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Christopher David Moyles (born 22 February 1974) is an English radio and television presenter, author and presenter of '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on Radio X. Previously he has presented '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on BBC Radio 1 from 2004 to 2012 and ''
Chris Moyles' Quiz Night ''Chris Moyles' Quiz Night'' is a British television comedy panel game show, presented by Chris Moyles. The show was originally shown on Channel 4 at 10 p.m. on Sundays and repeated on Mondays at 11 p.m. It included three rounds in w ...
'' from 2009 to 2012 on Channel 4. Moyles has worked at various radio stations, including Radio Luxembourg (under the pseudonym Chris Holmes) and
Capital FM Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capitals, List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the dura ...
. Moyles moved to BBC Radio 1 in July 1997 and left the station in September 2012. He has presented the early breakfast show, a Saturday morning show, and the drive time show (from September 1998 to December 2003), before presenting the breakfast show from 5 January 2004 to 14 September 2012. In September 2009, he was BBC Radio 1's longest serving breakfast presenter. Moyles has become famous for his maverick bad-boy broadcasting style on BBC Radio 1 and has been embroiled in numerous controversies, including accusations of sexism and homophobia, due to statements he has made on the air and in the press. He frequently made appearances on several television shows including ''
Hotel Babylon Hotel Babylon may refer to: Television * Hotel Babylon (BBC series), a 2000s BBC drama series * Hotel Babylon (music programme), a 1990s ITV late night music programme Literature * ''Hotel Babylon'' (novel), a novel by Imogen Edwards-Jones * ...
'', a celebrity version of '' Supermarket Sweep'', '' Top Gear'', '' The Charlotte Church Show'', '' The F-Word'', '' The Friday Night Project'', '' The One Show'', '' Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'', '' Richard & Judy'' and '' The Paul O'Grady Show''.


Early life and career

Moyles was born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire to Christopher, a postman and housewife Hannah Veronica “Vera” Moyles, (from Dublin) and he was educated at Mount St Mary's Catholic High School. While at school, he began his broadcasting career at WBHS (Wakefield's Broadcast to Hospitals Service), a voluntary staffed hospital radio station in the West Yorkshire city. After WBHS, Moyles moved to local radio station
Aire FM Radio Aire was an Independent Local Radio station, serving Leeds and West Yorkshire. The station was merged and relaunched as Greatest Hits Radio Yorkshire, as part of a rebrand, on 1 September 2020. History Radio Aire was launched at 6a ...
as an assistant for DJ Carl Kingston. During this time, he was also a presenter on Radio Top Shop in the Leeds Briggate branch. After hosting his own Saturday Evening Show on Aire FM (and occasionally serving as a stand-in presenter), he was then employed as a presenter at Radio Luxembourg in 1992, until the station closed. In 1993, he gained a job at the Pulse of West Yorkshire, presenting the evening show from 7.00 pm–10.00 pm. He remained there until early 1994 when he was dismissedMoyles's autobiography ''The Gospel According to Chris Moyles'' for comments made about the station's previous programme controller. Moyles subsequently joined
Signal 1 Signal 1 is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Staffordshire and South Cheshire. As of September 2022, the station has a weekly audience of 172,000 listeners acc ...
in
Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
– again presenting ''The Evening Bit'' from 7.00 pm–10.00 pm. He remained there until he was dismissed by the station's programme controller, who he refers to as a "spineless bastard" in his first autobiography. In 1995 Moyles was heard on the Chiltern Radio Network, presenting the evening show from 7.00 pm–10.00 pm, before taking on the late show from 10.00 pm–1.00 am. This show was simulcast on Horizon Radio, Chiltern Radio, Severn Sound and
Northants 96 Heart Northants (formerly Northants 96) was a local commercial radio station serving Northamptonshire. The station broadcast on 96.6 FM from studios in Northampton town centre, via the transmitter located in the Kingsthorpe area. As of August ...
. In 1996, Moyles joined London station Capital FM hosting his weekend show 'The Late Bit', which went out on a Friday & Saturday evening, and covering for other DJs. It was at Capital that Moyles fell out with fellow DJ 'Doctor' Neil Fox. After declining the offer of presenting the breakfast show on rival station Kiss 100, Moyles joined Radio 1 in July 1997.


