✎ Brian Matthew 1928-2017 [UPDATED AGAIN] 

5 April 2017 tbs.pm/11718

Brian Matthew, the long-time BBC Radio 2 disc jockey and a presenter on ABC Weekend’s Thank Your Lucky Stars died yesterday at the age of 88.

He had just been dropped as presenter of BBC Radio 2’s Sounds of the Sixties programme, although the network had promised him a shorter replacement programme.

The BBC has a tribute to Brian on their Sounds of the Sixties programme page.

[Update at 14:40] Scrap that. The BBC now say they were misinformed.

[Update on 8 April] Gone again now.

You Say

7 responses to this article

Paul Mason 8 April 2017 at 12:33 pm

This is unfortunate. The BBC announced Brian Matthew’s retirement prematurely, and now his death while he his still alive but very ill. I just hope BM didn’t hear the wrong announcement. The obituaries can be published when the sad day comes.

Paul Mason 8 April 2017 at 10:05 pm

Sad to say Brian Matthew was confirmed as having died on Saturday 8 April, the day of the week that BM had regular broadcasts starting with Saturday Club on the BBC Light Programme and Thank Your Lucky Stars on ITV
I remember his narration of the Beatles Story on BBC Radio 1 and 2 in the summer of 1972. I used to also listen to Round Midnight on Radio 2. in the eighties. A large part of his later life was devoted to Sounds of the Sixties, now in the less than capable hands of Tony Blackburn.RIP me old mate.
You.might as well remove the lines through the premature tribute.

Paul Mason 8 April 2017 at 10:11 pm

One final thought. While he was 88 years of age, I wonder whether the upset caused by his enforced retirement has hastened his demise. The management of Radio 2 appear to be crass and insensitive and they deserve the push.

Paul Mason 9 April 2017 at 4:27 am

I stand to be corrected but Pete Murray is now the last survivor from the Light Programme era.
Many of that famous photo gathering of Radio 1 and 2 presenters are now dead.
Inevitable after 50 years sadly.

Paul Mason 10 April 2017 at 2:35 am

Here’s another name from the Light Programme who is still alive aged 87 but now retired after broadcasting in his native Canada – David Gell.
He hosted the Granada TV quiz Concentration in the late 1950s, and appeared on Ready Steady Go as a compere. He was on both BBC Light Programme and Radio Luxembourg. He hosted a show called European Pop Jury on Radio 2, a form of unbearable all year round Eurovision Song Contest.
According to BBC Genome his last BBC appearance was in 1977 after which he returned to Canada for the rest of his career. So there are TWO survivors from the Light Programme. I discount those who joined in 1967 and went on to Radios 1 and 2, David Hamilton (ABC in vision announcer). springs to mind.

Alan Jarvis 11 March 2019 at 8:08 pm

In this post you mention Sounds of The 60s with Brian Matthew. I and some others have uploaded to Mixcloud every SOTS show from 2004 to 2016 except for the two that are missing, and more.
Can you help?
The two missing shows are;
15 April 2006 this will have the A to Z of the Beatles – Don’t Pass Me By
15 July 2006 this will have the A to Z of the Beatles Get Back.
If you have these we would be most grateful and if you need any help then please ask.
Thank you
Alan Jarvis

Arthur Vasey 10 January 2021 at 10:24 am

Paul – David Hamilton was on Broadcasting House this morning, as one of the guests reviewing the news – a new commercial radio station, Boom Radio, is all set to launch in February which has him as a presenter as well!

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