Moonie Says...

Football Clubs Twitter

2011-11-13T15:51:00.001Z

Since starting the podcast "From The Rookery End" I have been looking at how football clubs use different forms of media. The Premier League has it's billions of pounds because of the media - TV in particular - and the media gap between the big boys and the little fellas is growing more and more with the ever shrinking ownership in media TV, radio and newspaper. So when I see a team take the control of their own media I do a small little fit pump!

The best platform I've seen this on is Twitter, and non-league clubs use it very well. During a match clubs like Lewes FC and Wealdstone FC put up regular tweets through out the game keeping fans and locals in the loop of what is going on. It's like the text commentary that the BBC have on their website during a game, but it hasn't cost them anything. The clubs are at a level where not even local BBC are going to send some one to do regular updates let alone full match commentary. What I like about these two clubs in particular is the personality they put into their tweets, they are nicely descriptive in the action, even with the 140 character limit, and by looking back over the tweets since you last look you get a feeling of how a fan (you) might be feeling in the crowd.

As a Watford supporter I have the luxury of full match commentary on every game from my local BBC radio station, and there is a full run down of stats and text commentary on the BBC Sports website. However, this last Tuesday Watford were playing in the Herts Senior Cup away at Bishop Stortford. The normal Watford media were at Vicarage Road for a Fans Forum and didn't send anyone to the BIG MATCH. So me and my two podcast co-hosts went to the game to cover it. We did goal updates, photos of the ground, team sheets and comments through out the game. We weren't as organised as we should have been. We didn't come up with a specific #hashtag and we were using THREE twitter accounts - I know that's just stupid! However, we used audioboo to do a prematch, half-time and full time updates/chats which give a full picture of the night.

You can listen to them HERE.

Before we started doing monthly podcasts that went up on iTunes we used our audioboo account quite a bit and it was a great way to warm us up as a team before we took on a 45 minute podcast.

Sometimes a club doing twitter updates can swamp a twitter time-line and not all the updates are always read. Audioboo allows for up to 5 minutes of audio to be uploaded and it allows for atmosphere to be picked up as well as greater expression of how fans are feeling. A post match manager interview could also be uploaded and shared on Twitter or Facebook. It suits non-league football perfectly as all this can be done from an iPhone or Android phone and they don't have any major broadcasting rights issues.

We had hoped to give our experiment another go in the 2nd round of the Herts Senior Cup, but the Watford Under 18's team who played the fixture lost 4-1. We wait for the next opportunity to try it out and if any other clubs have a go with audioboo or twitter... or any other sort of media then please get in touch!

Jon

Radio Industry - Can I tell you where I'm at..... I'M OUT!!

2010-06-27T21:21:00.000+01:00

So I have decided to say fair well to the radio industry and move on to pastures new. I've had a lot of fun, made a lot of cool friends in the 14 years I've been making radio, but the personal challenges I desire for my work life don't match up with radio anymore.

So what am I going to do?

I'm going to be a Science teacher. I'm going to help children to learn and get excited and passionate about science. I've recently spent a month working in schools and loved every minute of it. It's a "proper job" as my Nan would call it. I start a "Subject Knowledge Top Up Course" this week (well it has been a while since I learnt most of this stuff myself) and in September I start a PGCE for 7-14 Years Old Science at the University of Sussex.

I've spent a lot of the last two years looking at my position in the radio industry and where I want to go. Trying to find a challenge that I want to take on head first. I've not found it. There's been some interesting ones, but not ones that I would get obsessed with. For some reason I need to be obsessed with the things I do. At Beacon where I was Deputy PC I found myself in a position I adored. I worked with people I loved and I had challenges that tested me and helped me grow. Because of redundancy (which I totally understood) I had to take a backwards step and I therefore looked at the path ahead of me. The layer the radio programming I had reached has been deleted across the board. So I was in a lower layer which didn't really have the depth of challenges I wanted. Running one show as a producer wasn't enough. Working in radio was never about the free CD's and meeting famous people. I wasn't going to work in radio for working in radio sake. I worked in radio because everyday I got to have the same excitement I had the very first time I did a radio show at 16. I've not got that excitement for a while now and the opportunities that were in radio weren't enough for me to want to get my teeth stuck in.

I've always been lucky enough to be able to make the choice I want in my life. I've always done things that I wanted. I got to make choices that give me a sparkle in my eye and a smile on my face. If I'm not happy and smiling then there is no point doing anything!

I will keep making radio. My new Watford FC podcast has got off to an amazing start and we're going to have a lot of fun watching football and creating a monthly podcast!

So what advice do I leave the radio industry... well that will come in a series of Blog post to follow!

Thanks to everyone

England vs USA... Everton vs Bolton

2010-06-13T12:04:00.000+01:00

I don't know why I do this, but I like to know what the domestic equivalent is when international teams play each other. I suppose it helps me put things into some sort of perspective. We hardly see international teams play each other it helps to know what the matches "should" be like.

Below is a table I stuck together for the Top 50 international teams (according to The FIFAWorld Rankings as of 26th May 2010) and the teams in order of where they finishing in the English Football Leagues (20 Premier, 24 Championship and 6 from the League One)

So England are Everton and last night they were playing Bolton (USA). So a result of Everton 1-1 makes some sense doesn't it? In the rest of the group stages England will be playing, Bristol City (Algeria) and Leicester City (Slovenia).

Have a look at the table and see what the international equivalent is for your team. Being a Watford makes my international team Denmark!

