Steve Wright (DJ)

Steve Wright
Steve Wright on Radio 1
Birth name Stephen Richard Wright
Born (1954-08-26) 26 August 1954
Greenwich, London,[1] England
Show Steve Wright in the Afternoon
Station(s) BBC Radio 2
Time slot 14:00–17:00 weekdays
Show Steve Wright's Sunday Love Songs
Station(s) BBC Radio 2
Time slot 09:00–11:00 Sundays
Country United Kingdom
Website Steve Wright in the Afternoon

Stephen Richard "Steve" Wright (born 26 August 1954 in Greenwich, London)[1] is an English broadcaster, widely credited for creating the zoo format, with its zany, multi-personality approach. He currently presents 'Steve Wright in the Afternoon' and 'Steve Wright's Sunday Love Songs' on BBC Radio 2 , one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. On BBC Television Wright has hosted Home Truths, The Steve Wright People Show, Auntie's TV Favourites, Top Of The Pops and TOTP2. Wright has won awards, including Best DJ of the Year as voted by readers of The Sun, the Daily Mirror Readers Poll and by Smash Hits in 1994. In 1998, he was awarded TRIC Personality of the Year for his radio programmes.

Early career

His childhood ambition was to work in the entertainment business. Born in Greenwich, South London, the elder of two boys in a working-class family, Wright was raised in New Cross. His father, Richard Wright, was a tailor and the manager of the Burton's store in Trafalgar Square. Wright was a quiet child, and never very scholarly.[2] He was educated at Eastwood High School, near Southend-on-Sea, Essex. In the early 1970s he worked behind the scenes at Radio 2, as a Gramophone Librarian. He started broadcasting in 1976 at Thames Valley Radio Radio 210 in Reading, Berkshire alongside Mike Read. In 1979 Wright got his big break at Radio Luxembourg, where he presented his own nightly show before joining BBC Radio 1 in 1980, presenting a Saturday evening show, then Saturday morning before famously moving to daytime with Steve Wright in the Afternoon in 1981 which revolutionised radio by introducing the zoo format to the UK.

In 1984, Wright took over a Sunday morning show entitled Steve Wright on Sunday, which meant he presented weekday afternoons Mondays to Thursdays only, with Mark Page and Paul Jordan presenting Friday afternoon's show. In 1986 his Sunday morning show ended, and he returned to five afternoons a week.

Steve Wright in the Afternoon (1981-1993)

The show became known in its Radio 1 incarnation for its cast of telephone characters created and performed by Gavin McCoy, Peter Dickson, Richard Easter and Phil Cornwell. Like his mentor, Kenny Everett, Wright went out of its way to be irreverent, including stories taken from the Weekly World News. The success led to a hit single, I'll Be Back, released under the name Arnee and the Terminaters. In later years the style changed, dumping most of the characters and instead having a "zoo" format, with spoof guests and comedy sketches. A "posse" of producers and radio staff joined in. This format was new to British radio and marked the beginning of the marginalisation (and eventual departure) of several established Radio 1 DJs over the years that followed.

Characters and sketches

Characters and sketches created for the show included:

  • Mr Angry (from Purley): usually ranting down the phone line, ending with "...it makes me so angry... I could throw the phone down!" followed by the receiver crashing down.
  • Diamond Geezer: supposed DJ/mixer, and voice for the track "Mr Spoons" (David Spurr)
  • The "Down-the-Pan" Daleks: two 'retired' Daleks in improbable domestic situations
  • 'Easy Life'
  • Dr Fish-Filleter: source of much innuendo about fishy fingers, etc. Had his own 'jingle' sung by Steve and his Posse when the interview had ended ("Fillet of Fish, Fillet of Fish. O' Give me Fish to Fillet!").
  • The "Horrible Voice"
  • The Boss: a gentleman with a very deep Caribbean voice who only ever said "yes Sir, Mr Wright sir" to everything he was asked.
  • Edward the Garrulous Fencing Champion: his catchphrase is "I epee you"
  • Mr Food ("...and that's before my tea!")
  • Gervais the Hairdresser ("Keep your tongue out!")
  • Hopeless Weather Girl: a parody of the brand of 'bimbo'-esque weather girls seen on British television in the late 1980s. She doesn't know much about meteorology.
  • Maggot – an odd character with a high pitched voice.
  • 'Mick and Keef': not the real Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, but impersonations (played by Phil Cornwell, who later did the characters in Stella Street). Bill Wyman also made occasional appearances.
  • David Bowie: again, not the real David Bowie but an impersonation; "Bowie" frequently asked "tell us what the time is" (adjusted slightly at Christmas to "tell us what the Christmas time is").
  • Linda Lust: her catchphrase is "Spatula" in a sultry, sensual voice.
  • Llama Man: Spoof signature tune: "Llama man, Llama man, does everything a llama can. He can bleat! He can trot! He's got everything a llama's got."
  • Motorcycle Courier – who left his motorbike running and would scream "SIGN 'ERE PLEASE!" from his motorcycle helmet regardless of what was asked of him.
  • Mr Mad: , would phone in, refer to Steve as "Pal" and would ask "Guess where I'm livin' today?" then proceed to name improbable locations (like inside the mace of the House of Commons or inside Paul McCartney's guitar); then would end the call with vocal whistles and beeps and his catchphrases were "Ravin' mad, pal!" and "Check up from the neck up".
  • Mr Paranoid
  • The Parking Man – constantly shouting two instructions 'You're Alright, You're Alright' and 'Left Hand Down' to someone trying to reverse their van into a parking space outside the 'window' of the studio. Would sometimes end in a calamitous crashing followed by silence and then 'You're Alright!'
  • The Car Cleaner – would phone, but would be impossible to understand anything he (Wright) was saying as he would be cleaning his car. The noise of the vacuum would drown out the majority of the conversation, leaving only innuendo-based snippets.
  • Pretentious Music Journalist: supposedly based on a number of 1980s rock/pop reviewers (perhaps especially Simon Reynolds, David Stubbs and Paul Oldfield of Melody Maker), he reads a little too much into a band's songs with over-complex and artistically pretentious monologues where a simple explanation would suffice, e.g., "They generate a sonic cathedral of sound" means "loud".
  • Sid the Manager: supposedly Steve Wright's agent, a genial but often confused duffer
  • The Men of Kent
  • Voiceover Man – converses with Steve and 'the posse' about everyday events in the style of an MFI/DFS television advert voice-over.
  • The Perv: heard tapping at the window calling "Yoohoo! Hello Stevie! I'm in the corridor..." and describing his startling attire.
  • Damien the Social Worker
  • Ruth McCrum from Northern Ireland who told Wright "you've got the perfect face for Radio"
  • Fred Crosswell, the cinema manager
  • The Geese, out-of-control Canada geese loose in the studio; "can we get the geese out of here please".
  • John Bowl, based on the journalist John Cole, who would often lose his temper with Steve, addressing him as a "dough head", and would also always say "Listen, young man, I'll have a little bit less of your lip".
  • Boutros Boutros Boutros Boutros, a stuntman who attempted remarkable feats with a staggering lack of success.
  • Malcolm from the Arts Council, a well spoken Arts Council official, who would address Wright as "Stephen" and threaten to pull the show's funding when the DJ teased him.
  • Mr Contestant, a hopeless call-in quiz-show contestant who would always blow the final part of the answer under time pressure and end with the same nonsensical answer, like "Name the 4 Mutant Ninja Turtles"... "Donatello... Michelangelo... Rafael and, erm, ahhhh" "Got to hurry you" "...eerrmmm, ohhhhhh Hartley Hare!"
  • Dave Double Decks. An over-enthusiastic local radio DJ "Haha, yess indeeedy !" was his catchphrase.
  • Archie Wivell, his chain-smoking joke writer who could be heard coughing and scribbling, then starting to chuckle.
  • The Newsagent: He would usually forget to bring the newspapers with him for Steve to read, despite this being his job. He would sometimes recite a list of occupations he wanted to have, but then immediately counter each by stating he wouldn't want to do what was required of that occupation. Examples: "I want to be a brick layer, but don't want to lay bricks.", "I want to be a farmer, but don't want to farm", "I want to be a chicken, but don't want to lay eggs." He had flatulence and throughout his chats with Steve, he would loudly blow off several times, saying "excuse me" each time.

The Radio 1 Breakfast Show, The Steve Wright People Show and commercial radio (1994-1996)

Wright and his Posse moved to The Radio 1 Breakfast Show in 1994. He also presented a BBC TV series, The Steve Wright People Show, from 1994–95.[3] He resigned from the Breakfast Show in 1995 due to differences with the BBC Radio 1 management, he was unhappy with the plummeting listening figures of the station due to its restructuring under new controller Matthew Bannister, which led to many of the more established DJs leaving, or being sacked, around this time. He was picked up by the new commercial station Talk Radio, where he presented a Saturday morning show and also presented a syndicated show on Sunday mornings on various commercial stations in the UK.

