The Official Big Top 40
UK music chart radio programme
Radio show
- Capital FM
- Heart
present
The Official Big Top 40 from Global is a radio chart show broadcast every Sunday from 4 to 7pm on Global's Capital and Heart networks, presented by Will Manning. The show started on 14 June 2009, with "When Love Takes Over" by David Guetta and Kelly Rowland becoming the show's first number 1. There have been 365 number one songs as of 12 May 2024 with the current being "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" by Shaboozey.
Format
The Official Big Top 40 begins with a recap of the previous week's Top 10 songs, followed by a countdown of the 40 biggest songs from the last seven days. A recap is broadcast after every 10 songs, apart from the top 10 which is recapped after 9 songs. Interviews with the artists making that particular week's chart, competitions, calls with listeners and advertisements make up the remaining airtime. The number 1 song is announced just before 7pm. The week's chart is subsequently published on the Big Top 40's website after the show.[citation needed]
The chart is compiled based on iTunes sales, Apple Music streams, and radio airplay from the stations that broadcast the show. The algorithm differs to that of the Official UK Singles Chart, which includes physical sales, as well as downloads and streaming from all sources, but does not take radio airplay into account.[1][2]
Will Manning is the programme's current host, having taken over from Marvin Humes and Kat Shoob in January 2019.[3] The show is broadcast from Global's studios in Leicester Square, London.[4]
History
The chart was launched as The Big Top 40 Show on 14 June 2009. Between 2010 and 2018, the programme was sponsored by Vodafone, becoming The Vodafone Freebees Big Top 40 (later The Vodafone Big Top 40 and The Official Vodafone Big Top 40). For the first time, listeners could change the chart during the show by downloading tracks on iTunes.[5] Songs 40 to 11 are played before the new Top 10 is finalised at 6:10pm, with iTunes sales during the show taken into account. This made it the first real-time chart show broadcast on UK radio.
In September 2018, Bauer announced that their Hits Radio Network would stop carrying the show after the expiration of its contract at the end of 2018. Global, which produced the show, made the decision to withdraw the programme from syndication to the wider commercial radio network.[6] The final show across the commercial radio network aired on 30 December 2018. The relaunched show, The Official Big Top 40, started in January 2019 and is widely available on Capital and Heart.[6]
In March 2022, the show gained a new sponsor and was renamed The Sky VIP Official Big Top 40.[1] After an appeal from the Official Charts Company to the Advertising Standards Authority, Global was ordered not to refer to the show as "The Official Big Top 40", and subsequently updated the name to "The Official Big Top 40 from Global".[7]
Presenters
Current presenters
- Will Manning (2019-present)[3]
Previous presenters
Radio stations
List of radio stations that broadcast The Official Big Top 40.
List of non-Global radio stations that also broadcast the show until 30 December 2018.
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Records and statistics
The current Number 1 belongs to A Bar Song (Tipsy) by Shaboozey (2 weeks).[11]
The song holding the record for most weeks at Number 1 is "Despacito (remix)" by Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber with 11 non-consecutive weeks.[12]
The longest running song on the Big Top 40 is "Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd (149 non-consecutive weeks).[citation needed]
The song that has spent the most consecutive weeks at Number 1 is "These Days" by Rudimental, Jess Glynne, Macklemore and Dan Caplen with nine consecutive weeks (4 February - 1 April 2018).[13]
The artist with the most Number 1 songs is Ed Sheeran with 20 singles as of 2023.[14]
The group with the most Number 1 songs is Little Mix with 8 songs as of 2021.[15]
References
- ^ a b "Loreen enters UK chart "The Sky VIP Official Big Top 40" with "Tattoo"". ESCXTRA.com. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". bigtop40.com. Global. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- ^ a b "Will Manning announced as new host of The Official Big Top 40". The Official Big Top 40. Global. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
- ^ "Contact The Official Big Top 40". BigTop40. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- ^ Barnett, Emma (22 May 2009). "The 'Top 10' singles go real time in iTunes deal". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 25 May 2009.
- ^ a b Martin, Roy (19 September 2018). "Bauer stations to drop Vodafone Big Top 40 show". Radio Today. Retrieved 27 January 2022.
- ^ Cameron, Millar (16 November 2022). "ASA rules that Global's 'Top 40' is not the 'official' chart". Osborne Clarke. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- ^ "Marvin Humes and Kat Shoob leave Big Top 40". RadioToday. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- ^ "Capital changes as Rich Clarke leaves". RadioToday. 12 December 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- ^ @Sianwelby (10 November 2019). "Catch me on the @BigTop40 chart show today!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "The Official Big Top 40 from Global | The UK's Biggest Chart Show". BigTop40. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- ^ "The Longest Reigning No.1 Singles in Big Top 40 History".
- ^ "Big Top 40".
- ^ "Most Number 1 Songs: Who's had the most Number 1's in the UK charts?". The Official Big Top 40. Global. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
- ^ "Little Mix have broken the record for the group with the most Number 1s on The Official Big Top 40". The Official Big Top 40. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
External links
- Official website
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Record production portal
