" claimed that they still had their Blue Peter badge
).
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the programme's main presenter was Gordon Clough
, who would typically prepare for the programme by completing the Times
, Guardian
and FT
crosswords.
- regular features include The Glass Box, for discussion of programme content; The Furrowed Brow, for discussion of other serious matters, and The Beach, the off-topic area.
. iPM was a unique programme in that through the blog, listeners could discuss ideas with the production team and comment on the stories being lined up for the following show - so what ended up on air was shaped by the listeners.
, composed by Alexander Faris
. In 2009, variations on the tune performed by PM listeners in a variety of styles from bossa nova
to heavy metal
became a regular feature. This was ended when the UK statistically left recession early in 2010. In October 2010, a compilation was released in aid of the Children in Need
charity appeal, for which it raised over £70,000.
, The World This Weekend
and Broadcasting House
. Though predominantly consisting of serious news content, the programme is known for occasional satirical commentary, both from the presenters and in letters from listeners.
A Radio Times
poll in 2005 named Mair as the fifth most powerful person in radio.
: Gold in the Interactive Programme Award, and Silver in the Speech Programme Award.
Analogous programmes include PM
on ABC
Radio National
in Australia
and All Things Considered
on NPR in the United States
.
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
's long-running early evening news and current affairs programme.
Broadcast times
It is broadcast from 5pm to 6pm from Monday to Friday and from 5pm to 5:30pm on Saturdays.On weekdays PM is followed by another news programme, the Six O'Clock News, at the same time as the flagship television news programme of the same name broadcasts on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
.
The weekday editions are usually presented by Eddie Mair
Eddie Mair
Eddie Mair is a British BBC radio and television presenter. He presents BBC Radio 4's daily news magazine PM also the Radio 4 Saturday only iPM and the BBC's NewsPod, is an occasional presenter of Newsnight, the stand-in presenter for Any Questions replacing the late Nick Clarke, and was the...
, although Carolyn Quinn
Carolyn Quinn
Carolyn Quinn is a British journalist best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as a political correspondent and for presenting the Today programme and PM.-Early life:...
takes over when he deputises for Jonathan Dimbleby
Jonathan Dimbleby
Jonathan Dimbleby is a British presenter of current affairs and political radio and television programmes, a political commentator and a writer. He is the son of Richard Dimbleby and younger brother of British TV presenter David Dimbleby.-Education:Dimbleby was educated at Charterhouse School, a...
on Any Questions. Paddy O'Connell
Paddy O'Connell
Guy Patrick Bennett O'Connell , known as Paddy O'Connell, is an English television and radio presenter, working mainly for the BBC....
is also an occasional presenter. The Saturday edition has no fixed presenter, although Quinn and Ritula Shah
Ritula Shah
Ritula Shah is a journalist and news presenter on BBC Radio. As of January 2009, she is a regular presenter of The World Tonight, the Saturday edition of PM, and Woman's Hour on Radio 4, and The World Today on the World Service....
present frequently.
History
PM launched on 6 April 1970, with its first presenters, William HardcastleWilliam Hardcastle (broadcaster)
William Hardcastle was a British journalist, editor of the Daily Mail and first presenter of the lunchtime news programme The World at One on BBC Radio....
and Derek Cooper, promising a programme that "sums up the day, and your evening starts here". It made history for being the first radio news programme to feature its own theme tune
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
. Three have been used, with the last ending in 1997 in the aftermath of the death of Princess Diana.
Presentation
Notable presenters after William Hardcastle included Steve RaceSteve Race
Stephen Russell Race OBE was a British composer, pianist and radio and television presenter.-Biography:Born in Lincoln, the son of a lawyer, Race learned the piano from the age of five...
, Brian Widlake
Brian Widlake
Brian Widlake is a British journalist, broadcaster and presenter best known for co-presenting the BBC's Money Programme in the early 1980s with Valerie Singleton. He worked as a reporter for ITN in the 1960s and was a regular presenter of BBC Radio 4's news magazine programmes The World at One and...
, Robert Williams, Chris Lowe
Chris Lowe (journalist)
John Christopher Lowe is a news presenter who worked for BBC News for 37 years until his retirement on 4 January 2009.-Education:...
, Joan Bakewell, Susannah Simons and Valerie Singleton (a former Blue Peter
Blue Peter
Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...
presenter — in pre-interview chats, junior ministers "inevitably" claimed that they still had their Blue Peter badge
Blue Peter badge
A Blue Peter badge is a much coveted award for Blue Peter viewers, given by the children's television programme for those appearing on the show, or in recognition of achievement...
).
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the programme's main presenter was Gordon Clough
Arthur Gordon Clough
Arthur Gordon Clough , was an English radio presenter and journalist, primarily known for his work on BBC Radio 4....
