BBC radio to join European stations in playing You’ll Never Walk Alone

Some BBC radio stations are set to join their European counterparts in simultaneously playing the song You’ll Never Walk Alone as a show of unity amid the coronavirus pandemic.

BBC Radio 1’s Greg James, BBC Radio 2’s Zoe Ball and BBC Radio 6 Music’s Lauren Laverne will all play the Gerry And The Pacemakers track at 7.45am on Friday morning.

The BBC wanted to show “solidarity” with its fellow European broadcasters by playing the Liverpudlian band’s song, according to a spokeswoman for the corporation.

The initiative came from Dutch radio presenter Sander Hoogendoorn of station 3FM.

He said he is “very proud” that so many stations are taking part, adding: “We all have to do what we can to beat this crisis.

“Things like this just go beyond the boundaries of radio channels.”

He said that the song, which is the anthem of Liverpool Football Club, “could speak to those doing an incredible job working in healthcare right now, those who are ill or those who can’t leave their house for a while”.

Stations in countries across Europe including Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Finland, Latvia, Slovakia, Romania and Spain will be taking part in the initiative.

Reporting by Press Association.