Geoff Barron Lloyd (born 20 April 1973) is an English

radio presenter A radio personality is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host (North American English), radio presenter (British English) or radio jockey. Radio personali ...

, television host, podcast host and writer, best known for his talk radio and music shows. He is married to comedian Sara Barron and hosts th
Firecrotch & Normcore
podcast with her.

Early life

Lloyd was born in

Withington Withington is a suburb of Manchester, England. Historically part of Lancashire, it lies from Manchester city centre, south of Fallowfield, north-east of Didsbury and east of Chorlton-cum-Hardy. Withington had a population at the 2011 ce ...

, Manchester, England,Barrie White
"Radio's Geoff Lloyd,"
Mancunian Matters, 13 March 2011. and raised in

Macclesfield, Cheshire Macclesfield () is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is sited on the River Bollin and the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east; the town lies south of Ma ...

, England."Absolute Radio's Geoff Lloyd: I’ve been shunned by my home town,"
'' Metro'', 5 November 2012. As a teen, he worked as a paperboy, a suit salesman, and in 1989 he began working at a local print works after school, earning £1 an hour.

Radio career

Beginnings in radio (1991–96)

Lloyd began his radio career in 1991 as a traffic and travel reporter at Signal Cheshire in

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

, remaining there until the end of 1994.Sophie Morris
"My Mentor: Geoff Lloyd on Craig Cash,"
''The Independent'', 7 January 2007. Lloyd has called comedian Craig Cash a major influence on his career, for both his comedy and interview style as well as his support. Cash hired Lloyd to work on '' The Mrs Merton Show'' as a runner, and later introduced Lloyd to Pete Mitchell, who he would end up teaming up with on the air for a decade as the duo Pete and Geoff.

Pete and Geoff (1996–2005)

Lloyd first teamed up with Pete Mitchell in 1996 at

Piccadilly Radio Greatest Hits Radio Manchester & The North West is an Independent Local Radio station based in Manchester, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester and North West En ...

in Manchester. Soon after, they took over the afternoon show on local radio station

Key 103 Hits Radio Manchester, formerly Key 103, is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester. As of September 2024, the station has a weekly ...

.Julia Day
"Pete and Geoff split up,"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 4 November 2005."Pete and Geoff in big split,"
''

Manchester Evening News The ''Manchester Evening News'' (''MEN'') is a regional daily newspaper covering Greater Manchester in North West England, founded in 1868. It is published Monday–Saturday; a Sunday edition, the ''MEN on Sunday'', was launched in February 20 ...

'', 8 November 2005. In late 1998, the duo, known as Pete and Geoff, was recruited by

Virgin Radio Virgin Radio is a branding of radio stations broadcast in Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Italy, Romania, Turkey, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and Oman. As of April 2024, there were over 40 stations globally. The stations ...

to take over the weekday evening show. They also covered for Chris Evans on the breakfast show on occasion, and rapidly built up a large audience. The pair took over the

drive time Drive time is the daypart in which radio broadcasters can reach the most people who listen to car radios while driving, usually to and from work, or on public transportation. Drive-time periods are when the number of radio listeners in this c ...

breakfast show in 2002. Lloyd provided a comedic, occasionally outrageous personality, with Mitchell as the straight man. They were known for their "political satire… mixed with pub humour.""Radio: Viva Las Virgin,"
''The Independent'', 14 November 2004. They won a Sony Gold Radio Academy Award for an interview with

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Gallagher is the primary songwriter, lead guitarist and a co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis (band), Oasis. After leaving Oasis, he formed Noel ...

in 1998,"Pete Mitchell currently presents Sunday mornings here on Radio 2,"

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

. Accessed 3 July 2016. and won a second Sony Gold for an interview with

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

in 2002."DJ duo quit Virgin breakfast show,"

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, 17 May 2005. In March 2005, Virgin Radio launched a daily half-hour

podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...

consisting of the best bits from the ''Pete and Geoff Breakfast Show''. It was the station's first foray into podcasting, and the first daily show to be made available in podcast format from one of the major radio groups. In May 2005, the duo announced that they were splitting up, and left the breakfast show at the end of the year. Their final show together took place on 16 December 2005.Adam Bowie
"A Brief History of Virgin Radio,"
adambowie.com, 12 March 2014. Virgin Radio programming director Paul Jackson called them "great radio talents." The duo were replaced as hosts of the breakfast show by Christian O'Connell. Lloyd remained at Virgin Radio, taking over the late night slot.

''Geoff Lloyd with Annabel Port'' and other shows (2006–2017)

Lloyd's new show, '' The Geoff Show'', debuted on 3 January 2006 and was broadcast late nights on Virgin Radio, with co-host Annabel Port and producer Nelson Kumah. The first public airing of

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

remix album ''

Love Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...

