This is a list of events in

British radio Radio enjoys a huge following in the United Kingdom. There are around 600 licensed radio stations in the country. For a more comprehensive list see List of radio stations in the United Kingdom. BBC Radio The most prominent stations are the n ...

during 1969.

Events

January

*18 January – '' Saturday Club'' is aired on BBC Radio 1 for the final time.

February

*14 February – Radio comedian Kenneth Horne collapses and dies of a heart attack while hosting the annual Guild of Television Producers' and Directors' Awards at The Dorchester hotel in London, having just presented an award to Barry Took, co-scriptwriter of '' Round the Horne'', and invited viewers to tune in to its fifth series, due to start on 16 March. By 24 February the BBC has decided that ''Round the Horne'' cannot continue without its star and the scripts for series five are hastily reworked by writers Johnnie Mortimer and Brian Cooke with Myles Rudge into a new vehicle for former co-star Kenneth Williams called ''

Stop Messing About ''Stop Messing About'' was a BBC radio series broadcast in 1969 and 1970. Forced by circumstance into being a follow-up to ''Round the Horne'', it retained a number of key talents from the previous show, with Kenneth Williams as the new show's ma ...

'' which opens on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

on 6 April and runs for two seasons. * February – Mary Raine becomes the first woman to report on sport for the BBC.

March

*No events

April

*25 April – The last edition of daily soap opera '' The Dales'' is broadcast on

after 5,531 episodes. *28 April – The first edition of daily soap opera ''

Waggoners' Walk ''Waggoners' Walk'' was a daily radio soap opera, set in the fictional cul-de-sac of Waggoners' Walk and its environs in Hampstead, north London. It was broadcast daily on BBC Radio 2 from 1969 to 1980, in the form of 15-minute episodes on w ...

'' is broadcast on BBC Radio 2, replacing ''The Dales''.

May

*No events

June

*11 June – ''

The Organist Entertains ''The Organist Entertains'' was a long-running music programme broadcast on BBC Radio 2. The 30 minute programme focused on the organ in its many guises, and played recordings and live broadcasts of theatre organs, pipe organs and electroni ...

'', presented by

Robin Richmond Robin Richmond (21 April 1912 – 27 July 1998) was an English cinema organist and BBC Radio presenter and performer. Richmond was born on 21 April 1912 in London. His father was a doctor. William Stephenson Richmond, his mother was Barbara Ha ...

, is broadcast for the first time.

July

*10 July – The BBC publishes a report called "Broadcasting in the Seventies" proposing the reorganisation of programmes on the national networks and replacing regional broadcasting on BBC Radio 4 with

BBC Local Radio BBC Local Radio (also referred to as Local BBC Radio) is the BBC's local and regional radio division for England and the Channel Islands, consisting of forty stations. History The popularity of pirate radio was to challenge a change within ...

. The report begins to be implemented the following year and the former

BBC Home Service The BBC Home Service was a national and regional radio station that broadcast from 1939 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 4. History 1922–1939: Interwar period Between the early 1920s and the outbreak of World War II, the BBC ...

regions gradually disappear although regional programming on Radio 4 does not end fully until the end of 1982. *20–21 July – BBC Radios 1 and 2 stay on air all night to provide live coverage of the landing on the Moon and of

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. ...

's first steps onto the Moon's surface.

August

*No events

September

*No events

October

*No events

November

*No events

December

*No events

Station debuts

Programme debuts

* 28 April – ''

'' on

(1969–1980) * 11 June – ''

'' on

(1969–2018) * 6 July – ''

The Big Business Lark ''The Big Business Lark'' is a radio comedy sitcom of partly satirical form broadcast in 1969. It stars Jimmy Edwards and Frank Thornton and was written by Lawrie Wyman as a spin-off from ''The Navy Lark'', although no characters crossed ove ...

'' on BBC Radio 4 (1969)

Continuing radio programmes

1940s

* ''

Sunday Half Hour ''The Sunday Hour'' was a long-standing show broadcast on the BBC Light Programme and then BBC Radio 2 in the United Kingdom, broadcast for 78 years between 14 July 1940 and 28 January 2018. For most of its life it occupied a Sunday evening ...

