BBC Proms draws record audiences
September 12, 2023
The BBC Proms 2023 came to a close on September 9th, with the celebratory Last Night of the Proms rounding off an eventful season.
Audiences flocked to the Royal Albert Hall with well over half the main evening concerts selling out and an average audience attendance across the season at the Hall of 93 per cent. This is up 7% on pre-pandemic levels in 2019. More than 70,000 Prommers, who stood in either the arena or gallery of the Royal Albert hall, were welcomed across the season.
Nearly half (47 per cent) of audiences at the Royal Albert Hall were attending a Prom for the first time. The Proms also partnered with TikTok to relaunch their classical music hashtag, and Proms videos have been viewed more than 1 million times on the platform, which is primarily used by people aged 18 to 34. Across the BBC’s social media channels, Proms content has been viewed more than 5 million times.
Sam Jackson, Controller of Radio 3 says: “This has been a fantastic year for the Proms, and demonstrates the country’s appetite for classical music from the BBC. In multiple ways, audiences are higher than pre-pandemic figures, and I’m particularly pleased to see so many young people coming to classical music, often for the very first time. As ever, every BBC Prom has been broadcast live on Radio 3, and a wealth of Proms content is now available on BBC Sounds. Work now begins to deliver another brilliant season in 2024; we look forward to revealing more next April.”
Suzy Klein, Head of Arts and Classical Music TV says: “Television audiences across this year’s Proms are their strongest in years, and I’m delighted that major moments in the cultural calendar, such as the First Night and the Last Night, are reaching so many millions of people. I’d like to thank our TV teams for their superlative work in continuing to create ‘gold-standard’ concert coverage – watched globally, and the envy of the world. And a big thank you to all our presenters across the season, who have done an incredible job on TV and radio alike, sharing their musical passion, knowledge and enthusiasm. As the home of classical on TV, the BBC continues to showcase the very best in classical music throughout the year, ranging from BBC Young Musician and Cardiff Singer of the World to Inside Classical, operas, ballet and award-winning documentaries – and we hope audiences continue to enjoy the rich classical offerings still to come on BBC TV.”