UTV’s version of Virgin Radio will see former Radio 1 presenter Edith Bowman return to full time radio hosting the breakfast show.
Virgin Radio will launch on March 30th, and include Jamie East 10am – 1pm, Kate Lawler 1pm – 4pm, Matt Richardson 4pm – 7pm and with Tim Cocker 7pm – 11pm.
“I’m utterly thrilled to be asked to host the Breakfast Show on the new and exciting Virgin Radio,” Edith said. “Being back on the radio five days a week is going to be a lot of fun, and a place where I can share my passion for music and film with a wonderful audience.
“I feel honoured to be given the responsibility and can’t wait to get started – being the only solo female breakfast show host on national radio is an exhilarating opportunity. Live Bands, films, established artists, new music, interviews and an open conversation with the morning audience is going to be an absolute pleasure.”
Jamie East set up the gossip site Holy Moly in 2002 and is best known for his TV work including presenting Big Brother’s Bit on the Side and Game of Thrones fan show Thronecast on Sky Atlantic, and he was also lead singer in indie band The Beekeepers in the late 90s.
Kate Lawler is currently on Kerrang! Breakfast and has previously worked on the Bauer City Network late show. She won Big Brother in 2002 and went on to host Channel 4’s RI:SE alongside talkRADIO presenter Iain Lee, and Capital FM’s Hit Music Sunday with Andi Peters.
Stand-up comedian and presenter Matt Richardson will be taking on his first on-air presenting gig – on drive. He’s famous for co-hosting The Xtra Factor on ITV2 alongside Caroline Flack in 2013, before going on to TV appearances including Never Mind The Buzzcocks and Celebrity Juice.
Rounding off the line-up is former XFM presenter Tim Cocker, who hosted the Breakfast Show for the station in Manchester for more than five years.
Liam Thompson, Programme Director for Virgin Radio, said: “We can’t wait to bring Virgin Radio back to digital radio in March. This is a completely fresh start for a hugely admired brand – we’ve got a new line-up and approach, and securing a presenter as talented as Edith Bowman speaks volumes about our commitment to making a real impact in music radio. Jamie, Kate, Matt and Tim will do a great job in entertaining the nation throughout the day; listeners are going to want to tune in and turn us up!”
Virgin Radio originally launched in the UK in April 1993 by Richard Branson. It was the first Virgin-branded radio station in the world, and lasted until a rebrand in 2008 when it became Absolute Radio.
There are currently 13 Virgin stations around the world, including Canada, Dubai, Bangkok and Italy.
