BBC World Service on 720 kHz: the Cyprus relay at Zakaki, English and Arabic

What you hear

Most of the day 720 kHz from Cyprus carries BBC Arabic: news, current affairs and discussion for the Middle East, in modern standard Arabic with the BBC's familiar production style. At fixed times the transmitter switches to the World Service in English. The catalogue lists English from 06:00 to 06:30 UTC, 14:30 to 15:00 UTC (14:00 to 15:00 at weekends), 15:30 to 16:00 UTC, 16:00 to 17:00 UTC on weekdays, 17:30 to 18:00 UTC, and 19:00 to 19:30 UTC at weekends. The English hours bring the news bulletins, Newshour and the BBC's sports coverage, with the World Service identification at the top of the hour. The same programme goes out in parallel on 639 kHz, and if one channel is disturbed where you are, the other may be clear.

Who transmits and why

The relay is at Zakaki, on the coast west of Limassol in the south of Cyprus, and the catalogue gives 250 kW. The BBC has transmitted from Cyprus since the 1950s, first on short wave from the east of the island and later from this medium-wave site, because Cyprus sits within a night's sky wave of Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey and Iraq. The Arabic service is the main user, and the English blocks serve the British community and bases on the island, shipping, and English-speaking listeners around the eastern Mediterranean.

The BBC has closed many relays over the years, and the hours of English on this one have been cut more than once; the timetable above is the catalogue's current information, and a change should not surprise anyone.

When and where to listen

By day the ground wave of 250 kW covers Cyprus, the coast of Lebanon, Israel and Syria, and southern Turkey; receivers on the island and in the Levant hear it at any hour. Medium wave carries far only after dark, and from sunset over the eastern Mediterranean the signal reaches Greece, Egypt, the Balkans, Italy and, on winter nights, central and northern Europe. Of the English blocks, the ones in the late afternoon and evening UTC fall in darkness from October to March and are the best chance from Europe; the 06:00 UTC block is in daylight most of the year and is a regional affair.

Receivers in Cyprus, Greece, Turkey and Israel are the sure choice; receivers in Italy, Bulgaria and Romania work after dark in winter. 720 kHz and 639 kHz are both used elsewhere in Europe, so from the north-west another station may be on top. The program tunes AM; a narrower filter or a single sideband helps when a co-channel station competes. The BBC's other medium-wave relay in the region, from Oman on 1413 kHz, is described in a separate entry and carries English at different hours.

In ShackDeck

Station catalogue → Medium and long wave → BBC World Service 720 kHz (Cyprus). ShackDeck finds a public receiver that hears 720 kHz, tunes it and sets AM. No receiver, antenna or account of your own is needed; pick a receiver in the eastern Mediterranean and check the English timetable above before listening.