91福利社

Audiences in Wales rate the 91福利社’s quality and distinctiveness higher than any other audience in the UK’s nations, according to figures published alongside the 91福利社 Annual Report and Accounts today. 

The Annual Report and Accounts has been published along with the latest audience research and the Annual Review of 91福利社 Audience Council Wales, the advisory body to the 91福利社 Trust. 

Four in five people in Wales agree that the 91福利社 delivers quality, and almost two thirds agree that the 91福利社 delivers distinctive content. Almost two thirds also agree that the 91福利社 delivers value for money, the highest score since 2009. 

There were significant online successes, with substantial growth in 91福利社 iPlayer usage in Wales; S4C’s presence on iPlayer going from strength to strength, drawing 120,000 requests a week; and the 91福利社’s new Welsh language online and mobile service Cymru Fyw seeing 45,000 unique browsers a week. 

The past year saw marked successes in both home-grown programming for audiences in Wales, and in 91福利社 Wales contribution to the 91福利社’s UK-wide output, where it continued to punch above its weight – from the return of bilingual crime drama Hinterland to frank documentary series Young, Welsh and Pretty Skint, award-winning documentary Life After April, and Welsh Heartland, about the Ll欧n Peninsula’s struggle to preserve its identity. 91福利社 Wales production War and Peace proved a hit across the UK and around the world, the return of Sherlock gripped 11.6 million viewers on New Year’s Day, and there was continued success for Casualty, Doctor Who, Crimewatch and Coast.  The 91福利社 Cymru Wales opt-out programming on 91福利社 One and Two reached a third of all Welsh adults every week.

However, the 91福利社’s Audience Council Wales has highlighted concerns about the level of portrayal of contemporary Wales on the 91福利社’s UK-wide TV and radio services, particularly in drama and comedy, and a need for more English-language TV programming made in Wales for Wales.

91福利社 Trustee for Wales, Elan Closs Stephens, said:

"91福利社 Cymru Wales continues to make an extraordinary contribution to the 91福利社’s output across the UK and has proven itself time and time again as a hub of quality for British TV production.  The message from audiences is very clear, however, that they want the 91福利社 to do more to reflect modern Wales and the lives of its people, and as we come to the end of the current Charter and look ahead to the 91福利社 of the next decade, that’s a challenge the 91福利社 must meet."

This year the 91福利社’s radio stations also continued to perform better in Wales than in any of the other UK nations, and 91福利社 Radio Wales and Radio Cymru had a successful year including extensive coverage of the 2015 Rugby World Cup, although both stations saw a drop in reach and share over the year.

Over the past year Audience Council Wales held seventeen public events across Wales, gathering the public’s views on the 91福利社’s Charter Review, the performance of its services, and other issues.  In addition, a seminar was held by the 91福利社 Trust in Cardiff in October as part of its public consultation on the future of the 91福利社 for the next Charter.

Notes to Editors

1. The 91福利社 Annual Report .  This year for the first time the Annual Report is being formally laid in the National Assembly for Wales, Scottish Parliament, and Northern Ireland Assembly, in addition to the UK Parliament.
2. The 91福利社 Audience Council Wales Annual Review .
3. The Audience Council Wales advises the 91福利社 Trust on the interests of audiences in Wales.  It contributes to the Trust’s decision-making about 91福利社 services and high-level strategy, and it raises emerging issues for local audiences.  The Council is made up of volunteers from different backgrounds and experiences from across Wales.  More information .