When Radio 1 announced the layoff of veteran DJs in favor of influencers in July, they tried to make the move look like the dawn of an exciting new era.
Station boss Aled Haydn Jones is desperate to attract a younger audience and believed that bringing in content creators and social media stars would mean more listeners and more engagement.
But insiders say his determination to ‘TikTok-ify’ the channel has only led to chaos and paranoia, with established presenters now living in fear of losing their jobs.
One source branded the changes – which saw big names like Rickie Haywood-Williams, 46, Nat O’Leary, 34, James Cusack, 36, and Swarzy, 33, all rejected – as a ‘middle finger to the radio profession’. If what I was told is correct, they were informed of their fate by telephone.
At the time, Haydn Jones publicly thanked the presenters for their service and wished them ‘good luck in whatever comes next’.
But well-placed sources at the broadcaster say the atmosphere at the once hugely successful channel has become so toxic that a number of staff have resigned from their roles and many others are afraid to come into the office.
Social media influencer GK Barry has been given a two-hour BBC Radio 1 slot starting at 1pm every weekday, launching later this month
Station boss Aled Haydn Jones (pictured with Mollie King and Matt Edmondson, right) is said to believe bringing in content creators will mean more listeners and more engagement
Rickie Haywood-Williams was suspended from Radio 1 during the shake-up, which was branded a ‘middle finger to the radio profession’
“It’s no longer the station it used to be,” says my insider. ‘The atmosphere here is terrible at the moment and it’s just not a nice place to work.
“Many people blame Aled for this shift. People jump ship. It’s not just presenters who are leaving, the staff on the other side of the station is also leaving. There will be a full-scale uprising soon, there’s just no direction at the moment.”
Much of the anger – and bewilderment – has been directed at the hiring of social media influencers GK Barry, 27, and Charley Marlowe, 26, neither of whom has much experience in radio.
GK has been given a two-hour period starting at 1pm each weekday and starting later this month, initially for a period of six weeks.
Although the I’m A Celebrity star’s reps claim that she does indeed have a lot of experience, I can reveal that she will not be broadcasting live.
Sources say the shows presented by GK – whose real name is Grace Eleanor Keeling – will be pre-recorded and broadcast ‘live’.
My insider says: ‘It’s really bizarre that she’s not a live presenter, she’s Radio 1’s big new signing and you’d think she’d want to do it live, as you’d think the bosses would too.
They continued: ‘It has absolutely enraged some in the production department. There have been several crisis consultations with management about this.
“Ultimately, it’s the production companies that have to somehow put this show together without real-time input from the listeners. It’s just deception and without listeners there is no Radio 1.’
They add, “Nobody has anything against GK personally, but it leaves such a sour taste that people who were considered for the role are the losers. We in production have to figure it out.’
GK has previously acted as a presenter for the station over the past year and although she has little experience in live radio, her podcast Saving Grace, which she launched in 2022, has been a huge hit, attracting high-profile guests and thousands of weekly streams.
Previously, the Loose Women panellist said of the gig: ‘I’m really excited to be hosting another series of my own BBC Radio 1 shows from September.
‘You’ll hear my favorite songs, we’ll speak to some really exciting guests and, as always, in true GK Barry style, I promise plenty of humour, mayhem and embarrassing stories along the way!’
The appointment of Charley Marlowe – who narrated the BBC Three dating series I Kissed A Girl and for a time presented Radio 1’s early morning breakfast show – has proved equally controversial.
I’m told there are rumors that Charley’s show is “nowhere near ready,” and that she hasn’t yet mastered the controls of the decks, which control the music and microphones, among other things.
Content creator Charley Marlowe – who narrated BBC Three dating series I Kissed A Girl – has also been appointed to the BBC Radio 1 team
Swarzy, who presented the early breakfast show on Sunday, was also dropped from the DJ line-up
Representatives for GK Barry, who appeared on I’m A Celebrity in 2024, say she does indeed have enough experience for her new role
I’m also told the show – which Marlowe will present with co-host Vicky Hawkesworth, 30 – has not yet been refined. The production staff is also concerned about Charley playing the lead role third co-host Vicky has been since 2022.
“It feels like Aled has no direction and just swaps one northern female for another without explanation, it doesn’t look good,” my insider said.
As part of the sweeping changes, presenting duo Danny Mylo, 36, and Rosie Madison, 40, will take over the Early Breakfast Show, the 5am to 7am show hosted by fan favorite Dean McCullough, 34.
The best friends first rose to fame hosting several shows on Bauer Media’s regional stations, including Hits Radio and Pulse 1.
Meanwhile, James Cusack’s Weekend Breakfast is now presented by Emil Franchi, 33, from Durham, who broke into the industry through college radio.
Charlie Hedges remains frontman of the popular Live Lounge, but is joined by Jeremiah Asiamah, who replaces 46-year-old Melvin Odoom, and Rickie Haywood-Williams, who joined in 2019. Asiamah, 28, is known for his energetic music sets and appeared at Glastonbury last year.
Haydn Jones, 50, took over the role of head of Radio 1 from Ben Cooper in 2020. Before moving up the ranks, he worked on The Chris Moyles Show from 2004 to 2012.
He was initially seen as a popular choice, but his star has waned over the years. Insiders say the chatter among frustrated staffers became so loud that Haydn Jones issued a memo condemning the gossip and demanding they put an end to their mess.
But it has failed to stop the rot. My source adds of the chaos on Radio 1: ‘The place has gone to absolute s***. It just feels like the wheels have fallen off. People hope that things will improve, but we don’t think so.
‘The staff are so burnt out they are not getting pay rises and the current structure means they can be moved between shows without any say [in the way they are deployed]. We continue to provide feedback to our line managers, but nothing changes.”
They added that the veteran presenters who do remain, such as Mollie King, Matt Edmondson and Jack Saunders, fear they could be replaced by more influencers: “Everyone’s jobs are at risk.”
The latest figures from audience research agency RAJAR show that Radio 1’s listening audience fell by 131,000 to 6.9 million in the second quarter of this year.
But one star who doesn’t have to worry about their position is Greg James, long-time host of the channel’s prestigious breakfast show.
The 40-year-old, who joined the station almost two decades ago, has been at the helm of the flagship since 2018 and bosses are so keen to keep him that they have given him a pay rise that will take him between £440,000 and £444,999.
“They would be completely done without James, which is why they threw more money at him,” my insider said. “If he were to go, they wouldn’t have a presenter for that and whoever Aled brings in next, we’ll have to pick things up again.”
A spokesperson for the station said: ‘Radio 1 is proud to be the number one radio station for young audiences and we look forward to the launch of our new program this month, with an exciting line-up of both new and established DJs.
‘The station has a strong track record of nurturing young and emerging talent, but in addition, Radio 1 will always be the home base for DJs with specialist music knowledge and from a wide range of backgrounds.’
