Magic 105.4 FM

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**Magic 105.4 FM**

Broadcast area	London
First air date	July 9, 1990
Frequency	105.4 MHz Channel 0180 (Sky) Channel 928 (NTL) Channel 715 (Freeview)
Format	Adult Contemporary
Owner	Emap Radio Group

Magic 105.4 FM is an adult contemporary Independent Local Radio station based in London, purchased by media group Emap in mid-1998, who subsequently rebranded the then-titled Melody 105.4 FM. The station competes with BBC Radio 2 but has a rather different sound - its emphasis on 'more music, less talk' is reflected in the lengthy music sweeps that comprise the majority of its schedule.

Magic continues to challenge its main rivals Heart 106.2 and Capital Radio for London's largest commercial market share; the station enjoys a 15% reach (over 1.5 million listeners). In the first RAJAR period of 2006 Magic beat both rivals to the number one position in London in terms of both Audience Reach and Audience Share, by quite a large margin.

As well as being carried on FM in London (broadcast from Croydon) it is simulcast (albeit with different advertising content) on several DAB mulitplexes, online and on digital television - Freeview, Sky and NTL cable.

1 History
2 Other
3 Presenters
4 Current Programmes
5 Trivia
6 External links

[edit] History

In 1998, Melody FM was purchased by media group Emap from Hanson plc; the Magic brand replaced that of Melody's in December of that year.

On rebranding Melody FM, Emap introduced automation to the station for the first time - weekday afternoons were split with a 'non-stop music hour', first sponsored by the now defunct energy company Calortex, and later by the Emap-owned Red magazine. Magic was criticised for automating a further eleven hours of its daily output (7pm-6am) given the reach and size of the station.

In an attempt to cut costs, Magic began networking its mid-morning show, hosted by Richard Skinner, and automated overnight output with the eight other Magic Radio stations in the North of England in January 2002. Audience figures fell on all nine stations in the twelve months that followed, some arguing a lack of local content had driven listeners to tune away. Networking was ended in January 2003, although the eight 'northern' Magic stations continued to share a mid-morning show, hosted by Mark Thorburn, and have now been networked again, with the exception of local breakfast shows, following a repositioning of the northern Magic group in mid-2006.

The end of networking heralded a programming shift; Magic adopting its 'more music, less talk' ethos. Former Capital FM head and radio consultant Richard Park was brought in to increase the station's audience share. In September 2003, Magic saw its first major revamp: live programming replaced automated output in the evening, and Independent Radio News-employed staff manned the station's daytime news output, removing shared presenting/newsreading responsibilities, a legacy from Magic's predecessor Melody FM.

Recent years have seen a reliance on weekend celebrity-hosted content and large cash prizes to entice listeners - the award of £110,600 to Nicola Diss, the winner of the popular Magic Mystery Voices contest on January 26th, 2006 was the largest cash prize given away on UK radio since 1999, a sum surpassed just a few months later by the prize collected by listener Dawn Muggleton in the Smooth Secret Song competition on London rival 102.2 Smooth FM, scooping £118,454 on April 19th, 2006.

[edit] Other

Magic 105.4 , along with urban-music station Kiss 100, broadcasts from Emap's headquarters in Winsley Street. The eight other stations in the Magic Radio network spanning the North of England operate a music policy and presentation style considered more upbeat and personality-based than their London counterpart. There is also a complementary music television channel available on the Sky, Telewest and NTL digital TV platforms in the UK.

[edit] Presenters

Magic currently boasts former Capital FM drivetime host and Pop Idol judge Neil Fox as its breakfast host. Graham Dene, former breakfast presenter, and the only remaining original on-air personality, now hosts the drivetime show.

Graham Dene
Neil Fox
Angie Greaves
Eamonn Holmes
Paul Phear
Danny Pietroni
Steve Priestley
Gary Vincent

[edit] Current Programmes

Neil Fox The More Music Breakfast Show
Gary Vincent Mid Mornings
Paul Phear Afternoons
Danny Pietroni Mellow Magic
Graham Dene Drivetime
Angie Greaves Mellow Magic
Eamonn Holmes Sunday Evenings
Steve Priestley Weekend Afternoons
Indulgence Celebrity Takeover

[edit] Trivia

Magic often run a Mystery voices competition in which three celebrities speak. One says "Magic", the second "One o five" and the third "Point four". Every hour a listener guesses the names of the celebrities and for each failure £100 is added to the prizefund. The competions often run for several months with the winner eventually receiving around £100,000.

In the five month competition which ended on 29 June 2006, the celebrities were Sara Dallin, Clive Anderson and Morten Harket, with the listener, Peter Loraine, winning £98,400.
Nicola Diss won £110,600 for identifying Kurt Russell, Gloria Estefan and Matthew Wright.
Barbara Way won £81,200 for naming Liza Tarbuck, Maria Carey and John Travolta.
In the event started in October 2006, the pot reached £50,000 by early November with one name, Sarah Lancashire, having been identified.