Keith Fordyce (15 October 1928 – 15 March 2011) was an English disc jockey and presenter on British radio and television. He is most famous as the first presenter of ITV's ''Ready Steady Go!'' in 1963, but was a stalwart of both BBC radio and Radio Luxembourg for many years.

Career

Born Keith Fordyce Marriott in Lincoln, Lincolnshire, he attended Lincoln School and later studied law at

Emmanuel College, Cambridge Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mon ...

. In 1955 he came to the attention of British radio listeners as a staff announcer at Radio Luxembourg where he worked with Barry Alldis. Fordyce later worked for the BBC

Light Programme The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 1. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the ...

in the 1960s, with such programmes as the lunchtime ''Pop In'' show, and went on to host the television talent show '' Thank Your Lucky Stars'' On 9 August 1963 he presented the first edition of '' Ready Steady Go!'' on Associated Rediffusion television, being joined subsequently in 1964 by Cathy McGowan and Michael Aldred. McGowan took over the show when Fordyce left in 1965. In 1967 he provided the commentary for the BBC's first colour test transmission on

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

, the first men's singles final of the Open era at Wimbledon. He presented a game show for Westward Television called ''Treasure Hunt'' (not to be confused with the later Channel 4 programme of the same name). In the early 1980s, he rejoined Radio Luxembourg in the Grand Duchy after Barry Alldis's death, working in the Villa Louvigny again for six months, and regularly attracting audiences of 250,000 or more for his programmes. On 12 February 1983 he was the first presenter of Radio 2's ''

Sounds of the '60s ''Sounds of the 60s'' is a long-running Saturday morning programme on BBC Radio 2 that features recordings of popular music made in the 1960s. It was first broadcast on 12 February 1983 and introduced by Keith Fordyce, who had been the first ...

''. He also hosted Radio 2's ''Beat The Record'' for many years. He later hosted a record programme on west of England local radio. Prior to his retirement Fordyce worked for the BBC Regional service in Devon, based at the Radio Devon studios, doing regular weekend shows.

Personal life

Fordyce retired in Devon with his wife Anne. He founded the Torbay Aircraft Museum in the 1970s. He supported the Liberal Party and spoke in support of David Penhaligon at a 1970s election meeting in Truro. He died on 15 March 2011 aged 82 after suffering from pneumonia and

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fordyce, Keith 1928 births 2011 deaths Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge British radio personalities British radio DJs British television presenters Deaths from pneumonia in England Deaths from dementia in England Deaths from Alzheimer's disease People from Lincoln, England Radio Luxembourg (English) presenters BBC Radio 2 presenters People educated at Lincoln Grammar School