2004 in British radio

List of years in British radio (table)
... 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 ... 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 ... 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 ...
In British television 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 In British music 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 In British film 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Art Archaeology Architecture Literature Music Philosophy Science +...

This is a list of events in British radio during 2004.

Events

• 5 January - Lesley Douglas succeeds Jim Moir as Controller of Radio 2 and BBC 6 Music.
• 5 January - Chris Moyles takes over the breakfast show on Radio 1.
• 6 January - The BBC announces that veteran broadcaster Barbara Sturgeon will leave Radio Kent at the end of the month to pursue other projects after two decades at the station.^[1]
• 10 February - Dave Lincoln, a well-known radio personality in Northwest England, and former Radio 1 presenter Andy Peebles will head the line-up when 100.4 Jazz FM is relaunched as 100.4 Smooth FM in March.^[2]
• 12 February - 100.7 Heart FM presenter Tushar Makwana dies in hospital following a hit-and-run incident during a botched robbery attempt at his home in Birmingham a few days earlier. Four teenagers were later convicted of his murder and given 10-year jail terms.^[3]
• 20 February - BBC Radio 4 airs the final Letter from America. The weekly 15-minute programme ran for 2,869 shows from 24 March 1946, making it the longest-running speech radio programme in history.
• 1 March - Johnnie Walker returns to his Radio 2 drivetime show following a nine-month break while he received treatment for cancer.^[4]
• 1 March - 100.4 Jazz FM is relaunched as 100.4 Smooth FM.
• 26 March – Mark and Lard (Mark Radcliffe and Marc Riley) present their final show on BBC Radio 1 after 11 years and one failed eight-month stint on the Radio 1 Breakfast Show.
• 2 April - Chris Tarrant presents his final Breakfast show on London's 95.8 Capital FM after 17 years in the chair. He is succeeded by Johnny Vaughan.^[5]
• May - Saga 105.7FM presenter Brendan Kearney is sacked from the station for using an office computer to access pornigraphy.^[6] The incident had occurred at BBC Radio Cleveland where Kearney was the breakfast show presenter. Bosses reprimanded him, and after he quit the station alerted Saga who initially suspended him while an investigation was conducted.^[7]
• 7 June - Scott Mills takes over as presenter of the drivetime show on BBC Radio 1.
• 20 September - Mark Damazer succeeds Helen Boaden as controller of BBC Radio 4.
• December - Les Ross leaves Birmingham's Saga 105.7 FM following differences with station bosses. He claimed the station management was guilty of sending "nannying" e-mails which were turning him into a "robo-jock".

Station debuts

• 1 March - 100.4 Smooth FM
• 1 May - km-d (now KMFM Extra)
• 10 June - Kerrang! 105.2
• 7 September - Saga 105.2 FM

Closing this year

• 13 February - 100.4 Jazz FM (1994–2004)

Deaths

• 12 February - Tushar Makwana, 37, award-winning Birmingham based radio presenter
• 30 March - Alistair Cooke, 95, journalist, television personality and broadcaster, longtime presenter of Letter from America^[8]
• 30 March - Hubert Gregg, 89, BBC broadcaster
• 13 April - Caron Keating, 41, radio and television presenter
• 25 October - John Peel, 65, broadcaster and journalist^[9]
• 27 November - John Dunn, 70, broadcaster^[10]

References

1. "Barbara Sturgeon to leave Radio Kent". BBC Press Office (BBC). 6 January 2004. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
2. "Impressive Line-Up for 100.4 Smooth FM". Radio Today. 10 February 2004. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
3. Cartledge, James (16 December 2004). "Tushar's 'remorseless' killers jailed". Birmingham Evening Mail. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
4. "DJ Walker back after cancer fight". BBC News. 15 February 2004. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
5. Foster, Geoff (1 April 2004). "Capital Radio lament as Tarrant tunes out". Thisislondon. Retrieved 30 December 2009.
6. "Saga DJ sacked over computer porn". The Birmingham Post (Trinity Mirror). 17 May 2004. Retrieved 17 April 2012. (subscription required (help)).
7. Ward, Charlotte (2 May 2004). "DJ suspended in porn probe; Saga FM acts as he quits BBC over nude pictures on computer". The Sunday Mercury (Trinity Mirror). Retrieved 17 April 2012. (subscription required (help)).
8. "Radio legend Cooke dies aged 95". BBC News. 30 March 2000. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
9. "Legendary radio DJ John Peel dies". BBC News. 25 October 2004. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
10. "Radio 2 DJ John Dunn dies". BBC News. 28 November 2004. Retrieved 18 December 2009.