Premier Christian Radio
Encyclopedia
Premier Christian Radio is a British
Christian
radio station
wholly owned by the charity
Premier Christian Media Trust.
Premier Christian Radio broadcasts Christian programming including news, debate, teachings and Christian music to London and the surrounding areas.
It operates on three frequencies on medium wave across five transmitters:
It also broadcasts on DAB in Greater London, nationally on Sky Digital
(channel 0123), Freeview (channel 725), on the Digital One
national DAB multiplex, and via its website.
audience but their listeners also comprise a number of different Christian denominations, including Anglican, Baptist
, Catholic
, Methodist and Pentecostal.
In 2004 The Times
placed Premier Christian Radio at number one in a chart of the "most upmarket stations" based upon the percentage of its audience (81%) that is ABC1
. In the quarter ending June 2010 the station was receivable by 10,983,000 people; 143,000 listened, for an average of 12 hours each, 0.80% of all listening hours.
A series of magazine titles then joined. The charity currently produces Christianity Magazine
, Youthwork Magazine
, Christian Marketplace
and Faithworks Magazine
.
In 2001, Premier received an official warning from The Radio Authority (the regulatory body for radio at the time) for broadcasting "items that were offensive to people of other, non-Christian beliefs". A "yellow card" warning was issued, recognising that Premier had acknowledged its errors and put in place significant new compliance measures to ensure such breaches would not be repeated.
, Virgin Media
(channel 968, terminated 6 May 2009) and London DAB
. In 2006, the media group launched Premier.tv, one of the first Christian IPTV
channels in the UK.
Its 2007 application for a national DAB licence, as part of the National Grid Wireless consortium, was refused; Premier Radio said "almost 72,000 Premier listeners stepped up and made their voices heard in supporting the bid". In August 2009, Premier achieved its target of meeting the £650,000 yearly fee to broadcast on the national Digital One DAB multiplex and launched on the multiplex on 21 September 2009.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
radio station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
wholly owned by the charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
Premier Christian Media Trust.
Premier Christian Radio broadcasts Christian programming including news, debate, teachings and Christian music to London and the surrounding areas.
It operates on three frequencies on medium wave across five transmitters:
- 1305 (Stevenage, Bishops Stortford, Harlow and Hertford; Crawley, Guildford, Reigate and Woking)
- 1332 (London)
- 1413 (Maidenhead, Camberley, Staines, Harrow, Watford; and Chelmsford, Brentwood, Dartford, Maidstone & Sevenoaks)
It also broadcasts on DAB in Greater London, nationally on Sky Digital
Sky Digital (UK & Ireland)
Sky is the brand name for British Sky Broadcasting's digital satellite television and radio service, transmitted from SES Astra satellites located at 28.2° east and Eutelsat's Eurobird 1 satellite at 28.5°E. The service was originally launched as Sky Digital, distinguishing it from the original...
(channel 0123), Freeview (channel 725), on the Digital One
Digital One
Digital One is a national commercial digital radio multiplex in the United Kingdom, owned by Arqiva. , the multiplex covers more than 90% of the populationfrom a total of 137 transmitters...
national DAB multiplex, and via its website.
Broadcasters
Presenters include:- Andy Peck
- Andy Walton
- Bridgitte Tetteh
- Cindy Kent, former singer with the 1960s folk group The SettlersThe Settlers (band)The Settlers were a folk-oriented group from the English West Midlands , who formed in the mid 1960s. They started out as a trio comprising Cindy Kent , Mike Jones and John Fyffe , but added a bassist, Mansel Davies.-Formation...
- Dave Rose
- David AldousDavid Aldous (actor and broadcaster)David Aldous is an English actor and broadcaster. He has appeared in TV series, such as The Bill and Casualty, and in the film Loved Up. He has also presented the programmes In Depth for GOD TV and Passages of Life for Premier Christian Radio...