, who would typically prepare for the programme by completing the Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
and FT
Financial Times
The Financial Times is an international business newspaper. It is a morning daily newspaper published in London and printed in 24 cities around the world. Its primary rival is the Wall Street Journal, published in New York City....
crosswords.
Blog
In November 2005, the programme began producing a daily e-newsletter written by Mair. In August 2006, this was followed up with a blogBlog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
- regular features include The Glass Box, for discussion of programme content; The Furrowed Brow, for discussion of other serious matters, and The Beach, the off-topic area.
iPM
On 12 October 2007, the programme started an additional blog for a spin-off programme called iPM, which was broadcast on Saturdays at 5:30pm (immediately after the Saturday edition of PM) until 22 December, and also made available as a podcastPodcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
. iPM was a unique programme in that through the blog, listeners could discuss ideas with the production team and comment on the stories being lined up for the following show - so what ended up on air was shaped by the listeners.
Quirky features
In 2008 the programme renamed its financial news slot "Upshares, Downshares", introduced by the title music for Upstairs, DownstairsUpstairs, Downstairs
Upstairs, Downstairs is a British drama television series originally produced by London Weekend Television and revived by the BBC. It ran on ITV in 68 episodes divided into five series from 1971 to 1975, and a sixth series shown on the BBC on three consecutive nights, 26–28 December 2010.Set in a...
, composed by Alexander Faris
Alexander Faris
Alexander "Sandy" Faris is an Irish composer, conductor and writer, known for his television theme tunes. He has composed and recorded many operas and musicals, and has composed film scores and orchestral works.-Life and career:...
. In 2009, variations on the tune performed by PM listeners in a variety of styles from bossa nova
Bossa nova
Bossa nova is a style of Brazilian music. Bossa nova acquired a large following in the 1960s, initially consisting of young musicians and college students...
to heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
became a regular feature. This was ended when the UK statistically left recession early in 2010. In October 2010, a compilation was released in aid of the Children in Need
Children in Need
Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
charity appeal, for which it raised over £70,000.
Production
PM is currently edited by Joanna Carr. The production team also works on Radio 4's The World at OneThe World At One
The World at One, or WATO for short, is BBC Radio 4's long-running lunchtime news and current affairs programme, which is broadcast from 1pm to 1:30pm from Monday to Friday. The programme describes itself as "Britain's leading political programme. With a reputation for rigorous and original...
, The World This Weekend
The World This Weekend
The World This Weekend was launched on 17 September 1967. It is a weekly news and current affairs programme broadcast from 1pm to 1:30pm on BBC Radio 4 every Sunday, essentially the Sunday version of The World at One....
and Broadcasting House
Broadcasting House (radio programme)
Broadcasting House is a current affairs programme on BBC Radio 4, presented by Paddy O'Connell. It is broadcast every Sunday between 09:00 and 10:00....
. Though predominantly consisting of serious news content, the programme is known for occasional satirical commentary, both from the presenters and in letters from listeners.
A Radio Times
Radio Times
Radio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
poll in 2005 named Mair as the fifth most powerful person in radio.
Awards
The programme won two accolades in the 2007 Sony Radio Academy AwardsSony Radio Academy Awards
The Sony Radio Academy Awards , started in 1983, are some of the most prestigious awards in the British radio industry. They are run by ZAFER Associates in association with the Radio Academy...
: Gold in the Interactive Programme Award, and Silver in the Speech Programme Award.
See also
- Today programmeToday programmeToday is BBC Radio 4's long-running early morning news and current affairs programme, now broadcast from 6.00 am to 9.00 am Monday to Friday, and 7.00 am to 9.00 am on Saturdays. It is also the most popular programme on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular programmes across its radio networks...
Radio 4's early morning stablemate to PM. - The World At OneThe World At OneThe World at One, or WATO for short, is BBC Radio 4's long-running lunchtime news and current affairs programme, which is broadcast from 1pm to 1:30pm from Monday to Friday. The programme describes itself as "Britain's leading political programme. With a reputation for rigorous and original...
Radio 4's afternoon stablemate to PM. - The World TonightThe World TonightThe World Tonight is a British current affairs radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4, every weekday evening, which started out as an extension of the 10pm news. It features news, analysis and comment on domestic and world issues...
, Radio 4's late evening stablemate to PM.
Analogous programmes include PM
PM (ABC Radio)
PM is one of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's flagship current-affairs radio programs, and is one of Australia's longest-running productions. It is the sister program to AM...
on ABC
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
Radio National
Radio National
ABC Radio National is an Australia-wide non-commercial radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.Radio National broadcasts national programming in areas that include news and current affairs, the arts, social issues, science, drama and comedy...
in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and All Things Considered
All Things Considered
All Things Considered is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio. It was the first news program on NPR, and is broadcast live worldwide through several outlets...
on NPR in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.