Radio 1

Moyles was voted one of the Faces for 97 by ''SKY magazine'' and presented his first show on Radio 1 on 28 July 1997, hosting the 4.00 am–7.00 am Early Breakfast show – soon called ''The Early Bit''. In May 1998, his work was recognised with the award of the Silver Sony Awards DJ of the Year, and he was styling himself as 'The Saviour of Early Morning Radio'. Within the year Moyles was promoted to a Saturday breakfast, then Saturday mid-morning slot from 10.00 am–1.00 pm. At Radio 1, he presented most of his shows with David "Comedy Dave" Vitty, who worked behind the scenes at the station before Moyles' arrival. After standing in regularly for Kevin Greening and Zoe Ball on the Radio 1 Breakfast Show, Moyles's next promotion came in October 1998 when he took control of the drivetime show from 4.00 pm–5:45 pm. The show was extended to 3.00 pm–5:45 pm in February 2001. Moyles has co-presented the show from 1998 with his sidekick. On 5 January 2004, Moyles started presenting Radio 1's breakfast programme, named '' The Chris Moyles Show'', switching places with Sara Cox. He had been appointed to increase the ratings for the show and did so, putting on an extra 1,000,000 listeners to the audience in the first quarter of 2004. After a successful first year, Moyles was awarded 'DJ of the Year' by readers of '' The Sun''. By 2005, Moyles and his team had succeeded in increasing the morning audience, with his programme's audience swelling to 6.5 million. This was coupled with an increase in the overall Radio 1 audience share. With 895,000 listeners in London in the third quarter of 2005, he succeeded in overtaking Johnny Vaughan to take the position of the capital's most listened to youth breakfast show. Moyles's audience ratings continued to increase each week and led to him winning a gold Sony Radio Award in 2006 for best entertainment show. With the release of the RAJAR listening figures on 3 August 2006, Moyles had added a further 470,000 listeners to the Breakfast Show, taking the average listenership up to 6.79 million. On 10 May 2007, RAJAR figures confirmed that Moyles had increased his listening figures to 7.06 million, breaking the seven million barrier for the first time with the station having 10.55 million listeners overall. Moyles again increased his audience to 7.72 million as of 1 May 2008 slightly narrowing the gap between him and Terry Wogan, the highest-rated radio show in the UK at the time. The station's overall listener figure is now over 11 million. On 12 May 2008 '' The Chris Moyles Show'' won its second Sony radio gold award for 'best breakfast show'. At this time he was given another half-hour on his show going from 7.00 am–10.00 am to 6.30 am–10.00 am. On 7 September 2009 Moyles became the longest serving breakfast presenter on Radio 1, breaking the record previously set by
Tony Blackburn Anthony Kenneth Blackburn (born 29 January 1943) is an English disc jockey, singer and TV presenter. He first achieved fame broadcasting on the pirate stations Radio Caroline and Radio London in the 1960s, before joining the BBC, on the BBC L ...
. In March 2011, Moyles and his colleague
David Vitty David Lloyd Vitty (born 24 April 1974) is a radio presenter working in the UK. He worked alongside Chris Moyles at BBC Radio 1, having originally been a broadcast assistant on Moyles' early morning show. He became the show's head writer and ' ...
beat the record for the longest continuous Radio 1 show, on Radio 1's Longest Show Ever with Chris Moyles and Comedy Dave for Comic Relief. Between 16 and 18 March they beat both Simon Mayo's 1999 record of 37 hours and the 'Radio DJ Endurance Marathon (Team)' Guinness World Record by broadcasting for 52 hours for Comic Relief initially raising £2.4 million, and with an audience of 2.84 million, it was the most popular live BBC Red Button radio feature ever. The event raised a final total of £2,821,831. On 1 July 2011, it was announced that Moyles would remain within the BBC until at least 2014, ending speculation that he would move to a commercial rival. The deal was estimated to be worth £1 million. This would have allowed the presenter to reach his 10-year anniversary on '' The Chris Moyles Show''. However, on 11 July 2012, Moyles announced that he would be leaving the breakfast show and the station on 14 September. when Moyles was in negotiation with BBC Radio 1 about a new show. It was announced later the same day that
Nick Grimshaw Nicholas Peter Andrew Grimshaw (born 14 August 1984), also known as Grimmy, is an English television and former radio presenter, podcaster and author. He became known for having hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1. He is also known as a t ...
would replace him.