1	Brazil	Chelsea
2	Spain	Manchester United
3	Portugal	Arsenal
4	Netherlands	Tottenham Hotspur
5	Italy	Manchester City
6	Germany	Aston Villa
7	Argentina	Liverpool
8	England	Everton
9	France	Birmingham City
10	Croatia	Blackburn Rovers
11	Russia	Stoke City
12	Egypt	Fulham
13	Greece	Sunderland
14	USA	Bolton Wanderers
15	Serbia	Wolverhampton Wanderers
16	Uruguay	Wigan Athletic
17	Mexico	West Ham United
18	Chile	Burnley
19	Cameroon	Hull City
20	Australia	Portsmouth
21	Nigeria	Newcastle United
22	Norway	West Bromwich Albion
23	Ukraine	Nottingham Forest
24	Switzerland	Cardiff City
25	Slovenia	Leicester City
26	Israel	Blackpool
27	Côte d'Ivoire	Swansea City
28	Romania	Sheffield United
29	Turkey	Reading
30	Algeria	Bristol City
31	Paraguay	Middlesbrough
32	Ghana	Doncaster Rovers
33	Czech Republic	Queens Park Rangers
34	Slovakia	Derby County
35	Colombia	Ipswich Town
36	Denmark	Watford
37	Sweden	Preston North End
38	Honduras	Barnsley
39	Bulgaria	Coventry City
40	Costa Rica	Scunthorpe United
41	Republic of Ireland	Crystal Palace
42	Gabon	Sheffield Wednesday
43	Scotland	Plymouth Argyle
44	Ecuador	Peterborough United
45	Japan	Newcastle United
46	Latvia	Norwich City
47	Korea Republic	Leeds United
48	Burkina Faso	Millwall
49	Venezuela	Charlton Athletic
49	Lithuania	Swindon Town

Oxford Radio - An Ageing Process

2010-02-19T14:53:00.006Z

A very interesting thing could be about to happen in UK radio. A radio station could quite dramatically change format. There have been a few format tweaks in the last few years, but Radiotoday.co.uk is reporting that Oxford FM107.9 want to flip massively from the Kids to the Oldies.

Currently, according to it's format, they are:

"The voice for young Oxford through a mix of primarily new, "cutting edge" and credible chart music"

They wants to be:

"The voice for Oxford through a mix of easy-listening soft music aimed at the 45+ adults with local news, phone-ins, local information and culture features targeting the city"

Since launching in 1997 the station has never posted decent RAJAR results and it's sister station Jack FM which only launched a few years ago posted double the number of listeners in it's first set of results. 107.9FM has had multiple owners and it seems that the format is unworkable in that market.

The language they are using for their new format is very clever and makes them distinctive from their commercial sister station Jack FM:

"A music-Intensive station playing a variety of pop/rock and classic rock for over-35's in Oxford and South Oxfordshire Area."

And it's only other local commercial rival Heart Oxfordshire:

"A locally oriented contemporary and chart music and information station for under 44's in the Oxford/Banbury area."

So they'll play different music from Jack and target the complete other end of the age range to Heart. A distinct and alternative choice for the listeners in the area.

I do hope this is a move that goes through. It's good to see a market expressing it's needs and businesses making the changes to meet those demands. I'm not saying we should be as free as they are in USA, but as long as stations present OFCOM with a solid business argument then that fine with me. I would certainly prefer a change of format by a radio station then closing it down.

What might have been lost is the ability for other stations in the market to adjust to compensate. I do wonder what would have happened to Fox FM if this had happened pre-Heart. Would they have tweaked their music a little younger (as their format allows) and superserve the younger ends of the market and compete more directly with Radio 1 rather then their commercial rivals?

Unfortunately, that is highly unlikely to happen. Is this the first major missed opportunity in this highly networked age?

Danny The Champion of The Radio

2010-02-19T11:06:00.005Z

A few blog posts back I mentioned my two NEW favourite radio presenters are Hamish and Andy from Australia. In that blog I mentioned many presenter I admire, but my favourite presenter of all time is Danny Baker - The Candyman.

I've often tried to explain to people why I love listening to Danny and I find it extremely hard. I can tell you that he has an ability to draw out great stories from his listeners, or how he can make a stupid topic amazing when most others would make it sound cheesy. I can tell you that he uses sound effects and music wonderfully to animate stories and how his use of quotes and language is brilliant.

But you know what, there is something in there that I just can't tell you. It's my internal joy and the words I know can't do it justice.

The above image is a screen shot from his new 5Live video. All the Five Live presenters have done them. I think they are great at showing off the huge number of experts and personalities they have on the station - also I like the a fancy camera technique. Danny's sums himself up very well. His anti meetings and prep attitude could be very hard to manage or produce, but it's this freedom that makes him do what he does so well. I like how he also takes on the burden for getting the conversation going with listeners but also when their on he puts a lot on them to perform.

All this is helping me to tell you why I love Danny Baker on the Radio, but I still think something is missing!

You can listen to Danny both live and in the future on BBC London 94.9 Weekday 3-5pm, and on Five Live Saturday Morning 9-11am.

Back to Square One*

2010-02-19T10:34:00.004Z

I'm a huge advocate of live football commentery on the radio. It can give stations a weekly rating peak as well as offering an avenue to draw in new listeners across the week. It's can be a fantastic association to have and also be a massive help for sales. It also sounds fantastic!

Yesterday the final 6 package of Premier League Commentary rights were announced by the FA. From next season three stations will share the national commentary rights

BBC Radio 5 Live: Saturday 12.30, 1st Choice Saturday 3pm, Sunday 4pm and Monday 8pm

talkSPORT: Saturday 5.30pm and Sunday 1.30pm

Absolute Radio: 2nd Choice 3pm

Here is how I think it will help all three stations.

Absolute Radio

This is their first foray into commentary and for me it backs up the manly side of their brand brilliantly. I don't think the commentary will be give the Absolute the same ratings jump on Saturday afternoons as it can for a station on local level. However, the association with the Premier League brand will help with awareness, stations perceptions and the sales team no end.

They are also making Saturday a huge "must listen" for football fans. With Frank Skinner in the mornings and live football in the afternoon they could increase their hours very nicely.

talkSPORT

Even though the station has had the 2nd choice 3pm commentary package for 3 years these new packages means talkSPORT will have live commentary without competition from 5Live for the first time. These packages are the sort of thing that could send talkSPORT even higher in a football fans radio listening.

On a Saturday they can produce a killer pre-match show between 12-3pm as fans go to the ground. They can then to run an "around the grounds" banter filled service 3-5pm, which will make them THE place to be if you want to know the afternoons bigger footballing picture. Come 5pm they will have the evenings big game for everyone to listen to as they travel home down the motorway. They will also be able to push the footballing debate later then they currently do with a phone in 7.30-9.00pm

They will also benefit from the good relationship Sky have with ESPN. Since ESPN took on the Saturday 5.30pm TV rights Sky have been a lot more helpful to them then they were Setanta. They normally have one of the "Top 4" teams playing.

