[Randomisation20]

There may be a few. Changes its true the radio one production team were much bigger but they were very effective in the show and on the day to day planning Aled was very good with Rachel appearing to do more the big picture stuff - the show had more drive in it's feel

[G-Sizzle]

Hey everyone - I'm a new member here (although I've been visiting for a long time) and I've been listening to Chris since he started on The Late Bit on Capital FM.. I've been a huge fan and always listened to as much of Chris' shows as I could over the years, but I've really been struggling with the Radio X show over the last 6 months. Of course I was very excited when he first came back and I listened a lot, but these days I find I'm only listening to about an hour a week, and even then I get bored with it quite easily.

I know people on here have said the show needs more team members and that the adverts disrupt his flow, and I agree with all of that but when Chris was on Capital (which is when I first started listening as I mentioned above) he had adverts throughout his show and he didn't have a big team but he was still hugely entertaining. I know people are also saying its different to the Radio 1 show which I know and I'm not expecting it to be the same, but it just doesn't feel entertaining to me much anymore.. even the podcasts which are supposed to be the best bits of the week aren't that good in my opinion..

I don't think its one thing, but a lot of little things that feel off to me.. and I never thought I'd be saying this but I just don't really want to listen much anymore and that makes me feel sad as I used to love listening so much.

I know it doesn't really matter what we say on here as Chris has said he doesn't really care, but I think they need to re-evaluate what their audience thinks is funny / entertaining and what isn't. I know it sounds simple, but if the show regularly made me laugh like it used to before X, then I'd definitely listen more.. cause at the moment it just doesn't most of the time. Chris is a bit older now, as are a lot of his listeners, but they still mention Pippa snapchatting Dom reading the news a lot of mornings.. I wonder how many of Chris' listeners are on snapchat? I'm certainly not . Also reverse-words, I've seen a lot of people on here say it isn't funny and I completely agree.. I turn off when it comes on. There are more examples I could go through, but I'll leave it there.

I'd like to know what everyone else thinks - anyone agree?

can't argue with any of this unfortunately. It's shame but i'm just not enjoying the show and i don't relly know why.
i dont think my tastes in radio have changed.

it feels like Moyles doesnt realy have passion forthe X show like he did at R1.

[Randomisation20]

At times it feels ' lazy' I think

[dinp]

Hey everyone - I'm a new member here (although I've been visiting for a long time) and I've been listening to Chris since he started on The Late Bit on Capital FM.. I've been a huge fan and always listened to as much of Chris' shows as I could over the years, but I've really been struggling with the Radio X show over the last 6 months. Of course I was very excited when he first came back and I listened a lot, but these days I find I'm only listening to about an hour a week, and even then I get bored with it quite easily.

I know people on here have said the show needs more team members and that the adverts disrupt his flow, and I agree with all of that but when Chris was on Capital (which is when I first started listening as I mentioned above) he had adverts throughout his show and he didn't have a big team but he was still hugely entertaining. I know people are also saying its different to the Radio 1 show which I know and I'm not expecting it to be the same, but it just doesn't feel entertaining to me much anymore.. even the podcasts which are supposed to be the best bits of the week aren't that good in my opinion..

I don't think its one thing, but a lot of little things that feel off to me.. and I never thought I'd be saying this but I just don't really want to listen much anymore and that makes me feel sad as I used to love listening so much.

I know it doesn't really matter what we say on here as Chris has said he doesn't really care, but I think they need to re-evaluate what their audience thinks is funny / entertaining and what isn't. I know it sounds simple, but if the show regularly made me laugh like it used to before X, then I'd definitely listen more.. cause at the moment it just doesn't most of the time. Chris is a bit older now, as are a lot of his listeners, but they still mention Pippa snapchatting Dom reading the news a lot of mornings.. I wonder how many of Chris' listeners are on snapchat? I'm certainly not . Also reverse-words, I've seen a lot of people on here say it isn't funny and I completely agree.. I turn off when it comes on. There are more examples I could go through, but I'll leave it there.

I'd like to know what everyone else thinks - anyone agree?

