There was another one yesterday. The headline read "Louise Minchin BBC Breakfast Host Joins GMB Rival in Show Debut After Exit Announcement." Rather a long headline that attempts to draw the reader in with the idea that Louise has joined her rival news channel after announcing her exit from the BBC early morning show. But this just isn't the case. All it refers to is that Louise and one of her rivals from the other station will be appearing together in just one edition of a popular Game Show "House of Games."
I really must stop opening these stories as they are misleading and of no value whatsoever.
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Amongst the many books I have on the go at the moment is "Good Night and Good Riddance - How Thirty Five Years of John Peel Helped to Shape Modern Life" by David Cavanagh which is a rather lengthy title.
Essentially it's a social history seen through rock music and programmes of the late DJ John Peel and how he helped to shape modern culture with his Radio One Shows.
Peel always played an eclectic mix of music, featuring anything he fancied whether it was rock, punk, indie, classical or five fishermen singing sea shanties.
It gave me the idea of putting together my own playlists on Spotify - each lasting an hour and featuring a whole mix of different genres. I have called the playlists John Peel Inspired and volume one is available and features the following:
Eloise - Barry Ryan
The Sound of Silence - Disturbed
Clang of the Yankee Reaper - Van Dyke Parks
Rise Like a Phoenix - Conchita Wurst
It's Almost Tomorrow - Mark Wynter
Grace Cathedral Hill - The Decemberists
Welcome to the Black Parade - My Chemical Romance
Where Are We Now? - David Bowie
Grantchester Meadows - Pink Floyd
Make Me Smile - Chicago
Hole In My Shoe - Traffic
Starless - King Crimson
You can find the playlist by going to Spotify and just searching the playlists for one entitled John peel inspired volume 1 or by following the link below:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0INTgMfII6aINmHhx39Ykq?si=a19faa54a70a4207
Volume 2 will consist of tracks played by John Peel in his early days presenting a late night programme entitled "The Perfumed Garden" on Pirate Radio London. Radio London which was also known as Wonderful Radio London of Big L, was broadcast from a ship anchored off the Essex coast. It primarily played Top 40 hits and its other DJs included Tony Blackburn, Kenny Everett, Ed Stewart and many more. Peel got what has become known as the Graveyard slot because it was in the early hours of the morning when most people were asleep including the guy in charge of programming.
So Peel played his own choice, miles away from the Top 40 format and that's the way thousands of people were introduced to new music and new bands and not force fed top of the pops style playlists. Many bands have said that without John Peel they would never have formed because he was the only outlet for their music.
I have always been fascinated by the Pirate Radio stations and growing up was a big fan of Radio Caroline which I would listen to on my transistor radio. I have written about the pirates in previous blogs and in particular my interview and piece about one of the DJs Ric Turton whom I got to know when I worked in Beccles in Suffolk.
If you are interested in my interview with Ric you can find it at
https://peterowensteward.weebly.com/pirate-radio-interview.html