The Sunday game will really bulster their weekend proposition as a whole, and with a clean uncompetitive commentary slot they could really own sports coverage early on a Sunday afternoon.

BBC Radio 5Live

Many will see this as a loss for 5Live - I see it as a big win. 5LIve on the weekends can sound like wall-to-wall football commentary and the weekend morning programmes feel like they are squeezing in as many programmes as possible. I think it will free them up to do a full Breakfast Show on both mornings, the killer combo of Danny Baker and Fighting Talk on Saturday mornings, and on Sunday with no live football till 4pm they will have a little more slack in the schedule for Sportsweek, comedy programming and a decent discussion programme. They will also be able to give Formula 1 a permanent early Sunday afternoon slot during it's season.

They will also get the 606 phone in back at 6:06pm on both Saturday and Sunday.

* - I go with the second theory

iPhone App - "ISAIDWHAT?!"

2010-02-17T17:30:00.002Z

Found a new iPhone app via radiotoday.co.uk recommendation. "ISAIDWHAT?!" and it's only costs 59p - BARGAIN!

I've been playing around with it and I'm very impressed. I've used a few different audio recording iPhone apps like AudioBoo and the Voice Memo, but this one is by far more useful to the Radio Industry.

1) You can change the mic input sensitivity. A Fantastic tool if you're recording an interview and then a press conference or even a atmospheric wild track.

2) Editing - It's the first app I've found with decent editing. It's not perfect, but it's the most useful I've seen. It's non-destructive, and to do an internal edit you have to select the sections you want and create a new "snippet". You have to do this one section at a time. Afterwards you'll have a list of clips which you can use in an arrangement. You can arrange the various snippets In the order you want. A little laborious, but if you want to do clever stuff then you shouldn't be using an iPhone to do edits.

4) Exporting - You can export the files to a computer via email or WiFi. They export as WAV files which are far more compatible then the m4a files like the Voice Memo App.

You can also export them straight to your social media platform of choice. You can publish to Facebook and Twitter without a separate registration that you need with an app like AudioBoo. It would be good to publish to a Fan Page, but that might come with later versions.

5) Script - it has an area where you can type out a script or some preparation notes before recording.

6) Play back - in an "Arrangement of Snippets" you can turn the iPhone landscape and it turns each clip into a hot key. If you are using an ISDN unit for a two-way then you could easily insert multiple clips into your chat and play them from a location.

A journalist or sports reporter would probably get the most use out of it. They could record an interview or press conference and quickly a cut clip and email it into the newsroom where it could be put it straight into a bulletin without having to edit it.

If you know of a better audio recording and editing app for the iPhone then please, do tell!

Radio 2... Age AND Beauty

2010-02-17T12:26:00.006Z

Two bits from the BBC Trust Review of Radio 2 bits interested me:

BEAUTY

"Radio 2 should enhance delivery of the BBC’s public purposes by further integrating peak and off-peak content."

This is quite an easy thing to do and they could actually sort it by next week. An arts guest/feature would sit nicely into Simon Mayo's Drivetime programme, a documentary segment would work well on Ken Bruce especially the music ones and a repackaged comedy skit on Chris Evans or Steve Wright wouldn't sound out of place at all. Long term look they can look at commissioning - the topics and what a producer delivers will only increase what they can use this.

The bit that really got me thinking, was about the age of a Radio 2 audience.

AGE

"Radio 2 should investigate reasons for the decline in audience among over 65 year olds and, in particular over 75 year olds, with the aim of addressing this decline."

My first thought that the decline of the over 75 year old needs to be addressed by the NHS and not the BBC. Then with my professional head on I saw a incredible challenge ahead to make any significant increases on a music dominated radio station. The difference in musical tastes between a 65 and 75 year old is VAST.

One grew up during the war - One born after the war
One was a teenager in the 50's - One in the swinging 60's
One listened to Vera Lynn - One brought Beatles records
One is more familiar with piano and brass band sound - One more familiar with guitar, bass and drums.

When you put those two musical tastes next to each other on the radio it just sounds terrible. The weekend on the network is already split as younger Saturdays and older Sundays. 1 day a week for the over 70's is probably about as good as they are going to get. And some better promotion of this programming might help a bit as well!

The worry comes from the recent daytime schedule changes and how it could draw down that average age of 50. Some of the features introduced on Drive and Breakfast this year certainly feel a lot more family orientated. These may not alienate the older audience, but they could easily increase the 25-35's which might cause the BBC Trust to order the Executive to do some more drastic changes that could sound disastrous.

And the Oscar goes to...

2010-02-02T14:31:00.004Z

The Oscar nominations have been annouced today. I may not have seen all the movies on the short list, but I've seen a fair few of them. So to start of the prediction games here are my picks for the major awards.

BEST DIRECTOR - James Cameron, Avatar

Even though the film is very simple in both story and character development, I'd give Cameron the award because of how he brought together so many different elements and each one still high in standard. The 3D world of pandora he created blew me away and the technology he pushed in the making of this film will effect film making for years to come.

BEST ACTOR - George Clooney, Up In The Air

I've not seen all the films in this category, but what I loved about George is how he made Ryan in Up In The Air seem so real. There were moments of huge emotion, but it was done realistically. I believed 100% why he was the way he is and how he made the personality changes.

BEST ACTRESS - Sandra Bullock - The Blind side

I've not seen any of the films nominated so can't pick real winner. However, I've always fancied Sandra Bullock and that is as good a reason as any to give her a little gold man.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS - Anna Kendrick, Up In the Air

Both the female supports in this film were great. However, like George Clooney I love the realism of the Alex Character. I can't add much more without spoiling the film.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR - Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

In cinematic history many, many men have played a Nazi officer. Col Hans Landa is the greatest I've EVER seen. He is funny, if not hilarious at times and Christoph makes you like the character as well. However, he is also one of the meanest mother f*&kers I have ever seen on screen. I'd give him the award on the opening scene alone.

