Pete, Paulo and Rebecca reach another peak!
Record figures confirm Cool FM trio have the biggest show in the country
It was party time for Pete, Paulo and Rebecca today after it was revealed Cool FM had swept the board to reach No.1 in Northern Ireland on all counts.
The presenters who recently celebrated 10 years of their popular morning show had reason to be smiling after it was revealed the trio now attract their biggest ever audience of 349,000 weekly listeners – they also recorded a record 1million listening hours meaning no other radio show in Northern Ireland can lay claim to having more listeners or more listening.
The team marked a decade on the airwaves last month which litrally reached its climax with a live show from Northern Ireland’s highest peak – Slieve Donard, now they are coming down back down to earth once again after netting the largest recorded audience for a commercial radio show in Northern Ireland since records began.
For almost two years Cool FM has been outperforming its nearest rival (BBC Radio Ulster) in audience terms but for the first time ever Cool has also overtaken the broadcaster for the total length of time people spend listening.
According to data just released by RAJAR, Cool FM is now the Number 1 radio station in Northern Ireland on all measurables for the first time since launching in 1990.
The figures show that a record 538,000 listeners now tune into Cool FM for 5.1million hours each week across Northern Ireland.
Changes in platform listening over the past couple of years has helped Cool FM find new audiences. Almost a quarter of the station’s audience listen on a smart speaker such as Alexa while 61% of Cool’s total audience now listen via a digital platform.
Content Director Stuart Robinson says radio in Northern Ireland has never been more popular:
“ Radio is proving itself to be such a timeless medium and, in many ways, you could call it “the original on demand service” – when people need cheered up, entertained or information that is important to them, their “go to” – is still the radio. The stations that are doing well in an ever increasingly competitive and crowded audio market are the brands that have a clearly defined their offering. That offering then needs to be compatible with the audience’s expectation at any given minute of any day”. “The other major factor particularly in Northern Ireland is the emphasis on ‘local’ – relevancy is at the heart of what we do and that is why time and time again NI polls top across the UK in in terms of its local media consumption. These latest figures show that a record 94% of Northern Ireland’s adult population consume radio at some point over the course of a week (almost 1.5million people)
“For Cool FM in particular to be pulling in these kind of record figures for a commercial station in the year 2024 while simultaneously outperforming such richly resourced competitors is truly a career high everyone here at Cool FM today – we are all so thankful for the love and the support our amazing listeners and advertisers”.
Pete Snodden reflects on the past decade: “When we started the show, the aim was to have as much fun as possible, get the listeners involved and most of all not take ourselves too seriously, I think we have ticked those boxes. I am loving the show now more than ever and can’t wait to see what happens next with Paulo & Rebecca.”
Rebecca McKinney adds: “Working with my two best mates every day is a joy and we have such a genuine laugh. I feel very lucky to be marking this milestone and looking forward to many more breakfast radio adventures together’
A highlight for Paulo Ross over the past 10 years was the Coast to Coast Challenge for Cash for Kids NI. “For me, one of the standout moments was our epic paddleboard across the Irish sea. Battling the elements, the comradery and team work and sharing this accomplishment with tens of thousands of our listeners, in something that has never been done in radio history is a memory I will cherish forever.”
Meanwhile Cool FM shows including midmorning with PK, afternoons with Curtis McCosh and John Kearns at Drive occupy the No.2, 3 and 4 positions respectively with 325,000, 301,000 and 279,000 weekly listeners – this gives Cool FM unprecedented ownership of 4 of the Top 5 highest rated radio shows in Northern Ireland – even when looking at the much coveted 0900-1030 timeslot, Cool FM has more listeners than any other radio station in Northern Ireland within this peak timeband.
Bauer Media Northern Ireland (Cool FM and Downtown owners) are now clear market leaders in Northern Ireland now with over 30% share of the radio market. Bauer’s local NI stations have just recorded 856,000 listeners who consume 9.6milllion hours of the stations each week – the biggest ever listenership.