'Classic' Virgin takes on Radio 1: National commercial pop station launched
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Your support makes all the difference.BRITAIN'S first national commercial pop station, Virgin 1215, was launched by Richard Branson yesterday. The first two tracks were announced by Richard Skinner as world exclusives: a specially recorded version of Steppenwolf's 'Born to be Wild' by INXS, and a specially recorded cover of Jimi Hendrix's 'Hey Joe' by The Cure. This was a double world exclusive - the station's first mistake. The track was actually Hendrix's 'Purple Haze'.
With the exclusives over it was into 'A Day In The Life' by The Beatles and then a new a cappella release from the Royal Mail extolling the virtues of conventional correspondence.
Traditionally, national pop radio, being the preserve of BBC Radio 1, has not had anything as tacky as adverts but yesterday Virgin was offering its 10 founder advertisers - including Carlsberg, Ambre Solaire and Kleenex - an hour each, broken up by its 'classic' records.
Danny Kelly, editor of Q Magazine, said he thought Radio 1 was not as vulnerable as some suggested. 'In the daytime Radio 1 is actually rather good - Steve Wright is probably the best radio broadcaster in the country - but Virgin should find an audience, even if it's just bits and pieces from lots of other stations.'
More than one-third of the population is between 25 and 45, the station's target audience, and Mr Branson wants to attract 4 million of them a week.
Stuart Bailie, assistant editor of the New Musical Express, was also grudgingly optimistic. Virgin 1215, he said, is for 'people who have nearly stopped listening to music, people on their way to the paddock. But just because millions of people buy Dire Straits albums doesn't mean their music is any good.
'But there are a lot of people out there with very sad taste, so the station could succeed.'
Mike Soutar, editor of Smash Hits, said: 'If it's a feel-good station, which Radio 1 is not, then it will succeed. But my readers won't be listening to it. They're all at school.'
The first hour on
Virgin 1215
Born to be Wild INXS
Purple Haze The Cure
A Day in the Life The Beatles
Commercial Break Royal Mail
A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall Bob Dylan
A Kind of Magic Queen
A New Flame Simply Red
Commercial Break Royal Mail
A Sort of Homecoming U2
Abacab Genesis
Commercial Break Royal Mail
News Headlines
Abracadabra Steve Miller
Accidents Will Happen Elvis Costello
Across The Universe The Beatles
The same hour on
Radio 1 FM
Fever Madonna
That's The Way Love Goes Janet Jackson
Shout Louchie Lou
The Proud One The Osmonds
Newsbeat (quarter hour news)
Smells Like Teen Spirit Nirvana
Two Princes The Spin Doctors
Oh Carolina] Shaggy
Tennessee Arrested Development
I Hate Everything About You Ugly Kid Joe
Ain't No Love Sub Sub
Blue Hotel Chris Isaak
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