BEST PICTURE - Up

This is such a wonderful film. I can go on and on about all the amazing parts in it, the great characters and the highs and lows of emotions. However, what makes it amazing is how it is truly inspiring. Not many films can do that. Many will make you think about causes or hit close to home with your life. Not many will make you feel as great about the life in front of you as Up will. It even make grown men cry which I know it did for many!

District 9 came a very close second.

To see how well my predictions go we will have to wait until March 7th.

WORLD CUP... WOOP WOOP!!

2010-01-21T21:35:00.003Z

I'm already getting very, very excited about this summers World Cup. I've downloaded my wall chart and after seeing this compilation of the Top 50 World Cup goals in History I am very close to wetting my pants with excitement.

My two favourite goals of all time are the last two on this video. Maradonas 2nd goal against England in Mexico 86 is probably the best individual goal. He pretty much won that World Cup on his own! Brazil's goal in Mexico 70 is the best team goal ever. Many see the 1970 Brazil team as the best team of all time. This was the World Cup final, it was between the best two teams in the world and Brazil walked all over Italy. This goal makes Italy look like a Sunday league side.

Let's hope for a few more classic come June!

Oh and who's up for collecting World Cup stickers??

The Superbowl Is Coming

2010-01-12T19:43:00.003Z

There are loads of UK sports fans who watch one game of American Football every year - The Superbowl. It's the most watch annual game of sport in the world. 95.4 million people watched the Pittsburgh Steelers' beat the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII last year in the US alone. I love the sport and it's well worth staying up till the early hours of Monday morning. The last two have gone down to the final few plays of a game. You get all the American razzmatazz, the big hitting 300 pound men, the leggy cheerleaders and a small pop concert at Halftime.

However, because this is the only game some people watch every year they often turn up knowing the rules but miss the nuisances of a match up, what happened in the 17 week regualr season or the three rounds of playoffs. You might be able to watch live games on Sunday on Channel Five and Sky Sports, but after a weekend of watching at least four live Premier League games plus Match of The Day, it's a strong man who asks his missus to hand over the telly on Sunday night as well.

Fear not, there is a new show on Monday nights on BBC 2 that might help a few more people know what's been going on in the run up to this years Superbowl 44. Launched this week, and still available on the iPlayer, "American Football" is a Match of The Day styled show that rounds up all the weekends Playoff matches (the knockout stage of the season). So if you normally turn up to Superbowl Sunday clueless you'll be able to see if a team has dominated their way to the Superbowl, if an underdog has found some good form at the right time or if one of the seasons most successful teams has fallen at the last hurdle.

NFL UK have done a great job building the sport in the UK over the last few years. We now have competitive regular season games at Wembley every October and this show - especially as it's on the iPlayer - could be a great thing to help it a little bit more. If you've never watched a game before or you want to get ready for the Big game on Sunday 7th February then give it a watch. This week you will see Green Bay @ Arizona which was the first "Game for the Ages" for this decade and worth a watch.

First Impressions - Chris Evans

2010-01-11T09:56:00.004Z

You're never meant to judge a breakfast show on it's first outing. As first RAJAR results press releases always say when there'a a dip in audience... They take a while to "bed in". Anyway here are my first impressions of the new Chris Evans Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2.

Feature-TASIC

There were lots of features - all with catchy names - and it felt like there was little time to breath. Features are always good for a new show and team and I suspect they will thin out when "the team" are more comfortable playing off each other and can talk about the world.

They are fun, engaging, play-along and easy to follow features. They would sound cheesy and corny on pretty much every other radio station, but it's Evans fun nature that makes them great. I'm not saying I wouldn't want the "Jukebox Jury" feedback on-air quicker, have Johnny slow down when explaining his "Go Johnny Go" answer, have a little bit more from the Celebrity on "Either/Or", or even . These are minor things and should go soon enough. Would I dump any this early.... "Pause for Thought" maybe - and you thought I would say "Mystery Guest"!!

News-LEGEND

Getting Moira Stewart to do news was great move. She lifts the news out of the rest of show so much more than any other normal newsreader could have. It deflects She has authoritative yet calming tone, a familiar feel and is basically a Legend.

Music-RANGE

Some may have expected Evans to do what he did on Radio 1 and play lots of Britpop like Ocean Colour Scene... oh wait.. but he played a great range of music that everyone will love. Even a few double plays in there which should increase the music perceptions. It was a very well programmed show of music with a classic feel. Lots of classic songs but new songs with classic pop/rock music values.

So overall... if a show is this good on Day 1 then I doubt there will be a defensive RAJAR press release. It was a return to classic radio values and if several parts of the radio industry could follow his lead then we'll be in a much better place.

Radio Adverts

2010-01-09T19:48:00.005Z

I often think radio adverts can miss the mark. Too many dogs with funny ears or presenters being painted or exploded for no reason what so ever. However, and this has nothing to do with my previous gushing post about him, but the new Chris Evans BBC Radio 2 Breakfast advert is absolutely bob on!

Why... well for me when I watch it this is what it says to me...

1. Chris Evans - Cause you can see him. A simple thing, but sometimes it's missed

2. He's on the Radio - He's wearing headphones in a radio studio. If lots of people just saw him on the TV they might think he has a new TV show. Obvious, but you'd be surprised!

3. He's on Radio 2 - cause he says it "Radio 2 at Breakfast Show plays The Beatles"

4. He's not going to play Britpop and everything we know him for from TFI/Radio 1. - cause he's playing a Beatles song.

5. Great Fun - Cause he's having fun in the studio and so is everyone else

6. Everyones is welcome and can join in - cause everyone is singing along and the tag line is "Starring You. Oh... and him". It sets the tone for the show. It will be big part of the show as it was for Wogan. It just won't be in the same way Wogan did it. It will be how Chris Evans does it!

You might have seen it on the telly, but it you didn't then go here!

This Monday Morning... 06:59

2010-01-08T17:09:00.007Z

On 22nd Septemeber 1992 I got up at 7am to watch a brand new morning show on Channel 4 called "The Big Breakfast". It that morning I found one of the biggest influences in my life.