Radio X

On 7 September 2015, it was announced Chris Moyles would return to radio on the newly re-branded Radio X (previously XFM) hosting the new ''Chris Moyles Show''. The show began airing on 21 September 2015 from 6.30 am–10.00 am, returning to his former breakfast slot and was going head to head with his BBC Radio 1 breakfast show replacement,
Nick Grimshaw Nicholas Peter Andrew Grimshaw (born 14 August 1984), also known as Grimmy, is an English television and former radio presenter, podcaster and author. He became known for having hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1. He is also known as a t ...
. Chris Moyles stated Dominic Byrne, who read the news on his BBC Radio 1 show, would return with him, as would producer Pippa Taylor. On 19 April 2016 it was announced that there would be an additional pre-recorded show on Saturday mornings between 8 am-11.00 am featuring clips from the week, interviews with studio guests plus new content, which means that Chris is on air on Radio X 6 days a week.


Work outside radio


BT Red Nose Climb and Speaking Clock

Moyles was one of a team of celebrities who climbed
Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...
to raise money for Comic Relief reaching the summit on 7 March 2009. He was joined by his show's producers, Rachel Mallender and Pippa Taylor, and BBC Radio 1 controller,
Andy Parfitt Andrew John Parfitt (born 24 September 1958, Bristol) is the Executive Director of Talent for ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi. He was the Controller of BBC Radio 1 in the United Kingdom, and held that role from 1998–2011, taking over from Matthew ...
. Also on the climb were Girls Aloud members Cheryl Cole and Kimberley Walsh, Fearne Cotton, Ben Shephard, Gary Barlow, Ronan Keating, Denise Van Outen and Alesha Dixon. He recorded a parody song around this time to promote the climb, mentioning all the names of the people that were also taking part – it was based on Lily Allen's "The Fear", and was called "(A month off of) The Beer". From 3 February – 23 March 2009, Moyles was joined by Kimberley Walsh, Cheryl Cole, Gary Barlow, Ronan Keating, Ben Shephard and Fearne Cotton to help raise money for charity by reading the time on the Speaking Clock.


Film voice work

Moyles has provided his voice and/or likeness to a number of films and games. His face was used in '' 24: The Game'', and his voice can be heard in the films ''
Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...
'', '' War of the Worlds'' and '' Robots''. In some of these films, his voice was only used for the UK version.


Television presenting

Moyles has branched out his work into television. In 2002, his own Channel 5 show, '' Live With Chris Moyles'', ran five shows a week for 13 weeks. Chris was replaced by Christian O'Connell, before the programme was shelved altogether. He and sidekick Dave Vitty had their own TV show, also entitled '' The Chris Moyles Show'' like their former Radio 1 show, which was aired from 1998–99 on the now-defunct UK satellite and cable channel
UK Play Play UK was a television channel broadcasting in the United Kingdom as part of the UKTV network of channels. Play UK broadcast all day on the digital platforms, but on the Sky Analogue platform on the Astra 19.2°E satellite system it broadcast ...
. Moyles voiced the fourth and final series of
Sky1 Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non-terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...
show '' The Villa'' and has occasionally presented '' Top of the Pops''. He has also worked for the Comic Relief and Children in Need charities on their telecasts. Moyles has presented a number of episodes of ''
Big Brother's Big Mouth This is a complete list of shows about and relating to ''Big Brother UK'' and ''Celebrity Big Brother''. The civilian edition ran from 2000 to 2018 and the celebrity edition ran from 2001 to 2018. ''Big Brother'' ''Big Brother'' was a daily sho ...
''. Daily Mirror journalist Rob Leigh once said of his ''
Big Brother's Big Mouth This is a complete list of shows about and relating to ''Big Brother UK'' and ''Celebrity Big Brother''. The civilian edition ran from 2000 to 2018 and the celebrity edition ran from 2001 to 2018. ''Big Brother'' ''Big Brother'' was a daily sho ...
'' presenting that "Chris Moyles may be Marmite for the ears on radio but never quite nails it on TV, even with his relative star power". He also presented '' The Big Breakfast'' on Channel 4 several times between 2000 and 2002. In 2003, Moyles presented the launch of BBC Three. The launch night (Not to be confused with the 2022 relaunch night) was simulcast on
BBC Two 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 ...
. Moyles launched a new show on Channel 4, called ''
Chris Moyles' Quiz Night ''Chris Moyles' Quiz Night'' is a British television comedy panel game show, presented by Chris Moyles. The show was originally shown on Channel 4 at 10 p.m. on Sundays and repeated on Mondays at 11 p.m. It included three rounds in w ...
'' on 22 March 2009. The show consists of Moyles alongside three other celebrities partaking in a traditional pub-style quiz. The original series had the four competing to win an item that belonged to Moyles but this has since developed into a more traditional quiz with the loser singing karaoke-style at the end of the show. The opening show received poor viewing figures attracting just 6% of total audience for the timeslot. It was continued for a second series between 26 February and 11 April 2010, a third series following between 1 November and 22 December 2010 and fourth between 15 July and 2 September 2011. After 5 series, the show was shelved. On 24 October 2011, The Metro announced that Moyles would co-present a new dating show, '' The Love Machine'', alongside Stacey Solomon for Sky. Moyles confirmed this on his radio show that morning.


