Questions

Why am I missing some BBC stations in Scotland?

On tuning my radio for BBC stations I get Radio 1, Radio 2 and then it skips to Radio 4. I can’t pick up BBC Radio Scotland or BBC Radio 5 live.
– John

On DAB digital radio, all of the BBC’s national UK radio stations are grouped together. This means when your digital radio auto-scans for stations it should find the eleven BBC services at the same time and add them to the station list.

However, BBC Scotland is broadcast separately, alongside commercial radio stations like Northsound 1 and Heart Scotland. The BBC says this is because the BBC’s own digital multiplex is already full with BBC network services. The same applies to stations like BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Radio Wales.

It is possible that your radio has found the UK-wide BBC stations, like Radio 1 and Radio 4, but not BBC Scotland.

BBC Scotland is broadcast on DAB digital radio in Aberdeen, Ayr, Dundee/Perth, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Central Scotland.

BBC Radio nan Gàidheal is broadcast in Central Scotland, Dundee & Perth, Aberdeen, Ayr and Inverness.

Troubleshooting missing stations

It may sound simple, but I would first check that the radio is in DAB mode. Some FM/DAB radios can auto-scan on FM and store stations. If the FM scan didn’t find a strong enough signal, this could explain why BBC Radio 3 and BBC Scotland are missing. BBC Radio 5 live is broadcast on AM, not FM, which could also explain why it isn’t added to the list.

In DAB mode it would be worth doing a ‘full scan’. There may be an option in the radio’s menu for this, or you might have to hold down the auto-scan button.

The manual should explain if your radio has different modes for scanning on DAB digital radio.

If the radio then does find all of the BBC’s UK-wide services, but not BBC Scotland, it would be worth extending the aerial fully in a vertical position. Also moving the radio around your home and re-scanning can help. Sometimes the smallest change can make the difference.

Finally you could attempt a factory reset. This will clear the list of stations, as well as any alarms, presets and other changes you have made to settings. After this ‘fresh start’ the radio should start a new scan from scratch. If the radio is within warranty and still only receives some digital stations it would be worth contacting the radio manufacturer for further assistance.