French
DeutschHits Radio London
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| Broadcast area | London |
| Frequency | FM: 100.0 MHz DAB: 12C (Greater London I) |
| Branding | London’s Hits Radio The Biggest Hits, The Biggest Throwbacks |
| Programming | |
| Format | CHR/Pop |
| Network | Hits Radio |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Bauer Media Audio UK |
| Greatest Hits Radio London | |
| History | |
First air date | 4 June 2018 (DAB) 22 September 2024 (FM) |
| Links | |
| Website | planetradio |
Hits Radio London is an Independent Local Radio station based in London, England, owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Greater London via DAB digital radio and, since September 2024, the FM band.
History
[edit]Digital
[edit]From January 2003[1] to January 2015[2], The Hits had been provided as a DAB radio station in London, removed in tandem with The Hits' folding into the Bauer City 3 network.
Ahead of the official combination of The Hits Radio and Key 103 into the modern Hits Radio network on 4 June 2018, a feed labelled Hits Radio - carrying The Hits output - was added to DAB digital radio in London in May, with the removal of Kerrang! Radio and Absolute Radio 70s to make room.[3] Following the relaunch of the Hits Radio network, the London DAB service carried localised news and advertising - powered by Bauer's London headquarters (then at Golden Square in Soho, moving to The Lantern in Euston from 2024) - alongside the network schedule of Hits Radio programming, mostly sourced from Bauer's network centre at Castlefield in Manchester (with some programmes broadcast from other Bauer studios, including London.)
In April 2021, Hits Radio London was reduced from stereo to mono broadcast to enable the re-addition of Absolute Radio 70s to the London DAB lineup, latterly as a DAB+ station.[4] (Absolute 70s would thereafter remain available in London until being removed again in June 2024.)
As part of a wider reshuffle of Bauer's DAB capacity in London, in April 2024 Hits Radio London migrated from the Switch London II multiplex to the CE London I multiplex,[5] allowing Hits Radio to revert to broadcasting in stereo.
FM launch
[edit]The 100.0 FM frequency in London entered regular service on 1st September 1990 and until 2024 carried Kiss, a station licenced primarily to carry dance and rhythmic music; Kiss had begun operations as a pirate radio station in 1985 before moving to become legally licenced with the backing of media group EMAP, whose UK consumer-facing assets including Kiss were acquired by Bauer Media in 2008. Kiss began to broadcast nationally on the Digital One DAB radio multiplex at the end of 2012,[6] having previously been available outside London on local-tier DAB.
On 8 August 2024, Bauer announced that - following the transition of 105.8 FM from Absolute Radio to Greatest Hits Radio three years prior - the 100 FM franchise would, along with the other Kiss licences on FM (in Norwich - the last remaining frequency of Kiss 105-108 following the others' transition to GHR in 2023 - and Kiss 101 in the West Country) be transferred to Hits Radio at a later date to be announced.[7] On 20 September, it was confirmed that the switch would go ahead a few days later, on Monday 23 September.[8] The transition in fact took place at 10.00pm on the evening of Sunday 22 September, a short 'tribute' sequence, including audio of Gordon Mac launching the station in 1990, aired ahead of the switch taking place. The continuing Kiss network service remains available in London via digital platforms.
Programming
[edit]Hits Radio London carries networked Hits Radio programming at all times, with no programming hours produced specifically for London, though recorded 'split links' are included within network shows which allow some London-specific references to be incorporated into the station's output. Some Hits Radio network shows are broadcast from Bauer's London studio facility at The Lantern in Euston, which satisfies the requirement for programming produced within the station's licenced area; other programming may originate from other Bauer facilities around the UK, chiefly studios in Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and Newcastle.
As with the other licences transitioned from Kiss in 2024 in Norwich and the West Country, Hits Radio London carries an adjusted version of the Hits Radio playlist, which sees some music tracks replaced with dance remixes of the same track. This enables the station to fulfil lingering requirements for 'rhythmic' music carried over from the stations' previous operation as Kiss. Prior to September 2024, Hits Radio London on DAB had followed the standard Hits Radio playlist.
News
[edit]Bauer's London newsroom broadcasts local news bulletins hourly from 6 am–7 pm on weekdays and from 7 am–1 pm on weekends. Headlines are broadcast on the half-hour during weekday breakfast and drivetime shows. The station simulcasts hourly Sky News Radio bulletins at all other times.