Hello. First time poster here. I've read through these pages ever since the Radio X show started and but this post sums up almost exactly how I feel. I too have listened to Chris since the days of The Late Bit when I was a teen. I loved the Radio 1 shows and was really happy when I heard he was coming back. I gave Grimmy 18 months and never warmed to his show so I gave up, and I'm on the verge of doing the same with TCMS as well.

I don't mind the reverse words so much, but for me, I think the show is just so much slower, drawn out and lethargic compared to the R1 show. It also isn't nearly as funny. Age and maturity is one thing, but I'm certain that lack of team members (witty ones at that) is a key factor in this. Chris is a quick witted guy and bounces well off people - something we saw on the Nightly Show recently as well. Much as I liked Dave Masterman, I don't think he was good for the show. He was funny, but I think he was too dry and quiet too often, and this slowed the chat down. I'm surprised he lasted as long as he did really, but I wonder if Global felt obligated to keep him at the start. The show needs another Dave Vitty type in my view. Someone to complement Chris, not to be dominated by him as Masterman was.

Whether you like his show or not, listen to Johnny Vaughan and his team on drivetime - they seem to have a far better dynamic. It seems quicker in terms of its wit and interruptions and it makes me laugh more than Moyles' show now does, something I never thought I'd say.

I listened to a couple of the old R1 shows on here before joining to post, for context, and just to make sure I haven't turned into a grumpy old man - and I still like fast paced, brash Moyles & team. I think the current show needs a rocket up its backside. I'll give it a bit longer but I'm not sure how much longer.

I

[hdsport82]

it feels like Moyles doesnt realy have passion forthe X show like he did at R1.

Not sure we can say that he's not committed to the project after all they do a (lengthy) podcast that I think I remember them saying isn't part of the contract and he came in on Saturday just for an April fools joke. He's never late anymore either so I think he's certainly putting in the effort. Maybe dispirited is a better description both the show and the station hasn't been an instant hit and indeed seems to have plateaued already. It's just over a month until the next RAJARs so we'll see if new boss Matt's changes have any effect but I'm not sure they will.

I agree though about general sentiment about the lack of format/structure/ideas, even Dom's disco this week whilst enjoyable was a feature we've heard in a similar form many times before.

[deimantee1]

...even Dom's disco this week whilst enjoyable was a feature we've heard in a similar form many times before.

That's the thing. They come up with something relatively enjoyable/funny, and just run with it. They repeat the same features (for example, dingbats, the before and after game...) and the same jokes until they become not funny anymore. There is no element of surprise to the show. I don't know about you, but with the old show I used to be like "I can't wait to hear what they're doing on the show today!", and although there were many features that had a consistent slot, there was a perfect balance between the "expected" and the "unexpected". There needs to be more team members, more team outings (I used to love hearing stories from their nights out on the old show), and more structure to the show.

[dinp]

I think resource must be an issue though. They will surely have had a lot more money and resource behind them at the BBC and it really shows when you listen to an old R1 show compared to an X show.

[Randomisation20]

agreed completely

[obidankenobi]

Thanks for the responses - I feel better that I’m not the only one feeling that, but at the same time sad that so many people agree about the current show. I’ve been giving it some thought over the weekend as I didn’t want to just come on here to post negative ‘reviews’ of the show, but instead offer some more specific thoughts as to what I think could be improved, mainly to promote discussion but also in case someone from the show does ever read this.

