- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: Faber and Faber; New edition edition (5 July 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0571197353
- ISBN-13: 978-0571197354
- Product Dimensions: 17.4 x 11 x 2.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
219,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #59 in Books > Business, Finance & Law > Law > Scots Law > Commercial, Financial, Industrial & Taxation > Communication
- #59 in Books > Music, Stage & Screen > Film > History of Film > Britain
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
At first glance, a year in the life of a radio station seems a curiously insubstantial topic for a full-length book. But Simon Garfield was fortunate that the 12 months he spent as a fly on the wall of Radio 1 were among the most eventful in the station's 30-year history. To put the ensuing revolution in context, it is important to remember that for many years Radio 1 had been the country's only national pop network, and as such, its stranglehold on the nation's pop tastes was unquestioned. Garfield's arrival coincided with a change of direction: under controller Mathew Bannister, the network was determined to ditch its middle-aged image.
The general impression of Radio 1 at the time was summed up by comedian Harry Enfield's archetypal babbling DJ, with the music always coming a distant second to the egos: "Tuesday's the only between Monday and Wednesday-type day we've got, mate. It may not have the glamour and excitement of a Saturday, or the mournfulness of a Monday morn, but it's our Tuesday, the good, old-fashioned, honest to goodness, down to earth, great British Tuesday, and if those Eurocrats, Bureaucrats and other Bonkerscats try and take our Tuesday away from us, they'll have go get past me first!"
In the end it was Chris Evans who single-handedly gave Radio 1 some credibility--and probably prevented it being privatised; and Garfield's chronicle of Evans' rise and fall is riveting--a first-hand account of truly Machiavellian court politics. --Patrick Humphries
Product Description
In 1993, BBC Radio One gained a new controller. Matthew Bannister said he was going to reinvent the station, the most popular in Europe. But things didn't go exactly to plan. The station lost millions of listeners. Its most famous DJs left, and their replacements proved to be disasters. Radio One's commercial rivals regarded the internal turmoil with glee. For a while a saviour arrived, in the shape of Chris Evans. But his behaviour caused further upheavals, and his eventual departure provoked another mass desertion by listeners. What was to be done? In the middle of this crisis, Radio One bravely (or foolishly) allowed the writer Simon Garfield to observe its workings from the inside. For a year he was allowed unprecedented access to management meetings and to DJs in their studios, to research briefings and playlist conferences. Everyone interviewed spoke in passionate detail about their struggle to make their station credible and successful once more. The result is a touching, exciting and often hilarious portrait of a much loved national institution as it battles back from the brink of calamity.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best book I've ever read about British media,
By Alexander J Ward (Guildford, Surrey United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Nation's Favourite: The True Adventures of Radio 1 (Paperback)
I find myself re-reading this book several times a year and I've lost count of the number of copies I've given to friends.Insightful, well-written and very amusing. If you think that Smashey and Nicey ARE the best characters Enfield and Whitehouse ever wrote then this is certainly the book for you. Great interviews about the rise of Radio One, the era of the 'personality DJ' (I honestly used to listen to DLT every Saturday morning and LOVE 'snooker on the radio') the rebirth of the station in the early 1990's, the Chris Evans period - it's a great read, even if you have no interest in Radio One.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Lost World,
By lyrical eve (yearning wood) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Nation's Favourite: The True Adventures of Radio 1 (Paperback)
Dipping into this compelling book is rather like discovering a lost world. In place of the dinosaurs you'll find the equally colossal egos of the "disc jockey". In some ways this may be an uncomfortable read for those over 40, evoking as it does all sorts of queasy memories of "The Bit in the middle", "Willie on the Plonker" and "Our Tune". this was an age when the Hairy Cornflake only had to finger his beard to be invited to open yet another supermarket/hospital wing/garden fete.
For those two young to remember the bloodletting at Radio 1 this is a valuable work of history ( they won't believe that the current Radio 1 was actually once this cosy, safe institution which had the playing of Status Quo and Cliff Richard ( who were they?)5 times daily as an article of faith. Only the late John Peel ( and perhaps Nicky Campbell) emerge with any credit and this gem of a book also gives some insight into the survivalist instincts of Steve -when you read out a listener's e-mail always prefix it with "Love the show Steve"- Wright, Cull evader extraordinaire. Sure to raise at least a wry smile in people of most ages. Enjoy it
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Nation's Favourite Breakfast Show?,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Nation's Favourite: True Adventures of Radio 1 (Paperback)
This book takes you on a trip through the recent life of Radio 1 - a rollercoaster ride whose path seems to be guided primarily by statistics, egos, and politics.The scene is the last 10 years of Radio 1, and we see the station, with new head Matthew Bannister at its helm, battling to defend its listener figures against rising commercial competition, whilst at the same time trying to preserve its public broadcasting heritage. The book gives a fascinating insight into this world which lies behind the voices we hear everyday. We read about hirings & firings, personality DJs & anti-personality DJs (yes, they exist), PR successes & media drubbings, and the fall & rise of the station's play-list - enforced with draconian vigour by the end. If I have one criticism of this book (and I should point out that this does not make it any less enjoyable), it is that reading it, one might believe that Radio 1 IS the Breakfast Show. Even the chapters seem to correlate suspiciously with the high turnover of presenters it has witnessed. Flagship product maybe, but I personally would have liked to have also read more about the station's increasing credibility in 'specialist' music areas such as dance & MOBO. I felt Tong, Westwood et al were dealt with rather briskly, eventhough to many listeners, they now define the station's ethos more than the likes of Zoe Ball. However, to those for whom Radio 1 crafted the sound of their youth, for those who have merely a passing interest in the media circus and its colourful characters, or even for those who just like to see Chris Evans getting bad press, this book is well worth a tenner.
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