BBC drops Radio 4’s Tweet of the Day
Radio 4 is to axe weekday broadcasts of Tweet of the Day so Farming Today can be extended
The 90-second long segment, which precedes the Today programme at 6am, has provided BBC radio listeners with a daily birdsong call for 10 years.
Launched by Sir David Attenborough in 2013, it often starts with a call or song followed by a few facts about the particular species.
However, Mohit Bakaya, the Radio 4 controller, said repeats of the segment have been used because the station cannot afford to run it five days a week.
Instead, it will be cleared from midweek schedules to allow for longer episodes of Farming Today, with new recordings of Tweet of the Day to be broadcast on Sundays.
The changes are believed to be part of a wider schedule shake-up with the The Archers omnibus moved back from 10am to 11am on Sundays.
‘We haven’t been able to afford to run it’
Mr Bakaya told Radio 4 Feedback: “We’re not axing Tweet of the Day.
“For the first time in a long time, we’re originating new tweets of the day on a Sunday… We’ve been repeating Tweet of the Day because we haven’t been able to afford to run it five days a week for quite a while now so these have not been originations, they’ve been repeats. What we’re now doing is putting new recordings on a Sunday.”
He added: “Monday to Friday it’s gone and we’re giving that time back to Farming Today because we think it’s important right now to give Farming Today as much time as possible.”
Insiders added that there have been no new Tweet of the Day since 2018 with every one since a repeat.
The first Tweet of the Day was broadcast on May 6, 2013, when Attenborough presented the song of the male common cuckoo.
Speaking ahead of the inaugural series, he said: “I’ve seen some of the most incredible animals on my travels around the world, but Tweet of the Day is a nice reminder of the teeming world of birds on my doorstep.”
The naturalist was among a group of presenters for the original series that included Bill Oddie, Steve Backshall, Chris Packham and Michaela Strachan. Sir Michael Palin was among the presenters for the second series.
