The Bulgarian National Radio marks its 86^th anniversary today. On this day in 1935, Tsar Boris III signed a decree making all broadcasting in Bulgaria a state-organized activity. On June 18, 1935, Panayot Todorov Hristov, known under the pseudonym Sirak Skitnik, was appointed head of broadcasting and first director of Radio Sofia, as the BNR was then called.

In 2001, the Bulgarian National Radio founded the Sirak Skitnik annual awards for radio journalism. The awards are presented for contribution to the development of the Bulgarian National Radio as public media.

Today, the Bulgarian National Radio has two national and nine regional programs and through its website spreads information in ten languages. Foreign language radio broadcasts were introduced by Sirak Skitnik in 1936. The Bulgarian National Radio is a leader among media when it comes to the trust of Bulgarians, according to a study by the Reuters Institute.

BNR also has six music orchestras with active recording and concert activities and is a major producer of Bulgarian music.