Mark Radcliffe

I think it’s fair to say that I’ve had a long-term love affair with radio - and, more recently, I’ve taken up with its younger sibling, podcasting, with an equal passion! So it was an absolute thrill to meet one of my broadcasting heroes, the mighty Mark Radcliffe, tonight!

Mark started his career at Piccadilly Radio in Manchester before moving to the BBC as the producer of many of the classic Peel Sessions on the legendary John Peel show on Radio 1, and has since worked as a presenter on Radios 1, 2, 5 Live and 6Music. He currently presents The Folk Show on Radio 2 and co-hosts the weekend breakfast show on 6Music with the equally admirable Stuart Maconie (what’s not to love about their regular features - Sunday Glove Songs, Sampled Underfoot, Teatime Theme-time and, er, Crisps on the Radio?!)

He’s also played in a number of bands in his time (mainly as the drummer) - notably The Shirehorses, Galleon Blast, The Family Mahone, and his new electronica duo, UNE.

Musically, he could hardly be more up my street if he tried!

And it gets even better than that because he’s also penned a number of fine books, including ‘Showbusiness: The Diary of a Rock 'N' Roll Nobody’; ‘Northern Sky’; ‘Thank You For the Days’; and ‘Reelin' in the Years’; and now comes his latest book ‘Crossroads: In Search of the Moments that Changed Music’ which is the reason that Mark and I both found ourselves at Neston Cricket Club tonight, where he told many an entertaining yarn for a suitably appreciative audience.

Afterwards, I was able to tell him that if I could have my dream career, I would actually ‘be’ him! He didn’t seem unduly alarmed!

Still, it hasn’t all been plain sailing by any means. He had a particularly rough few months in late 2018/early 2019 following a diagnosis of tongue and neck cancer, but his treatment went well and he’s been back on the airwaves for the last few months where he continues to be an engaging, knowledgeable and witty presence in my headphones! Long may he continue to be so.

Mark’s a huge David Bowie fan, so what better song to pick for today’s offering than ‘DJ’? https://youtube.com/watch?v=MRRmU_pOXnk