LBC to air in regions

Award-winning London radio station LBC is to broadcast to the regions by venturing onto the DAB digital network.

The station, which won awards for its breakfast show, hosted by Nick Ferrari (pictured), and its live events at this year's Sony Radio Awards, will broadcast to a potential 17 million listeners nationwide.

Phil Riley, CEO of Chrysalis Radio, told Press Gazette: "It is our view that with suitable embellishment and editing, which is what we are going to have to do for the regions, it will be a very attractive addition to what you can hear on digital radio for most of the rest of the country."

LBC's programmes, which are heard in London on FM, will be available on five separate MXR multiplexes covering South Wales, the Southwest, the West Midlands, the Northwest, Yorkshire and the Northeast.

Each of those regions will take the from 6am until 7pm all of the news bulletins will be replaced with local bulletins specific to those regions, and the traffic and travel news will all be replaced by information tailored specifically to that locality.

Riley said: "The object is, on a positive note, to make sure that people in Newcastle hear news and information about their region and also to ensure that what they don't hear is a story about the M25 or Mad Ken."

He said that the net change to the number of journalists will be "virtually zero".

While Chrysalis will "have to take a look" at the journalists in Birmingham, the company is planning to strengthen the London office to take on much of the additional work.

Riley said: "We obviously have regional newsrooms around the country, we have access to PA and other material that can be filtered by region."