The station, which broadcasts popular classical music across the UK, celebrates its 10th anniversary on Saturday with new ratings showing a weekly audience of 6.7m listeners.

"Classic FM television will happen. It's picking the right moment," The Times reported managing director Roger Lewis as saying.

A Classic FM spokeswoman told BBC News Online: "It's no secret that a TV channel's on our to-do list."

But, she added, there were "no immediate plans" for it.

"It's something we're exploring - but there will be no announcement in the near future," she said.

'Business plan'

In The Times, Mr Lewis, a former head of music at BBC Radio 1, was quoted as saying the TV channel could be launched in 2003.

"The business plan, the creative plan, it's all there. It's ready to go," he said.

Classic FM would not comment on what kind of programming the proposed channel would show.

The station's audience has grown over the 10 years since its launch from 4.7m listeners a week.

Presenters Henry Kelly, Simon Bates and Humphrey Burton are to be joined by actor Stephen Fry and newsreader Katie Derham, the station announced recently.

Fry will present a humorous 20-part series tracing 1,000 years of classical music, The Incomplete And Utter History of Classical Music, at 1400 each Sunday.

Derham, a skilled violinist as well as a news presenter, will front a new afternoon show each Saturday at the same time.