Chris Evans

His enthusiasm, passion and smile (plus his two alien friends from in the bathroom) grabbed me and got me VERY excited. I watched that show everyday and I hated that I had to leave for school at 8.15 and missed the last 45 minutes.

Since that first Big Breakfast I have followed his every move...

In 1994 I watched the first solo TV show Don't Forget Your Toothbrush - I fell in love with "Ms Let Your Hair Down". In 1995 woke up to listen to his first Radio 1 Breakfast Show - To this day I call our family friend "Nicky Lamby-Pie" because of the show. I shouted it down the phone to him today. On a Friday evening in 1996 I watch the first TFI Friday - Thanks to it I saw a lot of new bands who's CD I went our and brought the next day. I also loved it's features - "Ugly Bloke", "Freak or Unique" and "It's Your Letter". In the autumn of 1997 I listened to his first Virgin Radio Breakfast Show, what a boring few months it had been since he left Radio 1. I even watched the first Sky 1 TV show of the Virgin Show. I listened to the hour he did for Radio-Aid and I've listen to his first BBC Radio 2 Shows - specials, Saturday afternoons and Drive! Oh and I watched the first OTI Sunday on ITV in 2005.

Whatever he did his love for life came through and made me smile!

I'm not lying to you, there was a point in about 1998 when I was at Uni that I stopped listening to him on Virgin because I wasn't up early enough. And when he first went to Radio 2 the shows weren't up to the high standards I held him to. However, since he moved to drive I have fallen back in love with him and his All Request Friday show was a staple of my Friday evening drive south when I worked in Wovlerhampton.

So this Monday morning at 7am he will present his first BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show. And this afternoon I have been getting excited from the tweets he's been putting up on twitter.

Doesn't it sound exciting? You can already tell it's going to be a mass of enthusiasm coming from the radio. Plenty of energy, lots of passion and a huge love of life. I'm setting my alarm for 6:59am and I know I'll be smiling with in 2 seconds!

MOONIE'S COLOUR CREME EGG COMPETITION

2010-01-08T10:23:00.008Z

IMAGE: From Creme Egg Facebook Page

In the last day or so girls have been posting the colour of their bras/underwear on their Facebook Status. I have no idea why - is it about to alienate boys, or try and get them excited and imagine women in their bras, is it as sign of feminine bra-power solidarity or is it just girls just wanting to share some really boring information.

Whatever it is I didn't get the email, but for a bit of fun last night I stuck up my own quizical colour related Facebook Status:

So far no one has got the right answer and I thought I'd keep it going till we found a home for these wonderful Cadburys Creme Egg!

Just to be fair, here are THE RULES...

WINNER: The winning answer will be the first correct answer seen in my notification feed. You can comment in any related Facebook statuses I put up. OH and you can guess as many times as you like.
START: Friday 8th January 2010

END: The competition will run until the answer is found OR Easter Day (4th April 2010) when Creme Eggs aren't on sale and I can't buy anymore.
PRIZE: I put up two Cadburys Creme Eggs, but here's something cool - Everyday it continues to be unanswered I will add another Creme Egg to the prize 'basket'.
CLUES: I will give out clues at random times when I want to.

Good luck and I can't wait to see if someone gets it quickly or if I get a lot of very entertaining answers!

After Terry... Part 2

2010-01-05T10:09:00.003Z

Previously on this blog... I talked about how I think Terry Wogan leaving Radio 2 breakfast will mean the station could be Better Showbiz with Chris Evans on Breakfast and at the same time be a Better Public Service Broadcaster with Simon Mayo at Drivetime. And it's Mayo's move to Radio 2 that leads me to this post. His departure has lead to several changes to BBC Radio 5Live daytime schedule and this will be my little musings of what it could mean for the station and what I would do with if I were in charge.

Their 1st big move is to add another presenter/slot between Breakfast and Drive. 5Live has always been a station one that I always listen to for long periods of time. It was hell bent on BREAKING NEWS and during the day it often seemed like they are Breaking News for Breaking News sake. It's was a meld of news and sports all day long with very few distinctive periods of programming where a listener might make an appointment. You wouldn't tune in for something and then tune out afterwards. In radio rating world this is a great thing, but in a podcast/listen again world it was often weird.

With the new presenter line up I can see each show having a slightly different focus. The half hourly news and sport will keep the feeling of rolling news and I'm sure when a big enough story breaks all three shows can throw their remit out the window and go with what's important.

So what should the focus be?

Victoria Derbyshire 1000-1200: she currently presents a show that looks into the stories of the day a lot deeper and gives them time to get out a lot more emotions and personal stories. The interaction is fantastic and not reactionary like the phone in. This shouldn't change much at all.

Gabby Logan 1200-1400: I'm not the biggest fan of Gabby, but neglecting that, she will bring sport into the daytime. It's something they've never done very well in daytime with lots of it being focussed in the evenings and weekends. Sport happens all day, but I wouldn't think of tuning in to 5LIve daytime if I wanted sport specifically. The station often sends Derbyshire on OBs for big sporting events - An attempt to get a wider feel for the life around a big event. This has often felt too early in the day and lacking a bit of sporting authority on Derbyshire's part - Logan should help improve this.

Prime Minsters question time falls within Logan's Wednesday show and I really really hope that she hands over to John Pienarr and leaves him to it. I don't see me ever buying her as a political enthusiast.

Richard Bacon 1400-1600: I hope for his focus to be Entertainment. The station has done this across many shows with Colin Patterson, but it often comes across as reporting and not conversational enough. It's a presenters reading the script and question put in front of him/her and it doesn't come across as if they don't know/care about the topic. Bacon should change this and across the whole of the entertainment world. I also hope he brings his off beat and comedic elements he has always managed in his radio be it on XFM, Capital, 6Music or Late Night 5Live. I doubt we'll get the something we're not allowed to talk about, but I do expect a club feeling and lots of laughter.

So Chris Evans going to Radio 2 Breakfast is getting me excited about hearing one of my favourite presenters in the morning and is sure to make me listen to Radio 2 a lot more - that and my age. And the new daytime 5Live is getting me excited about all the wonderful things I can learn from the radio and actually being a better version of what is my favourite radio station.

