They probably know this themselves but my parents have never been as enthusiastic about radio as I have.
Mum has always been a Radio 2 listener and that's more or less been the case since the days when Derek Jameson was on Breakfast as I was too young to remember Terry Wogan first time round.
Admittedly Frances Line was in her position as controller for too long.
The only good thing about it from a younger perspective were the jingles and an ever-growing set which is still the case today.
Only that these were from JAM and the ones done now are either from Groove Addicts in LA or Wise Buddah in the UK.
Nicky Schiller once said to me in an e-mail that the Groove Addicts jingles
(which get sung everywhere!) had grown on him but the JAM stuff could not be beaten.
Especially the many variants of the presenter jingles such as this really lovely one for the not as lovely Brian Hayes. That affects me more emotionally than any of the current jingles on the station.
Here's another variant, this time for Ken Bruce when he moved to lates for a short while.
I loved how each presenter could have there own different style of jingle with "Radio 2" sung in many different ways but it always ended with the presenter ID being sung in the key of E major with the chord structure being roughly the same, vocally and orchestrally.
I do wish I had a version of the Brian Hayes cut without the name tag at the end so I could stick one of my acapellas over it! The first ever jingle I played on t'wireless was exactly that and I can understand why Matthew Linfoot wasn't too sure! Especially with my terribly staged introduction beforehand which I am keeping away from this blog!
But I got the idea for this post after coming across a thread on Digital Spy covering the ever-continuing argument as to Radio 2's balance between light and "trendy".
Crushes were the worst things to have at weekends, as whenever I'd walk through the dining room on a Sunday I would either be hearing a dreadful Wurlitzer tune, or Charles Trenet as brought to you by the likes of Russell Davies or the late Richard Baker.
I really wanted whoever the current crush was to be there with me especially if it was as part of a bloody long car journey!
In fact I'll admit it, unless it involves beans on toast, vegetarian mince, any loud innapropriate noises, I would do anything I normally wouldn't be seen dead doing with my parents if I was with the right people at the right time.
I'm letting it out now!
The current Sunday schedule has improved with high points being Dale's Pick of the Pops and Johnnie Walker, but there ain't half a load of tosh. Elaine Paige, why? I've said this before but I came across the perfect description on Digital Spy;
"about as posh as a chip butty"
I was in stitches after reading that but to be honest, that latter in comparison would be even more comforting on a cosy Sunday in winter if everything was right.
I'm getting a bloody craving now. Arrrgh! Not to worry, just put either the crush, or pasta into perspective. I'm feeling better already.
I have a craving for pasta as a lot of lesser people do with chips. It doesn't work on it's own and sometimes I have to eat it by hand. That's what Hannah D once told me and I can't blame her.
I adore tomato puree as in the same way as they would with ketchup.
And I have to have any sort of meat or fish to be served with it.
I've come out of the closet again and am very selective over various types of fish.
I love mackarel provided there aren't too many bones, haddock is gorge, really strong stuff and my favourite has to be salmon. Mainly because of it's lovely colour.
But I'm not into cod. Like C-90 audio tapes, it's too flaky. No wonder there's a shortage of both!
Looks like I may be spending slightly more money on my culinary needs next year at Uni!
I bloody wish I went back to ASDA now!
Actually could I have survived there every day? No, I doubt it.
Sundays at ASDA were awful too. None of the nice people were there, only the horrible or gormless ones. This was between March and September 2003. The longest six months of my life.
There was a really nice woman who operated the checkout of the restaurant when I started who was there on weekdays. Her name was Justine and with a smile like that,
I can understand how she managed to get off working at weekends.
And before you ask, Michaela Strachan.
Justine was only there for a year since I joined as she left to have a baby which timing wise was perfect as it was when the restaurant closed and I went onto Home and Leisure for two months.
Jan, one of the other restaurant colleagues revealed to me about a month later with pride as I was rumbling the drinks machine that the baby's name was Robin!
My time on home and leisure didn't last long though. Everyone seemed really gutted when Sadie the supervisor revealed I would be leaving and I didn't have the guts to ask if I could be promoted, in fear that my rota would be affected. Thursday's and Saturday's between 9 and 5, bloody perfect! And despite the shoddy management they changed my shift to a Friday rather promptly after the days changed on my college course. Why didn't I do so during the summer?
For the next two weeks I was go-getting which meant having to wear a dreadful yellow t-shirt and showing shoppers round the store. This was bollocks. The aisles kept changing every fucking week and I was only working for two days! I've still got that T-shirt actually!
Then it came, the customer restaurant was refurbished and not for the better. Everything was bloody well cluttered, customers weren't happy, staff weren't happy and I kept getting blamed for other people's mistakes. Even Justine when she paid a visit to us was not impressed but she was still smiling.
But the restuarant wasn't the only problem, Lorraine, one of the lovely women
who hired me (Denise Van Outen) had left and I found out a year later that it was because she was going to sue ASDA for an accident that resulted in an ankle or leg injury. I don't know the exact details.
But she had the heart to pop over and say goodbye to us properly before transferring to the George in the Ashford store. Go on girl!
She's the only person apart from Justine who I had the heart to give presents to on her departure and I'd love to find out how she's getting on. I'm gutted I didn't take her e-mail address that she offered on the day.
And I'm afraid the many people who took over from her weren't up to her standards.
This resulted in having to wear white jackets that I HATED, and the fear that I would end up having to serve the crap that was dished out to the idiots. But if these were crush circumstances,
I would probably give in to going there myself!
Anyway, whilst the management kept on changing, the one thing I'm very grateful for was that they never refused any of my holiday requests. Although in all fairness they were booked in advance and I made sure that I didn't have to go into work the weekends before and after I finished my HND course, otherwise I would have been in real agony. And it meant I got to watch Live 8!
I did return to the store during Xmas 2005 which probably wasn't a good idea but I had almost reached the final straw when I got a phone call before Easter from the restaurant supervisor telling me that they were unable to offer me any work that period. I wasn't gutted at all. Oh no.
But I gave in for the summer of that year and was annoyed to find out that they were actually short staffed throughout the whole of the Easter! That and the lack of Justine, Lorraine and now Jan made my time there a misery and I'm fully determined never to return.
Well not as an employee but it was good to see all the others yesterday.
Quite a lot of people on the radio course would be great ASDA employees in the same way as some of the guys and girls at ASDA would be great on the radio! Although if you work at ASDA, I'm sure you're aware that in the store, the two don't appear to blend in well together!
Seriously, both jobs involve communication and smiles and provided the circumstances were right, without being patronising or hypocritical (I'm glad I didn't have to do group selection) I would love it either way.
If everyone would co-operate then I'd have no problem working on Sundays.
Provided I'm working closely with just as nice people at the same time.
That way we're all happy!
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