Christmas on Greatest Hits Radi-ho!
Christmas has arrived at Greatest Hits Radio and it’s a CRACKER!
Last updated 14th Dec 2023
It’s CHRISTMAAAAAAS!
You’d better watch out, you better not cry…..and we’ll tell you why – Christmas has arrived at Greatest Hits Radio and it’s a CRACKER!
Have we got a stocking full of festive treats just for you!
So let’s go old school, go grab and pen and a pencil and get circling your favourite shows...
Monday 18th December
All Rick-Quest Keys-mass on the Simon Mayo Drivetime Show, 4-7pm
Join our original caped crusader Rick Wakeman at the Piano performing your Christmas requests on the Simon Mayo Drivetime Show.
Friday 22nd December
PopMaster Champions League Final – 10am (Ken Bruce, 10am-1pm)
Ken Bruce finishes the year by crowning the 2023, and Greatest Hits Radio’s first, PopMaster Champion of Champions as the PopMaster Champions League comes to its dramatic finale.
Christmas Eve
Kate Thornton’s Christmas Number Ones, 4-7pm
Kate Thornton, the youngest ever editor of Smash Hits magazine, celebrates Christmas Number 1s from across the decades and tells the stories of the chart battles over the coveted top spot.
Andy Crane, 10pm-1am
Taking you into Christmas Day with great music and even better company – join Andy Crane live on Greatest Hits Radio and let him know you’re staying up with him. He’s here for you if you’re working, with family, or in need of a friendly voice this Christmas.
Christmas Day
Ken Bruce, 10am-1pm
Stop for a special Christmas Day edition of PopMaster at 10:30 – and spend Christmas morning with Ken and his guests from the world of music & celebrity, dropping in to share Christmas Day with the nation.
Simon Mayo, 1-4pm
Simon and the team bring you Christmas fun, food, Confessions and The King’s Speech – set to a soundtrack of the Greatest Christmas Hits you need on Christmas day.
Cher, in Conversation with Ken Bruce, 9-10pm
Join Ken Bruce in conversation with the legendary Cher – reflecting on her career, Greatest Hits and her latest Christmas record. Recorded in front of a live audience at the Odeon, Leicester Square, London.
Boxing Day
Greatest Hits Radio Live with Ken Bruce, 7-9pm
Ken Bruce presents Greatest Hits Radio Live, from the stage of the London Palladium. OMD, Paul Carrack, the Greatest Hits Radio house band and more celebrate the greatest songs ever written with at our Party at the Palladium recorded on Friday 24th November.
Wham: Making It Big In China (9-10pm)
The story of how Wham! became the first western pop group to play in China in April 1985 and the impact it had on the country.
Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th
The Beatles Legacy – Red and Blue, 9-10pm
In this two part special, Simon Mayo tells the story of The Beatles and their Greatest Hits.
Wednesday 27th-Sunday 31st
5 Years of Greatest Hits Radio
Mark Goodier celebrates 5 years of Greatest Hits Radio by counting down the 500 Greatest Hits that have defined the nations new favourite station. He’ll reveal the number 1 just before 5pm on New Years Eve.
Wednesday 27th/Thursday 28th
Jackie Brambles – Best of the Guests, 7-9pm
Jackie Brambles reflects on a year of Great Conversations – sharing the standout interview moments from 2023 from some of the music world’s biggest stars.
New Years Eve
Kate Thornton’s New Years Smash Hits, 5-7pm
Kate Thornton takes us back to the 70s, 80s & 90s and plays the biggest selling songs of the years, with reflections and highlights from previous Smash Hits magazine editions.
Hogmanay with Boogie and Arelene, 7-10pm
Into the evening on New Years Eve, Boogie and Arelene are in Edinburgh where the Hogmanany celebrations are underway.
Andy Crane, 10pm-1am
Andy Crane takes you into a brand-new year with great music and even better company. Join him live, and get involved with the programme, this New Years Eve.
Tues 2nd-Thurs 4th Jan
Ken Bruce’s Golden Years, 7-10pm
Ken is joined by stars from the world of stage & screen to find out their Golden Year of music from the 70s, 80s or 90s. They’ll play their favourite songs from the year and share the stories and memories that made it special.
Ken returns to his usual show, 10am-1pm, on Monday 8th Jan.
How to listen to Greatest Hits Radio this festive season:
Now take part in our Christmas song lyrics quiz:
Lyrics...
Guess the song from these lyrics, and then scroll down for the answers:
1) "This year, to save me from tears I'll give it to someone special."
2) "Let the Christmas spirit ring, later we'll have some pumpkin pie."
3) "Santa Claus won't make me happy with a toy on Christmas Day."
4) "You know that sweet Santa Clause is on the way."
5) "Feed the world."
6) "I've got 5 more nights until you're next to me, 4 more days of being lonely."
7) "So this is Xmas and what have you done."
8) "Look to the future now, It's only just begun."
9) "You were handsome, you were pretty, Queen of New York City."
10) "Eat, drink and be merry, come along with me."
11) "Baby if you've got to go away, don't think I could take the pain."
12) "Soon the bells will start and the thing that'll make 'em ring is the carol that you sing."
13) "I sing this song to pass the time away, driving in my car."
14) "Snow is falling all around me."