Dear Cadburys

2010-01-04T15:02:00.005Z

Dear Cadburys

I'm a long time eater of your chocolaty goodness. If only you had invented the Mars Bar then you would have had sewn up my entire chocolate eating since childhood. My favourite thing you make is the Creme Egg. Friend and family will tell you that I can be bribed with them and there was a stage of my life at University when I could eat FOUR a day. My students union shop used to sell them 4 for £1 and everyday on my way to my student radio station I'd purchase FOUR. I'd love to tell you that my weight gained at University was down to heavy drinking, it wasn't. It was from eating too many creme eggs. I love gnawing off the top - the thick chocolate tip is so wonderful and intense. I follow that by eating the inside - the "yoke and egg white" is so smooth and sweet. The whole affair is finishing off in one go and a mixture of both those

However, I have a problem. It's how they come out every January. Many people, including my friends Angela Jein, see it as a corporation capitalising on Easter celebration far too early. I don't. I see it as you giving this goodness to the british public for the maximum amount of time. My problem is that it always coincides with me wanting to lose a little bit of weight in January. So in 2011 could you weight till February to launch the Creme Egg?

Oh and before I go can I say that you don't need to produce the Twisted Bars anymore. They maybe the same combination of chocolate and "yoke and egg white", but it just doesn't work.

Regards

Jon

After Terry.... Part 1

2009-12-28T22:53:00.001Z

Sir Terry Wogan leaving the Radio 2 Breakfast Show is not going to just effect the composition of BBC Radio 2, but also BBC Radio 5Live. In a two part blog series I'm going to have a bit of fun with my thoughts and desires on what should happen to each network and how they should refocus a little. Part 1 looks at the changes at Western House... Radio 2!

BBC Radio 2
Many critics see Radio 2's high ratings as a measure of it being "too popular" for a public service broadcaster. Personally, a lot of it's ratings success is down to commercial radios failings. Old people, like my mum, have little true choice on the dial and Radio 2 is the only station doing the music and speech elements they want. Installing Chris Evans on Breakfast could quite easily be viewed as the station trying to be even more populist. However, adding Simon Mayo as Drivetime presenter means that they will have more quality news and current affairs to balance that.

Being a MASSIVE Chris Evans fan I am most looking forward to see what he does with Breakfast. He won't be able to do the type of show Wogan did (he's just not Terry) and he's older and calmer so can't really do the mad cap stuff he did on Radio 1. If I were controller I would make it a blend of big entertainment guests and Evans style of "fun and games". He also needs to have lots of listener participation and I hope Evans keeps the Togs working by trying to create things for the greater good! It's also a fantastic move to bring in Moira Stewart as his news reader. It will keep the news elements distinctive from the "fun and games", and it might help curb some criticisms.

Yes, booking showbiz stars will put his production team in direct competition with Steve Wrights, but I'm fine with that. Wright rarely has BIG BIG stars, just lots of quality TV and pop stars. Evans has the history and status to get the big boys like Bono, Madonna and the Big Hollywood stars.

So Evans will lift the showbiz a little... but Mayo will lift the speech and current affairs on the station at the same time. I don't see Mayo presenting a show too different from the drivetime show that Evans has presented - a series of experts coming into the studio to present sport, travel, business and news round ups. Evans often let his his experts lead these elements, but I can see Mayo getting far more involved giving the whole show a far greater feel of current affairs. Also, with his now 8 years presenting on 5Live he has a reputation for covering news and he could easily be Radio 2's go to man for Gordon Brown or David Cameron interviews. This will give the station two big current affairs elements with Mayo and Jeremy Vine at lunchtime. What more could a public service broadcaster want? Having heard Mayo fill in for Evans at the tail end of 2009 you know he hasn't lost his skills as a music presenter and along with a few none news features he'll present a rounded music and news show.

So here's looking forward to Radio 2 in 2010. Now they have two of my favourite presenters at peaktimes I am bound to listen a lot more.

My New Favourite Presenters... Hamish & Andy

2009-12-22T13:55:00.008Z

To get into the "Jon Moonie's Favourite Presenters" list takes quite a lot. On it, in no particular order, are:

Danny Baker - He's the general who will always be top of the list
Chris Evans - A nostalgic love from Radio 1, but I love his pure enthusiasm
Christian O'Connell - Still presents a great show, but his XFM breakfast show was the most perfect and complete show ever
Richard Bacon - Fell in love with him on XFM, and I admire how he can keep that feel on serious 5Live
Colin Murray - He can present anything. Lots of people think they can... Colin can and does.
Simon Mayo - Another slightly nostalgic pick, but his Friday 5Live show was one of the only true MUST listens in radio

This year I added a new presenter... well presenters - Hamish and Andy from the Today FM Network Australia.

I was introduced to their podcast by my friend Tim Cocker, and I will thank him for it forever. I listen to their podcast on a daily basis and often listen as I fall asleep and I keep the girlie awake with my giggling.

Why? Because I enjoy it like a listener (something I find hard most of the time) and also that I am extremely jealous of what they create on-air.

In a nutshell the show is just two blokes, two best mates chatting about stuff dicking around as only blokes can do. No radio show does that in the UK, and the only ones that do are confrontational speech radio. However, it's so good that girls love it as well and they are one of the top rated radio shows in Australia. I also love how they make their regular features sound cult-like and special - Pants off Friday, Fred Basset, Horgs Invention, PA System...

Professionally, what I admire the most is that they don't waste content. I hear too many radio shows where an idea is rushed. They abuse the content to the maximum and They don't under sell the listeners.

The piece I appreciated the most this year was their interview with P!nk. They've done bigger things, but it's how they treated a simple interviews that I love. She must have done thousands of interviews in her career, so how do they make theirs better then anyother? They did "INK WITH PINK"... (and yes because it rhymes was a big reason to do it). The idea was for Hamish to get tattooed by P!nk whilst interviewing her before a concert. Many stations will do something similar for a cheap PR stunt, but it's their natural presenting manor and how they took the idea and made great content for 5 days, that's right 5 days before and after the interview.