Other television appearances

Moyles appeared on the
ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
show '' The X Factor: Battle of the Stars'' and had minor success. He was voted out of the show on 4 June 2006 in the semi-final. Following this appearance, stories in the '' New Statesman'' and '' The Sun'' both reported that Moyles was looking to relaunch his television career; rumours suggested that he had been offered his own show by ITV. Moyles has spoken of a desire to transfer the format of his radio show to the TV, but otherwise has thus far stayed clear of a conventional TV format. Moyles regularly appears on ''
This Morning This Morning may refer to: * ''This Morning'' (TV programme), a British daytime television programme * ''This Morning'' (radio program), a Canadian radio show which aired from 1997 to 2002 * '' CBS This Morning'', an American morning show, succe ...
'' and ''
Celebrity Juice ''Celebrity Juice'' is a British television comedy panel game on ITV2, broadcast since 24 September 2008. The show is written and presented by Leigh Francis in the role of his alter ego Keith Lemon, and its current team captains Laura Whitmore ...
''. Moyles played himself in an episode of the drama ''
Hotel Babylon Hotel Babylon may refer to: Television * Hotel Babylon (BBC series), a 2000s BBC drama series * Hotel Babylon (music programme), a 1990s ITV late night music programme Literature * ''Hotel Babylon'' (novel), a novel by Imogen Edwards-Jones * ...
'' which aired on 15 February 2007 and appeared on a celebrity version of '' Supermarket Sweep'' that broadcast on the same day. He has appeared as a guest on numerous British television shows, including the ninth series of '' Top Gear'', '' Never Mind The Buzzcocks'', which immortalised Moyles as an "oily pig in a dunce hat" '' The Charlotte Church Show'', '' The F-Word'', '' The Friday Night Project'', '' Richard & Judy'' and '' The New Paul O'Grady Show''. In 2008, Moyles appeared on the Brit Awards to present the award for the best live act, and appeared in the BBC documentary series '' Comedy Map of Britain''. He has appeared on Channel 4's '' Big Brother: Celebrity Hijack'' TV programme as well as an appearance as a team captain on the Channel 4 show ''
Alan Carr's Celebrity Ding Dong ''Alan Carr's Celebrity Ding Dong'' is a game show on Channel 4, presented by Alan Carr. During the first series, voice-over commentary in between rounds on the scores is provided by Leslie Phillips. From Series 2, the announcer is Peter Dickso ...
'' and on 18 July 2008 he appeared on Jimmy Carr's show on Channel 4, '' 8 Out of 10 Cats''. On 23 February 2009, Moyles was the guest on BBC One's '' The One Show'' to promote the BT Red Nose climb of
Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It has three volcanic cones: Kibo, Mawenzi, and Shira. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world: above sea level and ab ...
. He appeared again on the show on 26 February 2010 to talk about and promote the second series of ''
Chris Moyles' Quiz Night ''Chris Moyles' Quiz Night'' is a British television comedy panel game show, presented by Chris Moyles. The show was originally shown on Channel 4 at 10 p.m. on Sundays and repeated on Mondays at 11 p.m. It included three rounds in w ...
''. In July 2009, he featured in an episode of the genealogy documentary series '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' on BBC One where he explored his Irish ancestry. He visited Ireland and Belgium, where his great-grandfather fought and died in the First World War. On the programme Moyles discovered that his surname means ''bald servant'' from the Irish "''Ó Maolmanach''".CastRoller – Best of Chris Moyles
podcast
He also co-presented
Children in Need Rocks Manchester Children in Need Rocks Manchester was a charity music concert held at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England, on 17 November 2011. The concert was organised by Take That singer-songwriter Gary Barlow as one of a series of events to raise ...
in November 2011. Moyles appeared on the quiz show ''The Million Pound Drop'' along with
Andi Peters Andi Eleazu Peters (born 29 July 1970) is a British television presenter, producer, journalist and voice actor, currently employed by ITV and known for presenting Children's BBC, roles on breakfast TV shows ''Live & Kicking'', ''GMTV'', '' Good ...
in February 2012, they won £25,000 to divide between their chosen charities. Moyles appeared on Children in Need on 16 November 2012, performing ''Bring Me Sunshine'' on stage with holograms of comedy duo Morecambe and Wise in an effort to raise money for the charity. On 31 October 2022 Moyles was announced by ITV as a campmate of the 2022 series of '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!''. On the promo video Moyles says "It's only three weeks in the middle of a jungle; What could possibly go wrong?" He was voted out sixth on 24 November.


