The Australian metropolitan cities radio ratings are out, and in Brisbane it's good news for B105 and 97.3FM, but bad news for 4BC which has slipped to last place among the commercial stations overall and second-last in the all-important breakfast shift. The overall top five were Nova 106.9, Triple M FM104, B105, 97.3FM and 612 ABC; in breakfast, it was Nova's Meshel, Ash, Kip and Luttsy; 612's Spencer Howson (pictured)*; 97.3's Robin, Bob and Terry; Triple M's Ian Skippen and the Cage; and B105's Labrat, Camilla and Stav. The poor performance at 4BC can only fuel rumours (started on this blog, I believe) that former B105 kingpin Jamie Dunn is set to make a Brisbane comeback on the commercial talk station. Before the talk was about him doing drive, but maybe now the station's greatest need is in breakfast to set a higher-rating pace for the whole day. On the other hand, these sixth-survey figures may provide a lifeline for B105's breakfast team. Certainly now is the time that station owners and program directors are making their big decisions about next year's line-ups. One interesting result of the survey is the fact that 612ABC's night-time show, which Katrina Davidson has just handed back to regular host Steve Austin, is No.1 in its timeslot. Also of note is the fact that Nova, although still leading the pack, has taken some big falls across the day, making the whole scene much more competitive. That's a very healthy sign (although the Nova folk may disagree).
Meanwhile, in Sydney, commercial talk station 2GB still leads the pack (despite the absence of Alan Jones, who is recovering from cancer surgery) from 2Day and 702 ABC, both overall and in breakfast,

* Yes, I'm a semi-regular guest on Spencer Howson's show - which is obviously why he is doing so well. For other disclosures, click here.