Day 1: Hamish talks about the idea, "Ink with P!nk", but should he do it and possibly get in trouble with his girlfriend
Day 2: Build up to the interview they will be doing it tonight, but what should the tattoo be of?
Day 3: The interview - fantastic audio, a great video and you go to see a relaxed and different side to P!nk
Day 4: Prank Call - Hamish calls a restaurant to see if they will allow him in because he now he is a hard man and look mean with all this "Ink" - he has a little anchor (previous tattoo) and P!nks piece of work, a frog smoking a joint on a skateboard.
Day 5: P!nk is on twitter like them. So to keep the friendship going they want to send her a tweet. But what? After a lot of editing with callers they came up with:

"@Pink Hey babe, Lovin the ink. L8r SK8r Ribbit H&A"

That my friend is using content to it's maximum and not wasting an ounce of it. I could go on for hours with all the great things they have done, but the list is added to on a daily basis.

Yesterday they did a Special 1 Off (for now) show for BBC 6Music. If you missed it then you can hear it on the website. But you can also hear their best of 2009 podcast on hamishandandy.com and all their future wonderful daily podcast on iTunes when they return on January 18th 2010.

I can't recommend them enough!

Terry and His Listeners

2009-12-18T13:34:00.003Z

I listened to the final "Wake Up To Wogan" this morning. I've never been a regular listener to Terry, but through my mother I have appreciated how well he entertained my elders.

When I do listen I have loved how much his listeners give to the show. They are the show. They email (previously written) in everyday to give Terry some of the best content in the radio world. The show is everything that social media and interactive tv, radio and media are trying to achieve and often fall short. Why was Terry's content better then anyone elses? Simply because of him. His personality, voice and manor has meant that people feel happy and comfortable to contribute. He has also, over a period of time, set out the boundaries and standards for his listeners to follow.

Being open and clearly defined is what you want from your listeners is one of the most important part of any radio show. If you only ask "text me your favourite song" you get some terrible song choices. You also need to challenge listeners to do better and Terry did that brilliantly. The final piece of the puzzle for making a fantastic piece of radio comes down to the presenter. It's their job to bring it to life to it's full potential. Terry did it like no other by using his voice, tones and approving laughter as well as adding his own flavour through his amazing quick wit.

The last link from Terry was very touching and very fitting. It focused on him thanking his Togs. You can hear how much they meant to him and how they on the guardian website.

Sports Personality

2009-12-13T19:13:00.004Z

It's the Sunday night of the year were sports fans sit down to watch a celebration of a year of British Sport. And everyone in sport would want to win the main award. This years final 10, who you can vote for through the night, were paraded out on stage at the begining of the show and no one individual sports person really stood out as a clear no arguments winner.

For me the Sports Personality of The Year winner should be 1 if not several of these:

1) Be a World Champion or Leader in their sport
2) Have won a major prize in the year
3) Transcends a sport and makes it into the mainstream - ie my Mum knows them
4) Be a personality that has made more people take up a sport
5) It is about individual, but a team player can win if they did something special to help a team win

So what about this years Final 10...

Jenson Button - Winner of F1 World Championship
Everyone knows who he is, he is a world champion, but there is always something within me that says someone shouldn't win if they have a machine on their side. However, he did it in some tough circumstances and I hope that Brawn GP at leas win Team of The Year. Button has built on Lewis Hamilton and F1 is growing in popularity. He's very high on this years list.
4 out of 5

Tom Daley - Became World Diving Champion (Age 15)
Amazing thing to do at age 15, but he isn't a big enough personality. He has however just won Young Sports Personality of The Year. Far more fitting.
2 out of 5

Ryan Giggs - 11th Premier League
I think this is more for his career then this individual year. He won PFA Player of the year but he is the best player in Premier League history. And for me that puts him high up on this years list.
4 out of 5

David Haye - Winner WBC World Heavyweight Champion
He is the World Champion and he did beat a GIANT to get it. To be crowned Sports Personality I want him to firstly defend his title and possibly unify the belts. Then he will not only achieve something great, but also put boxing back on the map. 2010 winner maybe.
2 out of 5

Phillips Idowu - Gold Medal World Champion Triple Jump
He should get extra points for his hair, but I do find it hard to easily give it to someone who competes in one athletic discipline like Triple Jump.
2 out of 5

Jessica Ennis - Gold Medal World Champion in Heptathlon
So where Phillips lacks more then one discipline, Jessica is good at 7 and is the best in the world when you put them all together. She has a great comeback from injury story as well. I hope she can do it in 2012.
2 out of 5

Andy Murray - Rose to 3rd in The World Tennis ranking
A great year - being No3 in the world is amazing, especially who he has ahead of him. However, he hasn't won a "Major", which is really a minimum standard for being top in your sport.
2 out of 5

Andrew Strauss - Captain England Cricket Team in Ashes win
Yes he is the Captain, but he isn't the personality like Freddie Flintoff who in 2006 won England a test or two and was a face for English Cricket.
1 out of 5

Beth Tweddle - Gold Medal Gymnastic World Championships Floor
She's "Britain's Greatest Gymnast" and maybe that accolade should be rewarded with the big trophy. She hasn't transcended a sport or grab any headlines.
2 out of 5

Mark Cavendish - Won 6 Stages of The Tour De France - The most ever
They call him the fastest cyclist in the world, and anyone who completes The Tour de France is a great athlete. Not he won 6 stages which is amazing. He needs to a Jersey. If he is in contention for the Yellow Jersey and win the Green then that would put him up very high on the list.
3 out of 5

So my top three are... in reverse order

3rd - Jessica Ennis - could easily win if she wins in 2012
2nd - Ryan Giggs
1st - Jenson Button

Song of The Decade... Part 2

2009-12-11T11:27:00.003Z

So Absolute Radio and XFM have both now announced their Song of The Decade... and both have KIllers Mr Brightside as their No1.

As you may have read from a previous post it was in my final short list. It's a great song I love to dance to at a Disco and glad that a cliche sad song like Chasing Cars didn't make it to No 1 as often it does.

But what makes this a great song.