Autobiography

Moyles' autobiography, ''The Gospel according to Chris Moyles: The Story of One Man and His Mouth'' was released by Ebury Press on 5 October 2006. On 4 October 2007 a follow-up book ''Chris Moyles: The Difficult Second Book'', published by Ebury Press, was officially released. ''The Difficult Second Book'' was released in paperback on 1 May 2008. Stewart Lee, on his own programme '' Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle'', commented that the title of the book suggests "a degree of irony and self-awareness largely absent from the text itself" and then went on to deconstruct and mock the book's contents.


Stage work

On 16 May 2012 it was announced that Chris Moyles had been cast to play the part of King Herod in an arena tour of
Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...
's musical
Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the Passion, the work interprets the psychology of Jesus and other characters, with ...
. Moyles reprised his role as King Herod when
Jesus Christ Superstar ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' is a sung-through rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. Loosely based on the Gospels' accounts of the Passion, the work interprets the psychology of Jesus and other characters, with ...
began another arena tour on 1 October 2013. Moyles also toured a solo stage show, "Chris Moyles Live".


Presenting style

Moyles uses zoo format, and therefore relies on his team members and audience participation for his show's games and quizzes and for other sources of comedy. He is renowned for his boorish manner, quick temper, and put-downs. It is this approach which most commonly leads to criticism of Moyles. It has also caused him to become involved in numerous controversies related to perceived offensive statements. However, Moyles generally accepts counter-attacks in the same manner and routinely derides himself for being overweight and so forth, often in the lyrics of jingles. Due to his fascination with radio, Moyles regularly discusses the process of making the show, often spoofing clichéd radio practices. Many of his show's features are homages to or exaggerations of other radio features.