BBC Radio 2 (1996-present)

Wright returned to the BBC in April 1996, when he joined BBC Radio 2, presenting Steve Wright's Saturday Show on Saturdays 10 am-1 pm, a morning show of celebrity interviews and music and Steve Wright's Sunday Love Songs on Sundays 9–11 am. In 1999, following a shake-up at Radio 2 Steve Wright in the Afternoon was revived, taking over the slot from Ed Stewart. Wright is said to earn £440,000 a year at Radio 2.[4]

Steve Wright in the Afternoon

Wright presents Steve Wright in the Afternoon weekday afternoons from 2 pm to 5 pm, alongside Tim Smith and Janey Lee Grace (who have both also occasionally appear as relief presenters on the station), as well as traffic reporter Bobbie Pryor. Another frequent contributor, "The Old Woman", was played by Joyce Frost who died in November 2016.[5]

The Steve Wright in the afternoon show features:

  • 'The Non Stop Oldies'
  • Celebrity interviews
  • 'Factoids' These are diverse nuggets of information.
  • Singing over the end of virtually every song he plays
  • 'Do You Remember'
  • 'Serious Jockin' ' Every Friday, from 4:15PM, Wright plays a mix of Hi-NRG anthems from various decades under the 'Serious Jockin' banner. During this segment of the show, Wright often refers to himself as ‘’’DJ Silly Boi’’’.

A popular feature that disappeared in summer 2007 with the start of the BBC investigation into 'rigged' contests (there was no suggestion Wright's show was involved) was "The Big Quiz", a general knowledge quiz in which a challenger took on the current champion (referred to as the 'champino' or 'champine') to win prizes. Each had a time limit to answer questions, the round ending with the first incorrect answer. Winners were given a selection of prizes, building up if they remained 'champino', whilst the loser gained a 'Sustificate of Muppetry' if they did poorly.

Steve Wright's Sunday Love Songs

Sunday Love Songs, which Wright presents on his own, between 9 and 11, with a blend of classic love songs, dedications and real-life romance stories, features items including Contact, I Just Met, Getting Hitched and Chocolate and Flowers. The music played has a romantic feel.

In 2013 it was revealed that the show was recorded on a Friday afternoon. The BBC Trust's editorial standards committee said the failure to inform listeners properly breached guidelines on accuracy and interacting with the audience.[6]

"Love the show"

A feature of Wright's radio shows are letters or emails from listeners. Almost all feature the phrase "Love the show". Wright's initials were adapted into "SWs to you", an abbreviation used by correspondents of former fellow Radio 2 presenter Sarah Kennedy, meaning "Love the show". Other Radio 2 presenters have parodied it: Terry Wogan pretended to bemoan the lack of such encouragement in his correspondence, occasionally reading listeners' letters which said "Love Steve Wright's show", while listeners of Chris Evans once added "Love the snow" to messages. During a stint sitting in for Wright, Mark Radcliffe jokingly told off listeners who started messages by saying how much they loved the show. Overnight presenter Alex Lester's listeners end their correspondence with "Love the shoe". Listeners to Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo's film reviews on Radio Five Live frequently end correspondence with "Love the show, Steve". Correspondents to Colin Murray's Talksport show frequently end with "average show, Colin".

Top of the Pops 2 (1997-2009)

Wright was also the voice of and writer for the retro pop show on BBC television, Top of the Pops 2 between 1997 and 2009. The last episode of TOTP2 he presented was the Michael Jackson special broadcast on 27 June 2009; Mark Radcliffe presented the next episode, which was the 2009 Christmas special broadcast on 23 December 2009.

Bibliography

  • Steve Wright Steve Wright's Book of Factoids, HarperCollins Publishers (UK), (2005) ISBN 0-00-720660-7

References

  1. 1 2 "Radio 2 – Presenters – Steve Wright". BBC. Archived from the original on 14 November 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  2. ↑ Parry, Ryan (4 August 2011). "Steve Wright: inside the weird world of the Radio 2 legend". Archived from the original on 25 October 2016.
  3. ↑ The Steve Wright People Show Archived 29 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine., IMDb, accessed 23 June 2011.
  4. ↑ Daily Telegraph Archived 15 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine. – Wogan is number one in BBC radio rich list
  5. ↑ "'Old Woman' on Radio 2's Steve Wright show dies". bbc.co.uk. 10 November 2016. Archived from the original on 9 November 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  6. ↑ reporters, Telegraph (28 May 2018). "Steve Wright tells Sunday Love Songs listeners to leave requests for prerecorded show". Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
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