As I mentioned in my initial post, I think there are a lot of little things that need to be changed / improved but after giving it some thought I realised that there is one main thing that feels different to me.. on Chris’ previous shows, and especially during his time at R1 (not just the breakfast show), listening to TCMS always felt like you were hanging out with a group of friends.. you shared jokes, played silly games and just had fun together - to give just one example of this, remember all the different sound effects & clips they used to play? (Daniel Radcliffes interview where no one could understand what he's saying, a bit like the clip of Dean Gaffney - I think - from the jungle.. all the Westwood clips, Britney's "I love the fans" clip and many, many more. Most of them had been built up over the years and felt like ‘in jokes’ between us & the team and they regularly made me laugh when they were dropped in. Also, most people involved in the show opened up and talked about their lives, friends, partners etc. and you felt like you were getting to know them.. remember all the jokes about Carrie’s husband ‘Major Tom’, how Aled’s partner Emile didn’t listen to the show, Dave’s “I am the meat” etc. - it was all personal, and it felt like we were all friends.. which is amazing considering that we don’t know any of them personally and they were broadcasting to millions of people. It also gave the show a much bigger feeling as we knew / heard about all these different people. In contrast to that, I feel like everyone is quite closed on the Radio X show and although we hear some personal details from the team, it doesn’t feel the same. I think the closest we’ve come to it on Radio X was when Pippa was sharing about her dates earlier on, and then the follow up jokes about Toby.. but all of that has stopped now. I also liked the way that it sometimes felt like they’d brought you in to work with them to mess around when no one else was there.. which was often the way on the breakfast show at R1. For example, when they had their version of the Top Gear lap, or they’d call the phone system and ask for silly names, or even Chris’ famous link about him not getting paid.. it was rebellious, and it felt like we were in on it too. Its hard to re-create that feeling, but Chris & the team did it so naturally previously that it almost feels like they’ve chosen to do things a bit differently at Radio X and stay less personal, and for me thats the biggest difference.. it feels more formulaic, not natural.

Along with that, other things I think could be improved / changed / worked on are:

- The branding: we’ve all said some of the jingles sound a bit cheap (I think the main bed is fine, its mainly the other ‘Radio X’ ones) and the lack of any new jingles 18 months in to the new show makes it feel like the show isn’t valued enough by the company for them to invest in new jingles.

- Giveaways: those £1000 giveaways the other week were so annoying. I listened on listen again one morning and fast forwarded through loads as it was Chris just repeating the rules and how great a prize it was over and over.. it went on for ages and was boring. I know I was on listen again so it wasn’t really aimed at me but instead was aimed at people listening live, but even if I had been listening live I would have turned it over and not entered.. personally, I don't listen to TCMS to win things, I listen to be entertained - I'd rather they spent the £1000 per day on new jingles or doing something funny for broadcast.

- Structure: I actually like Rob DJs quiz as it can often be funny, especially when Chris plays the clips of Rob at the wrong times on purpose - I do miss the “when I say pub.. you say quiz” etc. lines they used to have on R1 though! I do feel like the show needs more regular features though to give it structure.. even if it was just another 1 or 2 per week. Things like the samples game, or even the (disliked) reverse words if they’re going to keep doing it would benefit from a regular day / time rather than just when theres nothing else to do. (Also on a side note about Rob DJs quiz - it's better that Rob doesn't do it live anymore as it wasn’t funny. Chris has said it was Robs decision not to do it live anymore, and I’ve often wondered whether he has decided that because he saw everyone on here saying it wasnt funny live!)

- Too much content: I feel like there is too much pressure / reliance on Chris to be constantly funny, and as a result its ‘watering down’ the entertainment value. Five weekly shows is one thing, but then add the pre-recorded saturday show and the (often excessively) long podcast intro each week and its too much.. and thats not even including the times around holidays or Christmas when they make him do a load of pre-recorded shows. It just feels like he has nothing to say. I understand the X management wanting to make the most of Chris by having him on Saturday & doing lots of pre-records, but I think its stretching him too much. Give someone else the Saturday show, shorten the podcast intros a bit & let Chris have a holiday without forcing him to do weeks of pre-recorded shows.. I want quality not quantity.

As I mentioned in my initial post, I think they need to re-evaluate what is funny to the average TCMS listener now.. another example I thought of are the fake phone calls they make where someone pretends to be someone famous on the other end of the phone.. to me that just isn’t funny at all. No one believes its the real person on the end of the phone, so dragging out a long fake call is just boring and pointless to me, and it happens too regularly. I also agree with what deimantee1 said in that they come up with an idea and then excessively run with it until its definitely not funny anymore. Chris used to be fairly invincible in that he could talk about almost anything and be entertaining and have people listen, but theres a lot more choice out there now and it doesn’t work the same. If the listeners to the show found it genuinely funny most of the time then they’d listen - and you don’t necessarily need a big team and big budgets, you just need to know whats funny and what your audience do and don’t want to hear. A good example of this was when Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant & Karl Pilkington were on Xfm back in the early 2000’s - I’ve listened to a lot of their old shows and they are very funny.. and that was a small team / small budget show, but they were hilarious and thats what made people listen.

