FM sound broadcasting began in the United Kingdom on 2 May 1955 when theBBC started anFM broadcasting service theLight Programme, theThird Programme and theHome Service to the south east of England. There are now over 40 BBC and over 250 commercial FM soundbroadcasting stations in the United Kingdom.[1]
TheBBC began usingFM sound broadcasting in 1955, but at that timeAM sound broadcasting predominated. The BBC's 'popular music' station,BBC Radio 1, opened in 1967 but only broadcast on MW until the end of the 1980s, and had 'borrowed'BBC Radio 2's FM frequencies for approximately 24 hours each week. 1987 saw the switch on of Radio 1's first full time FM frequency, and in 1995, FM coverage of Radio 1 matched that of the other BBC national stations that also aired on FM. During the start of this period, Radio 1 had gradually reducing at the end of the 1980s until the final 'borrow' took place in March 1990, five months before Radio 2 became the BBC's first FM-only service when on 27 August 1990,BBC Radio 5 began broadcasting on Radio 2's MW frequencies. Radio 1 endedmedium wave broadcasting in 1994 when the FM transmitter roll-out was almost complete.
Currently, with the exception ofBBC Radio 5 Live, all of the BBC's analogue services are provided on FM, although Radio 4 simulcasts its broadcasts onlong wave and some Local Radio stations also still broadcast opt-outs on medium wave. BBC policy was to refer to FM asVHF on air until 30 September 1984 when FM became its official term.
Legal commercial broadcasting began in the United Kingdom in 1973, with the launch ofLBC, though offshorepirate radio stations operated in the 1960s to 1990s, usually from ships anchored off the coast of Britain.
Early licences were granted to wide-area stations, such asCapital Radio which served London and the home counties. Later more local stations were introduced. There is also one national commercial radio station,Classic FM.
Commercial radio stationssimulcasted on both FM and medium waves from the beginning until theIBA asked radio stations to end the practice and from 1988 stations began to offer separate stations on each waveband. Typically another service, often a 'gold' format, was introduced on AM and the original service continued on FM.
From 1955 the band 88.0 – 94.6 MHz was used (allotted andassigned) for three BBC national networks. Over the next 40 years, the band grew piecemeal to 87.5 – 108.0 MHz, allowing for five national networks and many local stations.
Until 1995, parts of the band had been used in the United Kingdom formobile service by police, fire brigades and the fuel and power industries. These parts werereassigned tobroadcasting service gradually over many years as the communications services were transferred to new equipment in other parts of the spectrum.
The currentfrequency allotment plan is based on anITU agreement made in Geneva in 1984.[2] The table below shows which kind ofbroadcasting transmitter stations are the main users of each part of the band. There are many exceptions. In some areas there is some commercial usage of the 'BBC local' sub bands while in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland the 'Radio 4' and 'BBC Local' ranges are used interchangeably. Community radio stations and RSLs tend to be fitted into any locally available position.
| Sub-band (MHz) | Main usage |
|---|---|
| 87.5 – 88.0 | Restricted Service Licences |
| 88.0 – 90.2 | BBC Radio 2 |
| 90.2 – 92.4 | BBC Radio 3 |
| 92.4 – 94.6 | BBC Radio 4 |
| 94.6 – 96.1 | BBC Local Radio |
| 96.1 – 97.6 | Independent Local Radio |
| 97.6 – 99.8 | BBC Radio 1 |
| 99.8 – 102.0 | Independent National Radio (currentlyClassic FM) |
| 102.0 – 103.5 | Independent Local Radio |
| 103.5 – 104.9 | BBC Local Radio |
| 104.9 – 108.0 | Independent Local Radio |
The United Kingdom permits onlyRadio Data System (RDS) subcarriers. RDS dynamic (changing) PS is not permitted.
The UK government is planning for aswitchover from FM to digital radio once take-up and coverage meet certain criteria. Successive governments have admitted that FM VHF Band II analogue radio would not cease until the majority use digital, so no date has been agreed. The threshold for the proportion listening to digital radio originally only includedDAB but now also includes satellite, DTT and online streaming. There is a commitment to maintain community FM radio. As long as there are significant numbers of listeners on FM in the United Kingdom no government is likely to take the politically unpopular decision to turn off analogue. Support for the FM switch off in the UK is limited. In July 2020, provided the stations also broadcast on digital radio, the British Government decided to allow Ofcom to renew analogue FM and AM licences for a further ten-year period.[3]