Parody songs

In December 2000, he parodied the
Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...
song "Stan" that was No. 1 in the charts at the time, with a seasonal Christmas themed variation called "Stanta", instead. It became one of the most popular requested parodies and was often played more than once during the course of a show. In October 2004, Moyles and '' The Chris Moyles Show'' team replaced U2's " Vertigo" at number one in the UK Official Download Chart with their download-only charity song "Dogz Don't Kill People (Wabbitz Do)", under the name 'Mouldie Lookin' Stain'. The song was a spoof of
Goldie Lookin' Chain Goldie Lookin Chain are a Welsh comedy hip hop group from Newport, south-east Wales. The group produces humorous, controversial and often explicit songs that satirise hip hop, today's consumer society, the " chav" culture and life in Newp ...
's " Guns Don't Kill People Rappers Do" (itself a spoof rap song) and proceeds went to Comic Relief. At the time of its release, it was the fastest selling download on UK charts. Moyles has parodied several Kaiser Chiefs songs under the name "The Kaiser Chefs". These include "I Predict A Diet" (Parody of I Predict a Riot) and "Donny" (Parody of Ruby). Chris and Ricky Wilson of the Kaiser Chiefs (both Leeds United fans) said they had accidentally given Doncaster Rovers fans an unofficial anthem with "Donny" after Doncaster Rovers beat Leeds United 1–0 in the 2008 League One Play-off Final. During the
2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
in Germany, Moyles organised a parody of England World Cup songs, to ridicule the number of songs there were out at the time. "José – The Special One" (a parody of "
Rosé A rosé () is a type of wine that incorporates some of the color from the grape skins, but not enough to qualify it as a red wine. It may be the oldest known type of wine, as it is the most straightforward to make with the skin contact method. ...
" by The Feeling was written on team manager
José Mourinho José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
's departure from Chelsea and was banned after the club complained to the BBC (although subsequently played repeatedly on Moyles's show and on Radio 5 Live). He made a parody of "We Have Got to Zero Baby", a take on
Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By the ...
's " Hero", which describes how his football team, Leeds United, managed to claw back a 15-point deficit in League One in only 5 games. In November 2007, he used Hoosiers – " Goodbye Mr A" for "Goodbye Mr. M" where he sings about the England football manager Steve McClaren being sacked. Often Moyles will pick a track because of the silliness of its lyrics, for instance "Smile" by Lily Allen was parodied by Moyles's invention "Silly Allen", in a song called "Piles" and Natasha Bedingfield's " I Wanna Have Your Babies" written by Comedy Dave and performed in May 2007. In the same month, he performed a parody of Hellogoodbye's hit " Here" called "Beer in My Arms" in which he describes how much he really dislikes the song, calling it 'daft'. Moyles also covered Puretone " Addicted to Bass" with "Addicted to Plaice", which covers the subject of being addicted to fish. In September 2007, he performed "Suicidal" a parody of the UK number one
Sean Kingston Kisean Paul Anderson (born February 3, 1990), better known by his stage name Sean Kingston, is an American-Jamaican singer and rapper. He is known for his hit songs " Beautiful Girls", "Fire Burning", " Take You There", and his collaboration wit ...
's "Beautiful Girls", in which he talks about how the song makes him feel suicidal and wonders why it reached number one. Although of 2008, UK's chart no.1 Basshunter was renamed "Chuffhunter" in which he mocks the song and those that would buy it,
Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter and actress. She is the highest-selling female Australian artist of all time, having sold over 80 million records worldwide. She has been recognised for reinve ...
's "Bow Wow Wow" and a re-write of the Estelle song " American Boy", named "Somerset Boy". In the past, he has parodied include Billie Piper's " Honey to the Bee" as "
Guinness Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...
For Me", All Seeing Eye's "Walk Like a Panther", Will Smith's " Gettin Jiggy Wit It", and McFly's " All About You" as "He Don't Use Shampoo". Moyles has also written Baked Beans, a parody of
Same Jeans "Same Jeans" is the third single by Dundee band the View, appearing on their debut album, ''Hats Off to the Buskers'' (2007). It was Radio 1's Jo Whiley's record of the week commencing 27 November 2006 and was released on 15 January 2007. It ...
by The View, and "Lunch in this Pub", originally the
Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...
single "Love in this Club". One of his recent parodies, "No Hair" – sung by "follicly-challenged" newscaster Dominic Byrne – is a cover of Jordin Sparks's "No Air (ft
Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...
)". Another two of Moyles' recent parodies are "Lorry Driver" which is a cover of
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
' song " Womanizer" and "The Boy Does Plenty" by "Adrian Dixon", originally a song by Alesha Dixon, both of which are written by 'Comedy Dave' Vitty. In March 2009 Moyles released a parody song called "Dreaming of Debbie McGee". The song was about a man who has recurring dreams of the assistant on ''The Paul Daniels Magic Show''. Comedy Dave wrote the song, and Paul Daniels asked for it to be made into an MP3 file after hearing it on air. It was a parody of the Kings of Leon song " Revelry". In April 2009, McGee recorded a reply which was played on air and was a parody of the same song called Dreaming of Moylesy. Moyles released "Waterproof" in July 2009, a parody of the La Roux song " Bulletproof". This song has an approved record deal to be used on a parody album, should Chris wish to do so. Moyles has released an album entitled ''
The Parody Album ''The Parody Album'' is the debut album by DJ Chris Moyles, host of '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on BBC Radio 1. It was released on 23 November 2009 and charted at number 17 in the UK Albums Chart and has since sold over 100,000 copies. The album ...
''. Recording began in September 2009, and the album was released on 23 November. The official Moyles Parody Album game entitled Parody Island was released to help promote the album and allow players to hear snippets from his new album. ''The Chris Moyles Show'' was credited with the debut of the unofficial England World Cup Song, written and performed by Chico Slimani a parody of his hit single " It's Chico Time" and originally named "It's England Time". Slimani recorded the single after having a 'vision' that England won the 2010 World Cup and that in the celebrations, commentators made reference to his song. The single debuted, Monday 8 February 2010.