- John PantryJohn PantryJohn Pantry is a musician, singer, songwriter, audio engineer and record producer from Harrow, Middlesex, England. He's been active since the late 1960s...
, 1970s singer and music producer - Justin Brierley
- Lizzie Crow
- Loretta Fenton
- Maria Toth
- Megan Gerrie
- Michael Cleere
- Michael Fanstone
- Muyiwa
- Rick Easter
- Tony Miles
- Victoria Laurence
Listenership
Premier Christian Radio are known for their strong evangelicalEvangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
audience but their listeners also comprise a number of different Christian denominations, including Anglican, Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
, Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
, Methodist and Pentecostal.
In 2004 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...
placed Premier Christian Radio at number one in a chart of the "most upmarket stations" based upon the percentage of its audience (81%) that is ABC1
NRS social grade
The NRS social grades are a system of demographic classification used in the United Kingdom. They were originally developed by the National Readership Survey in order to classify readers, but are now used by many other organisations for wider applications and have become a standard for market...
. In the quarter ending June 2010 the station was receivable by 10,983,000 people; 143,000 listened, for an average of 12 hours each, 0.80% of all listening hours.
History
Premier Christian Radio was founded in 1994, broadcasting exclusively on MW to a Greater London audience when it also began its telephone counselling service, Lifeline. It took the air at a Launch Party in Battersea Park, London on 10 June 1995.A series of magazine titles then joined. The charity currently produces Christianity Magazine
Christianity Magazine
Christianity Magazine is an evangelical Christian magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom by Christian Communications Partnership Ltd....
, Youthwork Magazine
Youthwork Magazine
Youthwork Magazine is an evangelical Christian magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom by Christian Communications Partnership Ltd....
, Christian Marketplace
Christian Marketplace
Christian Marketplace is the UK-based trade magazine for the Christian retail industry, featuring news, product reviews and interviews. It is published monthly and is supplied to both Christian and general market retailers.- History :...
and Faithworks Magazine
Faithworks Magazine
Faithworks Magazine was an evangelical Christian magazine published quarterly in England by Christian Communications Partnership Ltd.The magazine was launched in 2007 in association with the Faithworks movement...
.
In 2001, Premier received an official warning from The Radio Authority (the regulatory body for radio at the time) for broadcasting "items that were offensive to people of other, non-Christian beliefs". A "yellow card" warning was issued, recognising that Premier had acknowledged its errors and put in place significant new compliance measures to ensure such breaches would not be repeated.
Availability
Premier Christian Radio was at first only available on medium wave in London. It later added broadcasts on the internet, Freeview, SkySky Digital (UK & Ireland)
Sky is the brand name for British Sky Broadcasting's digital satellite television and radio service, transmitted from SES Astra satellites located at 28.2° east and Eutelsat's Eurobird 1 satellite at 28.5°E. The service was originally launched as Sky Digital, distinguishing it from the original...
, Virgin Media
Virgin Media
Virgin Media Inc. is a company which provides fixed and mobile telephone, television and broadband internet services to businesses and consumers in the United Kingdom...
(channel 968, terminated 6 May 2009) and London DAB
Digital audio broadcasting
Digital Audio Broadcasting is a digital radio technology for broadcasting radio stations, used in several countries, particularly in Europe. As of 2006, approximately 1,000 stations worldwide broadcast in the DAB format....
. In 2006, the media group launched Premier.tv, one of the first Christian IPTV
IPTV
Internet Protocol television is a system through which television services are delivered using the Internet protocol suite over a packet-switched network such as the Internet, instead of being delivered through traditional terrestrial, satellite signal, and cable television formats.IPTV services...
channels in the UK.
Its 2007 application for a national DAB licence, as part of the National Grid Wireless consortium, was refused; Premier Radio said "almost 72,000 Premier listeners stepped up and made their voices heard in supporting the bid". In August 2009, Premier achieved its target of meeting the £650,000 yearly fee to broadcast on the national Digital One DAB multiplex and launched on the multiplex on 21 September 2009.