'' (1940–2018) * '' Desert Island Discs'' (1942–Present) * '' Family Favourites'' (1945–1980) * ''

Down Your Way ''Down Your Way'' was a BBC radio series which ran from 29 December 1946 to 1992, originally on the Home Service, later on BBC Radio 4, usually being broadcast on Sunday afternoons. It visited towns and villages around the United Kingdom, spok ...

'' (1946–1992) * ''

Letter from America ''Letter from America'' was a weekly fifteen-minute speech radio series broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and its predecessor, the Home Service, and around the world through the BBC World Service. From its first edition to its last, it was presented by A ...

'' (1946–2004) * '' Woman's Hour'' (1946–Present) * '' Twenty Questions'' (1947–1976) * '' Any Questions?'' (1948–Present) * ''

A Book at Bedtime ''Book at Bedtime'' (''A Book at Bedtime'' until 9 July 1993) is a long-running radio programme that is broadcast on BBC Radio 4 each weekday evening between 22.45 and 23.00. The programme presents readings of fiction, including modern classics, ...

'' (1949–Present)

1950s

* '' The Archers'' (1950–Present) * '' Listen with Mother'' (1950–1982) * '' From Our Own Correspondent'' (1955–Present) * '' Pick of the Pops'' (1955–Present) * '' The Clitheroe Kid'' (1957–1972) * '' My Word!'' (1957–1988) * '' Test Match Special'' (1957–Present) * ''

The Today Programme ''Today'', colloquially known as ''the Today programme'', is a long-running British morning news and current-affairs radio programme on BBC Radio 4. Broadcast on Monday to Saturday from 6:00 am to 9:00 am, it is produced by BBC News and is t ...

'' (1957–Present) * '' The Navy Lark'' (1959–1977) * '' Sing Something Simple'' (1959–2001) * '' Your Hundred Best Tunes'' (1959–2007)

1960s

* '' Farming Today'' (1960–Present) * '' In Touch'' (1961–Present) * '' The Men from the Ministry'' (1962–1977) * '' I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again'' (1964–1973) * '' Petticoat Line'' (1965–1979) * '' The World at One'' (1965–Present) * '' The Official Chart'' (1967–Present) * '' Just a Minute'' (1967–Present) * '' The Living World'' (1968–Present)

Births

*February – Fi Glover, radio presenter *20 February –

Robin Ince Robin Ince (born 20 February 1969) is an English comedian, actor and writer, known for presenting the BBC radio show ''The Infinite Monkey Cage'' with physicist Brian Cox (physicist), Brian Cox, and his stand-up comedy career. Education After ...

, comedian *11 April – Cerys Matthews, Welsh singer and broadcaster *7 June – Adam Buxton, actor and comedian *14 June – Shaun Ley, news presenter *13 August – Toby Foster, comedian, promoter and radio presenter *22 August –

Kathy Clugston Kathy Clugston (born 22 August 1969) is a Northern Irish presenter, newsreader and continuity announcer on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 4 Extra and the BBC World Service. Born in Belfast, Clugston attended Methodist College and then studied French ...

, Northern Ireland-born newsreader *22 September –

Sue Perkins Susan Elizabeth Perkins (born 22 September 1969) is an English actress, broadcaster, comedian, presenter and writer. Originally coming to prominence through her comedy partnership with Mel Giedroyc in ''Mel and Sue'', she has since become best ...

, comedy performer and broadcast presenter *2 December – Matthew Sweet, cultural historian and broadcaster *12 December – Rodney P (Panton), MC, "godfather of British hip hop" and broadcaster

Deaths

*14 February – Kenneth Horne, radio comedian (born

1907 Events January * January 14 – 1907 Kingston earthquake: A 6.5 Mw earthquake in Kingston, Jamaica, kills between 800 and 1,000. February * February 11 – The French warship ''Jean Bart'' sinks off the coast of Morocco. ...

) *25 March – Billy Cotton, bandleader (born 1899) *27 October –

Eric Maschwitz Albert Eric Maschwitz OBE (10 June 1901 – 27 October 1969), sometimes credited as Holt Marvell, was an English entertainer, writer, editor, broadcaster and broadcasting executive. Life and work Born in Edgbaston, Birmingham, England, and desc ...

, broadcasting executive, scriptwriter and lyricist (born 1901)

References

Radio British Radio, 1969 In Years in British radio {{UK-radio-stub

Events

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Station debuts

Programme debuts

Continuing radio programmes

1940s

1950s

1960s

Births

Deaths

See also

References