Broadcast area | United Kingdom |
---|---|
Frequency |
FM: 105.4 MHz (London) Virgin Media: 928 Freeview: 715 Freesat: 770 |
First air date | 9 July 1990 (as Melody FM) |
Format | Adult Contemporary |
Audience share | 4.2% in London/5.6% nationally (June 2016, RAJAR) |
Owner | Bauer Radio |
Sister stations |
Absolute Radio Heat Radio The Hits Kerrang Radio Kiss Planet Rock |
Website | planetradio |
FM: 105.4 MHz (London)
RDS: Magic
DAB:
11D (England/Wales/N. Ireland)
12A (Scotland)
12C (London)
Magic 105.4 FM is an adult contemporary Independent Local Radio and national radio station based in London owned by Bauer Radio. Magic 105.4 FM forms part of Bauer's National portfolio of radio brands.
As well as being carried on FM and DAB in London it is carried nationally on DAB, as well as online and on digital television.
In 1998, Melody FM was purchased by media group Emap from Hanson plc for a reported £25 million and rebranded Magic that December.
On changing the station's name, Emap introduced automation for the first time - weekday afternoons were split with a 'non-stop music hour', first sponsored by the now defunct energy company Calortex, and later by the Emap-owned Red magazine. Magic was criticised for automating a further eleven hours of its daily output (7pm-6am) given the reach and size of the station.
In an attempt to cut costs, Magic began networking its mid-morning show, hosted by Richard Skinner, and automated overnight output with the eight other Magic Radio stations in the North of England in January 2002. Audience figures fell on all nine stations in the twelve months that followed, some arguing a lack of local content had driven listeners to tune away. Networking was ended in January 2003, although the eight 'northern' Magic stations continued to share a mid-morning show, hosted by Mark Thorburn, and were subsequently networked again, with the exception of local breakfast shows, following a repositioning of the northern Magic group in mid-2006. These stations were later rebranded into the Bauer City 2 network in 2015.