LONDON, Ont. - A London, Ont., oldies station will be changing its format and go for the funny bone starting on New Year's Day.
Astral Media says CKSL -- currently Oldies 1410 -- will transform on Jan. 1 into FUNNY 1410, touted as the country's first all-comedy station.
Astral says the station will feature the biggest names in stand-up comedy from Canada and around the world.
Astral says the format is already proving a winner in several U.S. markets by targeting an audience of adults aged 25 to 54, with a slight male skew.
The format is represented in Canada by Astral's syndication arm Orbyt Media.
Astral says the aim is to deliver a unique station in a market currently serviced by more than 20 radio signals and overlapping formats.
"We all know how popular comedy is with the Canadian public," said Charles Benoit, executive vice-president for Astral Radio.
"We are very proud to be the first broadcaster in the country to deliver this type of programming." Benoit added.
The radio station format will be fast moving and topical with as many as 30 comedic bits an hour.
It will be hosted by stand-up and improvisational comedians and is patterned after a comedy club approach.
Material will feature comedy personalities like Sarah Silverman, Zack Galifianakis, Louis C.K. and Russell Peters.
The legends of comedy will also be featured with classic bits from comedians like Robin Williams, Steve Martin, Jerry Seinfeld and Lily Tomlin.