Finally, there seems to be a feeling from the team that they are doing everything right and that low numbers are because people don't know about them being on the air, which leads to lots of regular talk about telling your friends, downloading the podcast & giving away a couple of DAB radios... but again, if the show was regularly funny & very entertaining people would listen & tell their friends naturally as they would talk about it - thats what used to happen, and that's why I think they need to re-evaluate things - what's funny for their audience? What works, and what doesn't? Focus groups would be a great way of doing that - and Pippa coming on here was a great start but Chris got so mad that it put an end to it, which is a real shame as people on here are big fans and just want the show to succeed.

A long post there but I’d love to hear your thoughts..

[bringiton]

It's basic, forced 'funny', repetitively dull and has been ever since it started on X. I listen to Russell Brand on Sundays on Radio X and that team make me laugh from start to finish more, just like Moyles did with the old (better) team on Radio 1. Such a shame they can't seem to get them regular fun features they used to do, Catchphrase, Tarzan etc. Who cares if they are recycled there's chances of it being more entertaining with them in... then again even Rob DJ doesn't sound as good anymore so who knows. Comedy Dave had so much input into the old show features and material so it's difficult now. Don't like to moan and be too negative about it as them years without Moyles on air was hell but I don't think it sound right at all from what we've all loved and became fans of in the past.

[JayE]

The problem is.. what Chris doesn't seem to realize is, these aren't some "haters" who never liked him. This is the constant theme with his actual fans. When your own fans are saying the same thing there's an issue. How any of you are still listening is literally beyond me.

[Evs]

I have to buck the trend slightly and say I'm still listening a lot and and broadly enjoying it.

Even so it's in a very comfortable, passive background noise, occasional smile kind of way rather than the active, can't miss a minute ways of old.

I think a large part of the problem is either Chris has got a bit old and boring or Chris has always been that way and no longer wants to play the character Chris Moyles that we all came to know and love.

The big turns offs for me are chats about mani-pedis, posh meals with other showbiz types, early nights, healthy eating, medical ailments and the likes of Megan, Holly, Gavin et al. I just can't relate.

[Randomisation20]

I just think you can accept Moyles is a different person but the show to me still kicks it .. but it comes over as Lazy - don't think its Pippa ( or the late Dave so much) but it true Aled and Rachel had more attack and also had the resources of the BBC to pull on when needed - I am the middle of the Bangor / World Cup period for example with the ' classic' show and it has so much more variety and energy to it - even Richard on the Jingles ' Don't Cry For Me Argentina ' what a quality sung jingle lol

[d000hg]

...even Dom's disco this week whilst enjoyable was a feature we've heard in a similar form many times before.

That's the thing. They come up with something relatively enjoyable/funny, and just run with it. They repeat the same features (for example, dingbats, the before and after game...) and the same jokes until they become not funny anymore. There is no element of surprise to the show. I don't know about you, but with the old show I used to be like "I can't wait to hear what they're doing on the show today!", and although there were many features that had a consistent slot, there was a perfect balance between the "expected" and the "unexpected". There needs to be more team members, more team outings (I used to love hearing stories from their nights out on the old show), and more structure to the show.

Um that's exactly what the old show was like. Do a feature to death, retire it, then bring it back a few months later. The features have always been a joke.

via Tapatalk

[Misfit]

Each to their own.

[G-Sizzle]

The problem is.. what Chris doesn't seem to realize is, these aren't some "haters" who never liked him. This is the constant theme with his actual fans. When your own fans are saying the same thing there's an issue. How any of you are still listening is literally beyond me.

Not a truer word said. Cannot disagree with any of this statement. We are all super nerdy Moyles fans that we discuss it on a forum for crying out loud!
Surely we are the fans who's opinion he should care about?

I literally only listen out of habit now, and I've got about 15 odd podcasts to listen to.
That number grows by the week and I doubt I'll ever get round it listening to them.


As others have said, Johnny Vaughn and Russel Brand are doing the zoo format perfectly, and their shows are breaths of fresh air.

