Bauer Media Audio UK Celebrates 150 Years With Record-Breaking Listener Figures

The first quarter of 2025 showcased another set of impressive listening results for Bauer Media Audio UK. As Bauer Media Group marks its 150th year, the results show that Bauer stations reach an amazing 23.4m weekly listeners .

Standout performances this quarter, include:

- Hits Radio and Greatest Hits Radio combined (the Hits Radio Portfolio) now reach 13.1m listeners and 15.3m (+2% YoY) when partner stations are included.
- The Hits Radio Network secures an audience of 7.1m (+5.7% YoY), with the national Hits Radio station now reaching 4.7m (+3.3% YoY).
- Greatest Hits Radio remains the most listened to commercial station in the country, with the total network now reaching 7.5m listeners**. And at Breakfast, Rossie now wakes up a record 3.1m listeners each week and is the UK’s most listened to commercial Breakfast show.
- The Absolute Radio Network celebrates a reach of 5.6M listeners (+1.6% YoY), with Absolute Radio Country achieving a record 670k weekly listeners (+71% YoY).
- The Magic Radio Network now reaches an audience of 3.6m, up 3.2% since its new schedule launched at the start of the year, and ahead of a new nationwide advertising campaign launching today for the main station. Magic at the Musicals now reaches a record 327,000 (+63% YoY), while Magic Soul attracts 642,000 listeners a week (+25% YoY).
- The KISS Network has 3.9m listeners (+2.6% QoQ) and KISSTORY remains the no.1 digital  only commercial station. KISS Xtra (formerly KISS Fresh) has 209,000 listeners (+10% QoQ) and KISSTORY R&B has 552k listeners (+4.2% QoQ).

Bauer is also home to four of the top five digital commercial stations: #1 KISSTORY, #2 Absolute Radio, and #4 Absolute 80s and #5 KISS.

Simon Myciunka, CEO for Bauer Media Audio UK said, "Our audio brands continue to captivate millions of listeners every week, showcasing our commitment to excellence and innovation. As Bauer celebrates its 150th year, we look to the future with a steadfast focus on enhancing our products, increasing investment to strengthen audience engagement and creating gold-standard opportunities for our commercial partners.”

Simon Myciunka, CEO for Bauer Media Audio UK

Gary Stein, director of audio for Bauer Media Audio UK said, “In a quarter where we continue to invest in our brands and talent, it’s brilliant to see our new line up on Magic Radio already attracting new listeners—on the very day we launch a brand-new nationwide marketing campaign for the station.

Gary Stein, director of audio for Bauer Media Audio UK

There’s also great news for the UK’s most listened-to commercial radio station, Greatest Hits Radio, as the network posts its highest-ever hours and share. A huge thank you to all our teams for the care and effort that goes into making our stations the soundtrack to our listeners’ lives—each and every day.”