Trump effect helps Today hit record 7.5m listeners

BBC Radio 4’s Today programme has scored its highest audience ever – thanks to dramatic developments in global politics.

Seismic events such as Brexit and the election of Donald Trump meant the flagship current affairs show hit a record weekly audience of 7.45million between September and December – an increase of around 400,000 from 2015.

The station’s long-running soap The Archers also reached its highest audience in three years.

But while the public flocked to Today to seek out serious news, DJ Nick Grimshaw’s Radio 1 show took a significant audience hit.

The ratings for his breakfast programme between September and December were down by 500,000 listeners on the same period a year earlier.

Bob Shennan, the BBCs’ director of radio and music, said: ‘In an era of fake news, echo chambers and significant shifts in global politics, the role of Radio 4’s Today as the trusted guide to the world around us is more important than ever.

‘As Today celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, Radio 4 listeners continue to wake up to world class journalism which scrutinises the headlines, holds those in power to account and enlightens them with stories that shape our society.’