Controversies

Moyles has been censured several times by the Broadcasting Standards Commission and
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
. This happened during his time at both Capital London and BBC Radio 1. For example, the regulatory bodies upheld complaints when Moyles threatened and bullied Neil Fox in October 2002 with the claim that "I'm gonna tear his head off and poo down his neck"; and also in early 2002, when he said "he would take the virginity of
Charlotte Church Charlotte Maria Church (born Charlotte Maria Reed, 21 February 1986) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, actress, television presenter and political activist from Cardiff. Church rose to fame in childhood as a classical singer before branching i ...
", when the child star reached sixteen. When he first arrived at Radio 1,
John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...
took an instant dislike to Moyles and accused him of being a " DLT-in-waiting". Moyles retorted that Peel was a " Kenny Everett-in-waiting, because Kenny Everett's dead and it's only a matter of time before John pops his clogs". In his biography Moyles said that he mended his relationship with Peel and felt a sense of loss that he had not got to know him before his death. In September 2008, Moyles, along with other British radio presenters, was criticised for on-air promotion of drinking to excess.


On-air profanity

In February 2006, Moyles apologised, along with the BBC, after swearing when speaking to a caller live on air. He made the outburst while teasing a mother-of-three from Newcastle during an on-air feature which her children had interrupted. "You've got three kids from some fuckin'..." he blurted out, before apologising profusely for his mistake. The BBC issued six apologies, adding that such mistakes could occur during live broadcasts such as Moyles' show. The BBC was later cleared by broadcasting regulator
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
over the incident. In July 2006, communications watchdog Ofcom found Moyles in Breach of rule 1.5 of the Ofcom Broadcasting Code Rules for an incident in which he referred to female listeners as "dirty whores". A listener objected to an item in which the presenter discussed people who urinated in the shower. He considered that the presenter's reference to women who did this as "dirty whores" was unacceptable at this time of the morning.


Pay fracas

Alongside a number of other BBC Radio 1 and
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. ...
presenters, Moyles crossed a strike picket line in 2005. BBC staff were striking over recently announced job cuts. A report by the BBC Trust on 2 June 2008 revealed that Moyles was paid £630,000 in 2007. Moyles revealed in September 2009 that he took a 20 per cent pay cut three months earlier, quoting the reason "I want to work at the BBC, which is trying to save some of its gazillions". On 22 September 2010 Moyles spoke out on air about not being paid by the BBC in two months.


Accusations of homophobia

Moyles was accused of
homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...
in May 2006, when he rejected a
ringtone A ringtone, ring tone or ring is the sound made by a telephone to indicate an incoming call. Originally referring to and made by the electromechanical striking of bells, the term now refers to any sound on any device alerting of a new incoming ...
by saying "I don't want that one, it's gay", live on air. This led to a number of complaints to the BBC. They argued that the use of the word gay in this context was homophobic. The BBC governors said that Moyles was simply keeping up with developments in English usage. The Programme Complaints Committee said that, "The word 'gay', in addition to being used to mean 'homosexual' or 'carefree', was often now used to mean 'lame' or 'rubbish'. In describing a ringtone as gay, the DJ was conveying that he thought it was 'rubbish' rather than 'homosexual'. Moyles was not being homophobic". The panel acknowledged that this use of the word 'gay' in a derogatory sense could cause offence to some listeners and counselled caution on its use. In June, LGBT charity
Stonewall Stonewall or Stone wall may refer to: * Stone wall, a kind of masonry construction * Stonewalling, engaging in uncooperative or delaying tactics * Stonewall riots, a 1969 turning point for the modern LGBTQ rights movement in Greenwich Village, Ne ...
marched with placards demanding the dismissal of Moyles during Europride in London. According to Stonewall, "Chris Moyles is not helping young LGBT people struggling to come out through his comments". Stonewall gave Moyles the award of "Bully of the Year" at their annual Stonewall Awards that same year. Those defending Moyles have noted that
Aled Haydn Jones Aled Haydn Jones (born 9 August 1976) is a Welsh radio executive, former presenter and former radio producer. In June 2020 he was appointed head of BBC Radio 1, succeeding Ben Cooper. From 2004 until 2012 he worked on '' The Chris Moyles Sho ...
, his show's producer who has worked with Moyles since 2001, is openly gay. Moyles was quoted in The Guardian by Stonewall chief executive Ben Summerskill as saying "Yeah, I'm homophobic, I don't like the gays. Sorry, it just does my head in. We have a
token Token may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Token, a game piece or counter, used in some games * The Tokens, a vocal music group * Tolkien Black, a recurring character on the animated television series ''South Park,'' formerly known as ...
gay on the show!" In his book ''The Difficult Second Book'', Moyles says that he was responding to another article with sarcasm, and was subsequently quoted out of context. Moyles was censured by
Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
following eight complaints made after a broadcast on 20 January 2009 in which he told listeners it was the birthday of Will Young and then went on to sing " Evergreen" and " Leave Right Now" in a high pitched and effeminate voice, changing the lyrics to references to Young's
sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...
. Ofcom stated that the language used could have been "interpreted by listeners as promoting and condoning certain negative stereotypes based on sexual orientation" and whilst acknowledging the intention was to be humorous in their opinion it could have been perceived as
hostile Hostility is seen as form of emotionally charged aggressive behavior. In everyday speech it is more commonly used as a synonym for anger and aggression. It appears in several psychological theories. For instance it is a facet of neuroticism in ...
and pejorative. The media regulator also said in their view that because of the show's breakfast time slot that attracts a young audience it had the potential to encourage children to discriminate against others based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation and ran the risk of being imitated on the playground causing "unnecessary distress".


