The app for independent voices
Goodbye to The Official Charts on BBC Sounds! It’s not exactly going away for folks in the UK, but starting 21st July, 2025, outside of the UK you can only listen to it live on the weblink for Radio 1.
I grew up with the official top 40 charts, first with Scott Mills and then Greg James, “The only one that counts!”. The 3 hours chart show was a huge part of my Friday night; more often than not in the backseat of my Dad’s Pontiac driving back from another of my parents engagements or eventually alone in my room allowed to stay back home alone. In the car, inevitably we’d tune in halfway through the charts, but every 10 songs they’d do a recap so you’d eventually be all caught up. So invested was I in who was no.1 for that week, we’d sit in the car’s parking, with only the radio on until we got the end of the charts much to the annoyance of the rest of the family.
As an international student studying abroad or a newcomer moving to a new country, tuning into the chart show felt like a comforting ritual. Once done with the charts I’d tune into the Breakfast show or Dance Anthems or tune in live just to hold on to that nostalgic familiarity a little bit longer. I don’t know what the thought behind this move was but BBC must know they’ve had loyal listeners outside of the UK for decades who will miss the on-demand listening experience.