1) The great singular guitar at the beginning
2) The slight melancholy lyrics which, if you've been in a break up can relate to - Damn you Jealousy!
3) And a chorus you can shout as loud as you like whilst jumping up and down to with mates in a bar

So for your enjoyment here is Mr Brightside in the best way possible... Live!

So after hours and hours of debate and listening to my ipod, my final choice for my Song of The Decade was...

Outkast and "Hey Ya"

Dear Lloyd Doyley... I'm Sorry

2009-12-09T22:16:00.004Z

Dear Lloyd Doyley

Can I start by saying that your goal on Monday was brilliant. I've been looking forward to seeing you score for... well 269 games. Since the beginning of this season you've been getting closer and closer. And ever time you get close the Rookery End fills with excitement. And then on Monday night you did it, you scored your first goal for Watford against Queens Park Rangers.

What a goal it was. Don Cowie sent the ball arching across the goal right to left, you threw yourself at the ball with true commitment and real gust, connecting with that Mitre football perfectly. And you sent it rocketing into the back of the net. Having not scored a goal for 269 games it was definently the type of goal you wanted to break your duck with.

Here's the reason for my letter... I missed it.

Yes, I'm really sorry, but I was working. The description above comes from me watching the hightlights on the telly and then over and over and over again on-line. I've been reading all the stories in the paper and all the reaction from Watford fans on twitter. They are all proud to have been there for your special moment. This might sound silly, but I feel that I've not only missed out on one of the special moments in your career, but also in the history of Watford Football Club. I feel I need to make it up to you.

So for me to know more about the moment and for you so you know what it means to the Watford fans I'm going to capture peoples memories. I'm going to be at Vicarage Road on Saturday for the games against Derby and I'm going to try and hunt down as many of the 15,058 fans who saw the goal and get them to tell me about it. What they saw, how they felt and what the moment means to them. I'll be wearing the t-shirt above so they can find me and I will put it all together for everyone to hear.

Again congratulations on your goal and to the team for some fantastic performances this season. It's been a great season.

Cheers

Jon Moonie

Song of The Decade

2009-11-01T18:23:00.005Z

Both XFM and Absolute Radio are asking their listeners to help them to find "The Song of The Decade". I think Absolute are doing it far better as they are living it across the whole station, both on-air and on-line. From how they have executed it on-air - it developed organically out of an original breakfast show bit - to the on-line content that develops the idea further and gets people truly thinking about the Song of The Decade.

I've often asked people what their favourite song is - it's a good first date tactic - and people always find it a really hard question to answer. It really isn't. Yes there are a lot of songs out there, but all you have to ask yourself is what type of song you want to define you - the feel, the musical style and the artist. That will cut your collection down dramatically. You can also think about some of your favourite moments and what were the songs that were playing at the time. From there you will have just a handful of songs to pick one favourite song.

So if picking a favourite song of all time is this easy, then picking one from the last ten years is going to be a piece of piss. After my personal deliberation, and going through my itunes, I have got it down to...

As you can see they are all very upbeat songs. I've never understood why people pick sad songs as their favourite. How can something sad and slow be anyones favourite thing? Yes, I have Eminem's "Stan" in there, but it's how that song is written that I love.

So have a think about your Song of The Decade and do tell. No choices can be put down, they are your favourites and no one can tell you that you are wrong. I will release my final choice at some point before the end of the Decade.

Blue Square Conference South... HD, Interactive, Football

2009-10-19T14:41:00.004+01:00

As part of Birthday Weekend No 2 I went to watch Weston Super Mere vs Lewes at the Woodspring Stadium in Weston on Saturday. Why that game you might ask? Well Watford were away at Middlesbrough and I was spending the weekend with family at my Mum and Aunts cottage just down the road from the Weston. It was my birthday and I just wanted to watch a game of football live, it happened to be the nearest.

It was the most enjoyable game of football I have seen in ages.

The girlie comes from Lewes, but that didn't matter to me. So with no allegiances I just enjoyed watching a game of football with out worrying about whether Watford would let an equalizer in. There were some quaint lower league moments. The slight feedback everytime the PA announcer turned his microphone on and how over the course of the game five footballs were lost over the concrete wall. Those things were lovely, but the thing I loved the most was how close to the game I felt. The whole pitch was surround by fence which you could lean up against during the game. It was about a metre and a half tall and about the same distance away from the touchline. And because I was so close I acted as ball-boy on two occasions in the first half. On one occasion as I threw the ball back to the Lewes number 2 he said "cheers mate" - now that's interactive football coverage! It was also good hearing everything the was shouted on the pitch. The "man on" shouts between players, all their nicknames and the managers words of encouragement. My favourite phrase from the Weston Manager was "open your legs". Jack Compton, the Weston number 11, had quite a pace on him and I hope it was the managers way of telling him to run at Lewes. The closeness also meant you could hear every swear word shouted by the players. Which for a man of my age is alright, but strange after a pre-match PA announcement and signs around the ground asking fans to watch their language. The Lewes goalkeeper had a particularly potty mouth.

I also loved how close all the fans seemed and how chatty they all were. I had my radio with me and was listening out for the Watford score. One guy who had been working in the refreshment hut came over and asked if I knew any scores and I told him what I knew. He then told me that this was his last game before Decemeber as he was going to have a heart by pass at the new hospital in Bristol. I don't know why he felt the need to share that with me, but he did. Everyone seemed to know each other and there was a proper community feeling. Lots of football clubs say they are a community club, and many are. They are central point for a local area, but at Weston they have created a strong group within the community. Even the women selling tickets for the half time draw knew many of the guys by name.

Football wise it was goals, goals, goals. A 3-2 victory for Weston with a hat trick from Dave Gilroy - a player from 2003-2005 who currently on loan from Newport County. Weston were a more attacking and physical side. They had more speed and all three goals came from breaks out of defence. Lewes were a better footballing side, passed the ball around nicely, but they could have scored a few more goals if only they had the finishers. They cut up the Weston defence a few times but couldn't turn the ball into the back of the net.

So if you're a football fan and you can get along to a non-league game then I highly recommend you go. Hopefully like me it will make you remember the simple things about the game and not just the big time of the Premier League.