Auschwitz comments

On 20 January 2009, Moyles made comments on his radio show regarding the family history programme '' Who Do You Think You Are?'' and the Holocaust. Referring to his trips while filming the programme, Moyles said "I went off to Ireland and other places to film and unlike a lot of the ''Who Do You Think You Are?'' shows I didn't go to
Auschwitz Auschwitz concentration camp ( (); also or ) was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It con ...
. Pretty much everyone goes there whether or not they're Jewish. They just seem to pass through there on their way to Florida". Celebrities featured on ''Who Do You Think You Are?'' including Stephen Fry, Jerry Springer and Natasha Kaplinsky, have traced their family histories back to Jews murdered by the Nazis during the Second World War. The BBC released a statement: "Anyone who listens to the Chris Moyles Show will know he has an irreverent style. However, we regret that on this occasion his comments were misjudged and we are speaking to Chris and his team about them".


N-Dubz behaviour

On 12 January 2010, hip-hop trio N-Dubz appeared on the Chris Moyles Show on BBC Radio 1. The show received a text message from a female listener saying that band member Dappy was "vile" and "a little boy with a silly hat" and that N-Dubz were "losers". Dappy secretly copied her phone number from the studio console and sent abusive and threatening text messages to the woman the following day including one telling her she was "gonna die!". Moyles said of the resulting criticism: "I feel let down by him, I've supported them and said, 'Do you know what, N-Dubz aren't just a bunch of dippy chavs, they're really good'. So for him to go and do something like that is a bit rubbish".


Tax avoidance

In 2012 Chris Moyles was involved in a tax avoidance scheme and requested a court order to prevent the press from reporting it, because he claimed it would infringe his human rights. In February 2014 it was reported that he had attempted to avoid up to £400,000 in income tax by claiming losses of £1,000,000 on a used car dealership scheme.


Discography


Studio albums

* ''
The Parody Album ''The Parody Album'' is the debut album by DJ Chris Moyles, host of '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on BBC Radio 1. It was released on 23 November 2009 and charted at number 17 in the UK Albums Chart and has since sold over 100,000 copies. The album ...
'' (2009) UK Chart No. 17 * ''
The Difficult Second Album ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in E ...
'' (2012) UK Chart No. 13


Awards and honours

Moyles has won several Sony Radio Awards: Silver in 1998; Gold in 2006; nominated in 2007: Gold in 2008; Bronze in 2009; and Silver in 2010. He was voted "Best DJ" by readers of ''The Sun'' newspaper and readers of '' Loaded'' magazine. In 2007 the rugby league team Featherstone Rovers named their ground after him. Historically known as Post Office Road, it was renamed via a sponsorship deal as the Chris Moyles Stadium. On 7 July 2007 Moyles appeared as a presenter at the UK leg of Live Earth in Wembley Stadium in London.


Bibliography

* *


References


External links


''ChrisMoyles.net''
*
The Chris Moyles Show on Radio X
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moyles, Chris 1974 births Living people People from Leeds English people of Irish descent English radio DJs English radio presenters English television presenters British parodists People educated at Mount St Mary's Catholic High School, Leeds The X Factor (British TV series) contestants BBC Radio 1 presenters London Top of the Pops presenters I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (British TV series) participants