Alan Freeman RIP

RIP

Generally, with these sorts of shows, you don't get to meet the "talent" until the last moment, and they usually get info on the contestants via researchers on cards. However, Alan Freeman and his producer were around at all times, 'hanging out' and chatting, joking, and getting to know you. By the time it comes to actually recording the show, he's got a reasonable handle on you and the show progresses better. You don't see it on the radio, but he had a perfect 'genial uncle' style, and it's a shame he never did this on the TV.

Anyhow, some time before the show, there'd been some music on the PA, and he had a bit of a dance with my sister, larking about. Naturally, I got my camera out, but just as I brought it up to my eye, he spun her round and immediately was in a deep conversation with his producer. Of course, my sister's "Where did he go" expression was priceless, but I was too nice to actually take the photo anyway. It wasn't until some years later that the thought occurred to me that it was the "AFreeman dancing with 14 yr old girl" picture any DJ is professional enough to avoid.

Still, certainly one of the nicest DJs there ever was, no-one had a bad thing to say about him, and it's a testimony to that that he managed to stage a comeback (before the final "Smashie and Nicey" purges) on Radio 1.

Pick of the pops would never be the same again, man all that prog stuff!

RIP Alan.

I remember Quiz Kid, principally because he was the only quiz show presenter I have ever heard who responded to "Was it the Dave Clark Five?"-type answers with: "You mustn't ask me, you must tell me."

He'd been very unwell for quite some time, and he phoned her recently to say "I'm not long for this world, Jane". He was ringing round everyone to say a personal goodbye :((

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42365000/jpg/_42365734_04_fluff_1974_bbc.jpg

And I had absolutely no idea he was this character in The Young Ones!

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42365000/jpg/_42365736_05_fluff_youngones_bbc.jpg

The only one I can't readily identify is the one on the extreme left.

DiddyDavidHamilton has in infinite ways always been a wtf? sort of person.

So, I'd put him in the BG but that'd be personal.

telling lydon to shut up

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41662000/jpg/_41662952_mikey_220.jpg

-- Pisces (damien.johnston...), November 28th, 2006 2:20 PM. (later)

Another reason.

Ach, He'll probably pop off now and we'll all have to be Oh sad and that...

Stewpot, along with Leonard Rossiter, seemed to be one of a very small band of Celebrity Evertonians in the '70s. The mantle has passed to Lee Latchford Evans of Steps now.

I agree that Blackburn was a wet tosser (besides being the Goodies whipping boy of first choice, what did Tone do well, or even acceptably competently?), DiddyDave was worse, Noel Edmonds and David Lee Travis were OK I suppose (didn't DLT do that request show Sun afternoons?). Stewpot and 'Emperor Rosco' were both ADD-addled dickheads of the first order (look forward in horror to the FM breakfast DJ of 20 years later?) and Johnny Walker tried too hard to be Mr Controversial.

Lux was a pain. Their shows were all ad-stuffed, they had a playlist of 20 any given week, their reception was yet to reach the two-tin-cans-joined-with-fishing-line stage of technology, and then there was their laughable Tuesday evening Top 30 chart show. You could predict it spot for spot once you knew the R1/Music Week/Record Mirror Top 30 for the week earlier that afternoon, but during the summer holidays or when there was a public holiday Monday the R1 chart wouldn't come out till Wednesday, and the Lux chart was suddenly all over the place, only to miraculously fall back into line the next week when the planets re-aligned.

To say Capital Radio was a badly needed breath of fresh air was the understatement of the century. Freeman would have been an absolute natural for the new station.

Predictably they showed the clip he did with Smashie and Nicey last night, I couldn't imagine any of the R1 daytime crew at that time, or this time even, doing something which wryly mocked the pomposity of his profession. But then he was a class act.

- Tony Blackburn, at least twice a week. Oh, how we all larfed....

I like(d) Lux. Biggest shock was seeing Tony Price in interview, donkeys years later, broad brummie and not even slightly american "Yr Royal Ruler" psshhh!!!

I like that this thread has become more general, and returns periodically to how great Fluff was!

The Casey Kasem American Top 40.