Moyles show in comparison seems stale and it's a shame.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Nicola_Red]

I agree that the 1k prize competition is dull, but let's face it, all radio stations do this with competitions. Listen to a full show that's running a competition on any radio station and by the end of it you'll be able to parrot off the rules and prizes, cos they repeat it so many times. I do wonder how much money Global make from people texting in that premium rate number, but that's another issue.

As for the other stuff...I'm a bit bored with analysing the show at this point. It is what it is and I don't feel like it has changed or progressed much since the beginning - apart from Dave leaving of course (which I don't consider a progression as I liked him a lot), but the chat topics, features (or lack thereof), music, jingles and ads are all the same. If that ill-fated foray into 'ask Aled' territory when Pippa briefly posted taught us anything, it's that they (Chris, the producers, whoever) aren't particularly open to feedback/criticism - so there isn't really any point raking it over. The show is a different beast than the R1 show was, in the sense that they don't seem to want us involved and I don't really feel involved. And that does make me sad.

However, I'm still listening, and probably will continue to do so for the foreseeable despite the show's flaws. I'm still holding out on that loyalty. I even still have #TeamMoyles in my facebook and Instagram bios - and I'll leave them there for now.

[Randomisation20]

Agreed completely Nicola
Good points made

[dinp]

When Radio X first launched there was the uproar about it being a radio station for blokes which Chris was quick to dispel in his first few shows - making it clear that all were welcome - old/young/male/female etc. I actually think that part of the show's problem is that it is spreading itself a bit thin to try and cover all the bases.

The music is what it is and that limits the station's appeal anyway, but in trying to reach the young (Snapchatting the weather which I have no interest in) and old (lovely meals & pedicure stories - which bore me to tears) with some of the R1-esque fun and games thrown in, all on a much more limited budget than the R1 show, I think the end result is naturally a show which is seemingly trying to be too many things and not really succeeding at any of them. Chris is more mature, mellow and trim which is great for him personally, but being an obnoxious, gobby so-and-so was his USP and that is more watered down now as well. Sigh.

But what's the alternative? Grimmy? No thanks. However if Greg James was to get the R1 breakfast show I think I'd go back. I find it frustrating that Greg and Johnny Vaughan are on at the same time of day. First world problems ey!

[Randomisation20]

I will agree with you that the old radio one show was more risque and had more attack and more pace but I don't think Chris was necessarily more gobby I think he was more honest and more direct and the e stand-up elements of the radio show that were presentational and cheeky but I don't think he was necessarily gobby

[Misfit]

The first 30 minutes of this weeks podcast is dire.

The intro of ringing people doesn't work because no one answered, Dom's disco is cringey as. Rob DJ is the usual rubbish

Then they ring a caller, have unscripted banter where they take the piss, and it's the old moyles I like again.

Shocking

[VMPhil]

Listened to a bit of the show this morning, the thing that struck me is that it all feels very slow. There was a bit where they were going on about retweeting a tweet Chris made from Dom's account, who cares? Then there was a bit where they played out clips from Diane Abbott on LBC? Just seemed a bit odd.

Adding that Delia Smith clip to the new Gorillaz song though, I must admit that made me laugh.

[ritchie]

The poo tweet. Funny for a millisecond, but that surrounded by ads and 12" extended plays of dad rock is enough to turn me back to radio 1 thanks.

[Daveofficial]

When do you think they Will have a new producer/ team member?
They need one urgently and I would say someone else as well
Why do you think the delay and not getting one in place before dave left ?

[fish heads]

When do you think they Will have a new producer/ team member?
They need one urgently and I would say someone else as well
Why do you think the delay and not getting one in place before dave left ?

The delay may well be because it's just a job! Radio X is a lot smaller than Radio 1, so it's a lot harder to "promote from within" like Radio 1 - Dave also used to produce Elis and John on weekends so there aren't a ton of production staff going spare (although it's hardly on a shoestring either).

The job was publicly advertised in the radio industry trade press, so assuming they are likely not promoting from within Radio X, that person could have to work notice at their old job, or any number of reasons.

That said, I'm always surprised Dave was allowed to see out his days on Radio X for the last few weeks as usually the radio industry is a lot more brutal when you have announced you are leaving for rivals.