Your call?

[Guest]

Leaving aside any discussion about the merits of Your Call on Breakfast, I'm starting to wonder who 'you' are. I haven't heard a female caller for over two weeks, except for a little girl pre-recorded and transmitted to mark Children in Need. And many of the callers are recalling childhood memories from the 50s or earlier. I've enjoyed some of these, as I too was a child in the 50s, but I'm curious about the reasons for this 'vast similitude' in the characteristics of callers. Are they representative of the people who write in? Are these the people who have requested pieces that meet the playlist criteria? Are they chosen to reflect the demographic of the listeners? If the BBC is looking to attract a new audience, might they consider interviewing a more varied selection of callers ... or even replacing Your Call with roving microphone interviews with people attending open-air concerts, music college students, children's choirs and orchestra, community choirs etc and others from all the 'walks of life' along which the new target audience might be ambling amongst 'cool gales'?

Forgive me if I'm repeating points you've already discusses, but I' new to this forum. Thanks for reading, anyway.

[french frank]

Forgive me if I'm repeating points you've already discusses, but I' new to this forum. Thanks for reading, anyway.

Hello, petalmoore - and welcome.

Well ......... Your Call has been discussed here, it's true, though not quite with your interest in research .

I suspect that the assumption is that people will get used to it if the opposite (Not Your Call) isn't available.

In general though, I've often wondered who the listeners are that the BBC consults, how they get hold of them &c. They don't seem very typical of any of the listeners I know ...

[Anna]

I had assumed that to get on Your Call you simply emailed and if your story was half-interesting, then you got picked. I hadn't considered if the caller's choice of music fitted into the R3 playlist remit. Petalmoore mentions lack of female callers, this is possibly that the R3 audience is overwhelmingly male?

[vinteuil]

... this is possibly that the R3 audience is overwhelmingly male?

... now that's interesting. Does French Frank or anyone else have stats as to who listens to radio 3 - male/female; age; ethnic affiliation; social class???

[Norfolk Born]

I googled 'Demographic of Radio 3 audience' and ended up on www.adambowie.com. From what I can gather, the normal split is roughly 55% men to 45% women.

[Anna]

Well, I'm sure frenchie has the facts and figures but I think I am right in saying (or it used to be said) the average R3 listener is white, male, lives in the Home Counties, and is over the age of 63

[french frank]

Well, things change a little over the years. Adam Bowie's figures are the ones I've used in the past but are a bit out of date. I don't think they would have changed dramatically since 2004/04.

So, yes, male/female probably about 55%/45% - nowhere near as male oriented as R5L where the split - E&OE - is about 70%/30%.

Average age was about 59%, though RW said on Thursday that it was 'about the same as Radio 4's - you know, um, about 56'. I suspect there was a bit of exaggeration there in order to claim that R3 and R4 were of roughly the same average age. The last official figure I was given was that R3 was average 59 and it would take a pretty seismic shift to get it down to 56. Radio 4's is currently 55, R2's nearer 50.

[VodkaDilc]

Well, I'm sure frenchie has the facts and figures but I think I am right in saying (or it used to be said) the average R3 listener is white, male, lives in the Home Counties, and is over the age of 63

I can claim three of the requirements - and I'll achieve the fourth next year!

Shame that I am finding R3 less and less appealing.

[Suffolkcoastal]

Well I only fit the white male requirements, I've got 16 years to go yet and E Anglia doesn't count as the home counties. I hope this doesn't mean that in 16 years I'll be tuning into Breakfast daily and will be an interactive listener!

[Bax-of-Delights]

It fits me a T.

But then I hardly listen to R3 any more either.

[Vile Consort]

Well, I'm sure frenchie has the facts and figures but I think I am right in saying (or it used to be said) the average R3 listener is white, male, lives in the Home Counties, and is over the age of 63

How can the average listener be male unless all listeners are? People have some funny ideas about what an average is.

[Panjandrum]

How can the average listener be male unless all listeners are? People have some funny ideas about what an average is.

Not if the average referred to is the median or the mode. You're confusing the average with the mean: a common mistake.

[barber olly]

I can claim three of the requirements - and I'll achieve the fourth next year!

Shame that I am finding R3 less and less appealing.

I can also claim three, and have no wish to move to the fourth. Why, if this is the audience does not Roger Wrong provide the programmes we want, use his common sense. The younger audience are not switching over in droves so are probably content with whatever it is they are currently listening to, meanwhile the existing audience are increasingly frustrated by the gimmicks, guests and tinkerings. Roger it's simple Level 1 is on Classic FM, let's get back to proper Level 2 on R3!

[Don Petter]

How can the average listener be male unless all listeners are? People have some funny ideas about what an average is.

I (and, I suspect, you) have more than the average number of legs for a human.

[french frank]

Not if the average referred to is the median or the mode. You're confusing the average with the mean: a common mistake.

By 'average' most people do mean 'mean'. But if you start with only two possible values the only(?) meaningful measurement is the percentage of each.

In other cases the average/mean is pretty meaningless. There isn't a lot of sense in working out that the 'average age' of the UK population is 39 - only a small minority actually is 39 and the figure could indicate a wide range of patterns. (E.g. you couldn't say that 'the average UK citizen is 39') The only value is in indicating over a period how the population is (in the case of the UK) ageing.