TV Cream

Radio 1: The Jocks

BAKER, Danny

The BakertollahBROADCASTING’S HOTTEST PROPERTY parachuted in as cornerstone of Bannisterisation process, replacing tired time-honoured Weekend Morning riffathon tradition with phone-in based disorientating proto-Cream blend of bewilderingly esoteric nostalgic chatter, ridiculous stunts performed over the phone, bizarre listener-experienced real-life events, quests to find the scariest musical note ever (“Why don’t they just pull over and let him park?”) and the most insane rendition of Smoke On The Water (including one played on ‘kindling’), and the frankly indescribable The University Of Turmoil. The best thing ever broadcast on Radio 1 by some considerable distance but sadly never caught on, due partly to witless tabloid hate campaign, and the show was steadily shaved of running time (“We’re like Boxing Helena!”) until there was literally nothing left of it.

8 Comments

8 Comments

  1. Ian Tomkinson

    June 10, 2009 at 11:02 am

    Without doubt the finest broadcaster of the last 25 years.

  2. Gavin

    June 10, 2009 at 5:29 pm

    I remember watching a documentary a few years ago about the changes at Radio 1 set out by Bannister & Co. in 1993 and there was interview with Adrian Juste in which during Danny’s first show on the station DLT (Whose show Baker had replaced) phoned him up sounding heartbroken and going:”Are you listening to this crap?” in which Juste responded:”Dave don’t depress me, I’ve gotta go lift the nations spirits at 1.00pm.”

    Danny on the other hand is brilliant listen to his 6-0-6 shows on 5 Live he absolutely engages listener like no other broadcaster. Also I think he and Zoe Ball would be ideal holiday deps for Jonathan Ross on Radio 2 when the latter is on holiday.

  3. Glenn Aylett

    June 12, 2009 at 7:04 pm

    In the early to mid nineties Baker was classed as the big noise at a BBC that was undergoing a painful reconstruction under John Birt. However, a lot of his ventures- the hopeless nostalgia quiz Bygones and his short lived Radio 1 show- came to naught, but he will always be better remembered by football fans as one of the greatest 606 presenters ever. Now I was at Millwall today and they ought to get rid of all these wasps that were bombading the fans today before they sort out matters on the pitch….
    A brilliant man on the radio but something as a mixed bag on the television: TV Heroes was quite good but his other shows were poor and this explaind why he fizzled out later in the decade.

  4. Matty

    June 1, 2010 at 5:50 pm

    One of my favourite moments from Danny Baker’s R1 show was in 1996 when he was broadcasting whilst watching the ridiculous show put on to open the European football championships in that year. Having persuaded us all to turn on our televisions and witness “the most ham-fisted attempt to welcome other nations” he duly made some of us laugh our tits off as he proceeded to play “Come to the Sabbat” by Black Widow whilst, on the television, a man in a Bernie Clifton-style “St George on his horse” costume pretended to slay a pantomime dragon. Great days and the teenagers who listened to him (myself included) were baffled by all the venom thrown at his show by the tabloid press.

  5. Gavin

    November 1, 2010 at 6:03 pm

    Just heard the sad news. Get Well soon Danny.

  6. David Pascoe

    November 1, 2010 at 11:06 pm

    Second that. Have just read the statement he put out and in terms of his attitude, the big C doesn’t stand a chance.

  7. Alan

    January 17, 2013 at 11:24 pm

    Absolute legend. Turmoil is still the greatest feature in the history of Radio.

  8. Droogie

    June 24, 2023 at 3:13 am

    Took me a while to warm to The Candyman . I first saw him appear on TV where he came over as a charmless Cockney gobshite. It wasn’t until I heard him on radio that I discovered his unique magic. The time he followed the last show of Gary Davies on Radio 1 when Davies signed off by playing the full version of Layla , only for Baker to follow with “ And if you liked that last song, why not switch over to Virgin FM where you can hear it again? And again. And again. And again. “ was a thing of genius.

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