Jo Whiley to host brand new Radio 2 show

 

Jo Whiley will kick off the spring BBC Radio 2 evening schedule by hosting a brand new show from 8-9.30pm every Monday to Wednesday from Monday 4 April 2011.

Produced by Radio 2, Jo will be the listener's trusted guide, steering them through a broad range of popular music that she recommends, including album tracks, as well as unearthing musical gems that are rarely heard elsewhere on Radio 2.

Bob Shennan, Controller of Radio 2 and 6 Music, says: "Jo's at the top of her game and is a first-rate broadcaster with a great knowledge of music. I'm looking forward to her bringing her own brand of presenting to the Radio 2 evening schedule."

With Jo's increased role at Radio 2, Jo has decided to bid farewell to BBC Radio 1.

Jo Whiley says: "I've loved working at Radio 1 for the past 17 years. It's given me opportunities I could only have dreamt of – Coldplay's first Live Lounge, Arctic Monkeys covering Girls Aloud's Love Machine, Jay Z performing live in my own lounge – I've even measured the distance between Bono's nipples live on air... don't ask.

"As well as supporting my love of music, Radio 1 have also supported and accommodated me bringing three further children into the world, something, as a woman, I will always be grateful for.

"Last year Radio 2, the BBC's other great music station, asked me to present their In Concert programme on Thursday evenings, hosting live shows by the likes of Paolo Nutini, Gary Barlow and the Manic Street Preachers which has proved to be much fun. When they offered me the chance to play new and quality music three days a week, along with In Concert, it seemed the perfect opportunity to join them full-time.

"I love Radio 1 and all my friends there, I'm excited to be joining Radio 2 and I'm proud to work for the BBC."

Jo will continue to present Radio 2's In Concert programme every Thursday evening from 8-10pm, featuring live performances and a round-up of the week's music gigs. Jo brings with her a lifelong passion for both music and radio.

After studying in Brighton and dabbling on BBC Radio Sussex's new music show, Jo's first broadcasting job proper was as a presenter for WPFM, Radio 4's youth culture and music show. She then moved over into TV, initially on satellite, then to Channel 4 as band booker for The Word, giving Britain its first television taste of bands such as Nirvana and Rage Against The Machine.

Jo joined Radio 1 in Spring 1993 and in September she became permanent co-presenter of the seminal radio programme The Evening Session with Steve Lamacq until 1997. Four years later she landed her own daytime show, and remained part of Radio 1's weekday line-up until 2009, when she launched a new weekend programme. In 2010, Jo joined Radio 2 permanently to host the weekly In Concert in 2010, which has seen Paolo Nutini gig in his home town of Paisley, and the Manic Street Preachers return to play a blistering session in their home town of Blackwood.

Jo has also presented coverage of the Glastonbury Festival on Radio 1, Channel 4 and BBC TV, as well as the Radio 2 Electric Proms coverage for BBC Two.

Jo is an ambassador for Mencap and curates the annual Mencap Little Noise Sessions, a week-long acoustic music festival. Artists who have featured over the past five years include U2, Noel Gallagher, Scissor Sisters, Tom Jones, Amy Winehouse and Jessie J. Jo and her mother have also set up The Rockin' Roadrunner Club, a club night in Northampton, which travels around the UK, for people with learning disabilities.

Jo's move to Radio 2 follows The Radcliffe And Maconie Show transferring to 6 Music to broadcast from 1-4pm each weekday.

 

February 1, 2011 4:34pm ET by Pressparty   Comments (0)

, , , , , ,

SHARE THIS

Latest Press Releases