A new radio station dedicated entirely to musical theatre was launched on 24 October, a coup for fans of the genre who are missing this type of broadcast from their radio selections. The new station is called Encore Radio, which will feature former Blue singer Duncan James and ex-Classic FM DJ James Crick as presenters, taking audiences on a musical theatre journey as they listen.
The station will play a mix of West End and Broadway songs as well as including news, weather and features in its content. The station playlist will be changed monthly and will feature hits from current West End shows – such as Les Misérables and The Phantom of the Opera – in order to enthuse and delight the audiences that tune in. To listen to Encore, download the app for tablet and smartphones, listen online and on DAB radios across London and the south east.
The new Encore radio station is not the first of its kind in terms of the genre it covers, with others such as Jem radio also providing this sort of content. BBC Radio 2 also features its weekly Elaine Paige programme in which she pre-records a similar show to Encore’s whole premise, just part of the many features of the mainstream station. However, Encore will run for seven days a week for 24 hours a day and be constantly on air in order to deliver all it promises.
In addition to its presenters and musical theatre playlists, the station will also see lots of showbiz names dropping in to chat, interspersed with many favourite musical theatre tracks and show tunes.