Keep Longwave

A petition with over 5,000 signatures was handed in to a representative at Broadcasting House this morning, together with tens of comments left on the ‘change.org’ petition page. The petition remains open to signatures, and has already gained several more since the hand-in.

Dr Tobias Thornes handed in the petition to the duty manager in the courtyard outside Broadcasting House just after 11:30 on 7th June 2025 in a pre-arranged meeting. No comment was made by the BBC, but the petition will be delivered to the Director General’s office and a response is expected in due course.

Alongside an inch-think double-sized A4 document containing 5067 names of supporters, the package included the Keep Longwave campaign’s report Still Speaking to the Nations, published in March, and a cover letter in which Dr Thornes expressed the wide spectrum of support that the campaign has received. ‘All of us are united in our concern that longwave is not redundant, is still important, relevant and highly valued, and should play an important part in the future of radio in the UK,’ he said. National security in the event of internet blackouts and power cuts, energy efficiency, rural access to radio and historic value were all reasons cited for retaining longwave.

Also handed to the BBC were 210 comments left on the change.org petition page, dating from as far back as July 2023 to as recently as yesterday. For example, recent signatory Vernon said, ‘Even after the power reduction and the change to Radio 4, there is hardly a square foot of the UK unable to receive when there is lots of places in the UK where the reception of other frequencies are too weak, sporadic or impossible. Should Britain be facing a national emergency a reliable method of distributing information should be available.’ Similar sentiments are shared by thousands of radio users in the UK and internationally, and it is hoped that the hand-in will demonstrate to the BBC just how much appreciation there still is for the century-old technology.

The hand-in comes as the end of June approaches, the date set by energy companies to end the transmission of the Radio Tele-Switch or ‘RTS’ time signal that is currently broadcast inaudibly alongside BBC Radio 4 on 198 Longwave. The BBC is not responsible for this signal, but has historically had an agreement with energy companies to broadcast it, enabling heating and hot water to be automatically switched on and off throughout the United Kingdom.

Now, that agreement is coming to an end as ‘smart meters’ replace RTS in the majority of cases – though some teleswitch users remain without alternative means of controlling their heating, leading to concerns that the switch-off could be an expensive nightmare for some. Barry on the South Coast commented that ‘we are reliant on the RTS signal for reliable operation of our not water and space heating! We cannot afford to loose it.’ Philip, from Scotland, said ‘I will have no option but to switch my supply off entirely to avoid erroneous billing’.

It had been assumed that Radio 4 Longwave would cease broadcasting at the same time at RTS is set to end, on 30th June 2025. However, as-yet-unconfirmed reports suggest that this will not be the case, meaning that longwave may yet have a few more months on-air. The BBC has been approached for comment, and further information will be published as and when it becomes available.

The Campaign to Keep Longwave would like to thank all the signatories on the petition for their support, and will continue to call on the BBC not to shut down this essential and historic service.

The petition to Keep Radio 4 Longwave can still be signed at https://www.change.org/BBCRadio4LW