Radio 2 Eurovision FAQs
91Èȱ¬ Radio 2 Pop-up Service
91Èȱ¬ Radio 2 Eurovision is a temporary pop up service available on DAB, online and on 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer Radio app from Thursday 21 May to Sunday 24 May 2014.
1. What is Radio 2 Eurovision?
Radio 2 Eurovision is a temporary pop-up service offering enhanced coverage of the Eurovision Song Contest including live coverage of the second semi-final together with a host of live and archive programmes. Content will include:
- Archive documentaries
- Interviews and recollections from previous UK entries
- The Blaggers Guide to Eurovision
- Eurovision programming featuring Radio 2 presenters including Graham Norton, Michael Ball and Paddy O’Connell
- Coverage of both semi-finals & final
- Eurovision after show live
2. How can I listen to Radio 2 Eurovision?
You can listen via a DAB digital radio, online and on 91Èȱ¬ iPlayer Radio app. Further details are below.
3. How do I tune my digital radio to find Radio 2 Eurovision?
*NB Please wait until after 10.30 am on Wednesday 13 May 2015 to re-tune your radio
Radio 2 Eurovision is in the station list next to Radio 2 on a digital radio. It may appear on some radios automatically in the station list. The station name displayed will be 91Èȱ¬ R2Eur or 91Èȱ¬ R2Eurovision. Not all receivers have the same functionality and the instructions below attempt to cover the different ways you can auto tune your radio:
Option 1:
- Press Auto Tune or Auto Scan button on your radio
- The display screen will show Autotune Quick scan / Fast Scanning
- As new stations are found the station counter on the right hand side of the display will increase and new stations will be added to this list
- It may take a couple of minutes for your radio to update the station list
- Scroll through the station list and you will find 91Èȱ¬ R2Eur next to 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2.
Option 2:
- Press ‘Menu’ button on your DAB radio
- Rotate the ‘Tune’ button until you see ‘Autotune’ in the display
- Select ‘Autotune’
- As new stations are found the station counter on the right hand side of the display will increase and new stations will be added to the list
- This should only take a couple of minutes. 91Èȱ¬ R2Eur can be found in the display after 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2.
If you have a digital radio in your car you will be able to access the station. Please note that it is NOT available via analogue radio (FM, AM, LW).
4. How do I delete Radio 2 Eurovision from the station list?
- Switch on your radio
- Press and hold the ‘select’ or the ‘info’ button on your radio until the display shows ‘system reset’ or ‘factory reset’
OR
- Press and hold the ‘menu’ button for three seconds.
- Push the ‘tune’ button within 3 seconds to confirm the reset
- A full reset will be performed and your station list will be updated
- PLEASE NOTE THAT ANY PRESETS WILL BE ERASED
5. Can I listen to Eurovision online?
Radio 2 Eurovision is available to listen to on the 91Èȱ¬ Eurovision website between midday Thursday 21 May - midnight Sunday 24 May 2015
It is also available via the (UK only)
We will be making programmes available to listen to again online for 7 days after they have been broadcast.
*Please note that it is NOT available via digital television.*
6. Can I listen on my mobile phone?
Radio 2 Eurovision is accessible on smartphones via IP and the 91Èȱ¬ iPlayerRadio app. (It is not available via Blackberrys).
Unless you use unmetered access or a WiFi connection, streaming audio via this service could lead to high data charges from your network operator. If unsure of how you are billed for data, please contact your network operator.
Please note that DAB is not available on mobile phones.
7. Can I get digital radio where I live?
Please visit the and insert your postcode in the postcode checker to check coverage in your area. The 91Èȱ¬â€™s national digital radio coverage reaches 94% of the UK population and there are plans to increase the coverage to 97% of the population by the end of 2015.
8. Will the schedule on 91Èȱ¬ Radio 2 be affected by the pop up station?
Radio 2 will continue with their normal schedule and will also carry live coverage of the Eurovision Song Contest. View the .
9. Has the sound quality on Radio 2 and 6 Music been reduced on my DAB radio?
The national DAB multiplex has been reconfigured to allow for Radio 2 Eurovision. The change to the bit rate is marginal – Radio 2 and Radio 6 Music will use 112kbps each instead of 128kbps – all the services remain in joint stereo.
10. Why is Radio 2 Eurovision in mono?
There is only a fixed overall capacity available on the 91Èȱ¬ national multiplex and this must be managed carefully to achieve good quality across the wide range of services that the 91Èȱ¬, as a public service broadcaster, aims to provide. Radio 2 Eurovision is broadcast using 64kbps mono.
Achieving the right balance between the number of services offered and the bit rate allocated to each can at times be difficult. We have taken considerable care over the technical arrangements needed to allocate suitable capacity for each digital radio services. This does mean the capacity individually allocated to some services has had to be reduced at certain times in order, for example, to bring part-time services to listeners. This will continue to be the case on occasions when we consider the balance across our digital radio services demands it. The bit rate on Radio 2 and 6 Music has been reduced from 128kbps joint stereo to 112 kbps joint stereo to allow for Radio 2 Eurovision.
11. Why can’t I access the EPG on my digital radio?
The electronic programme guide on a DAB digital radio will not be available to update from Wednesday 21 May to Sunday 24 May inclusive. However, as this is a seven-day guide, the majority of DAB EPG enabled receivers should retain the EPG (if they were updated before 7 May). The service will be resumed on Monday 12 May. We apologise to any listeners who may not have been able to update their guide.
12. Radio 4 Long Wave
Some listeners may discover that the Daily Service and Yesterday In Parliament are not available via Radio 4 LW (on their DAB) radio from 8 – 10 May. Both programmes can be listened to on Radio 4 Long Wave (analogue radio), digital television (including Virgin cable) and online. Radio 4 LW is not available via Freeview.
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Look back at coverage from Copenhagen 2014 in on our live blog featuring reviews from our network of Eurovision experts.
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Watch Radio 2 Presenters and Molly Smitten-Downes recreating the Bucks Fizz song.
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Find out how to tune in to Radio 2 Eurovision on DAB digital radio and online.