'' was on ''The Geoff Show'' in 2006. Virgin Radio was rebranded as

Absolute Radio Absolute Radio is a British digital radio station owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK as part of the Absolute Radio Network. It broadcasts nationally across the UK via digital audio broadcasting. The station focuses on alternative ...

in 2008. On 20 March 2008 Lloyd began presenting the Absolute Radio weekday drive time program ''Geoff Lloyd's Hometime Show'', with Port remaining as co-host.Miranda Sawyer
"Rewind Radio: Don't Log Off; Beatles Brunch with Geoff Lloyd; Geoff Lloyd's Hometime Show – review,"
''The Guardian'', 11 May 2013. The show combines music and chat, with call-ins on various topics. At its core is "the digressive, quirky chat on matters of very little real importance." On 1 August 2015 the show was moved back an hour and renamed '' Geoff Lloyd with Annabel Port''. From 2010 to 2014, Lloyd hosted ''Unknown Pleasures'' on Absolute Radio, playing indie rock and alternative music. In 2013, Lloyd began hosting ''Beatles Brunch with Geoff Lloyd'' on Sunday mornings on Absolute Radio 60s, two hours of Beatles music and cover versions of their songs, along with talk exclusively about the band. In 2016, Lloyd and Port created the podcast ''Serial: This British Life'', a parody of the

WBEZ WBEZ (91.5 FM) – branded ''WBEZ 91.5'' – is a non-commercial educational radio station licensed to Chicago, Illinois, and primarily serving the tri-state region of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is owned by Chicago Public Media and is f ...

podcast '' Serial''. Lloyd has interviewed a wide variety of subjects, including

, talk show host

Conan O'Brien Conan Christopher O'Brien (born April 18, 1963) is an American television host, comedian, writer, actor, and producer. He is best known for having hosted Late-night talk show, late-night talk shows, beginning with ''Late Night with Conan O'B ...

, comedian

Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian, actor, podcaster and media personality. He established himself as a stand-up comedian and radio host before becoming a film actor. After beginning his career as a comedian and la ...

and then-UK Labour Party leader

Ed Miliband Edward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since July 2024. He has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for D ...

, in an interview described as one of Miliband's best broadcast interview performances. On 18 January 2017 Geoff Lloyd announced he and Annabel were leaving Absolute Radio. The final show aired on Wednesday 12 April.

After Absolute (2017–present)

In May 2017, It was announced Lloyd would be fronting a show for The Beatles Channel on

Sirius XM Radio Sirius XM Holdings Inc. is an American broadcasting corporation headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, that provides satellite radio and online radio services operating in the United States. The company was formed by the 2008 merger ...

. In August 2017, Lloyd launched a podcast, 'Adrift with Geoff Lloyd and Annabel Port', with his former radio co-host, and the following month launched 'Reasons to be Cheerful', a podcast with

Lloyd made a return to commercial radio in early 2018 with Geoff Lloyd's Hometown Glory, an interview series for

Union JACK The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...

, featuring guests from comedy, music and entertainment. The show returned for a second run in the summer. Since leaving Absolute, Lloyd has established himself as a regular cover presenter for

, standing in for

Danny Baker Danny Baker (born 22 June 1957) is an English comedy writer, journalist, radio DJ and screenwriter. Throughout his career he has largely presented for London's regional radio and television. Baker was born in Deptford to a working-class fa ...

and

Adrian Chiles Adrian Chiles (born 21 March 1967) is a British writer and television and radio presenter. He has co-presented both '' The One Show'' (2007–2010) and '' Daybreak'' (2010–2011) with Christine Lampard. He was also the chief presenter for fo ...

, covering the breakfast show on

BBC Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts mainly news, sport, Talk show, discussion, interviews and phone-ins, and is on air 24 hours a day. It is the principal BBC radio station Broadca ...

, and covering various late-night programmes on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

and

BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It primarily plays a wide range of alternative music, from established and emerging artists and bands. In 2002 it was the first national music radio station t ...

Writing and television

Lloyd has written for

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

's ''

TFI Friday ''TFI Friday'' (Thank Four it's Friday) is an entertainment show that was broadcast on Channel 4 television in the United Kingdom. It was produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker, and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first five ...

'',

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

's ''

Comic Relief Comic Relief is a British charity, founded in 1986 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Sir Lenny Henry in response to the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The concept of Comic Relief was to get British comedians to make t ...

'',

Chris Addison Christopher David Addison (born 5 November 1971) is a British comedian, writer, actor, and director. He was a panellist on several editions of TV comedy panel show '' Mock the Week''. He is known for lecture-style comedy shows, two of which he ...

's ''Cakes and Ale'' show at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe or the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2024 spanned 25 days, sold more than 2.6 million tickets and featur ...

, and '' Dave Gorman: Modern Life is Goodish''. He was a columnist for '' The New Day'', and has written for the ''

New Statesman ''The New Statesman'' (known from 1931 to 1964 as the ''New Statesman and Nation'') is a British political and cultural news magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first c ...

'' and ''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers ...

''. In 2009 and 2010, Lloyd worked alongside Annabel Port on a Channel 5 fan show for the drama series ''

FlashForward A flashforward (also spelled flash-forward, and more formally known as prolepsis) is a scene that temporarily takes the narrative forward in time from the current point of the story in literature, film, television and other media. Flashforwards a ...

''. Titled ''FlashForward Friday'', the online show was a weekly review on the latest episode of the series following its broadcast on Channel 5. From 2011 to 2013, Lloyd and Port hosted seasons 1–3 of '' Thronecast'', a

Sky Atlantic Sky Atlantic is a British pay television channel owned by Sky Group, Sky Group Limited that launched in 2011 and broadcasts in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The channel airs original British-produced dramas like ''Fortitude (TV series), F ...

television series reviewing the latest episodes of

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

's ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American Fantasy television, fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series created by David Benioff and for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of high fantasy novels by ...

''. In 2018, Lloyd created and co-produced a comedy talk-show format, 'Am I Normal?', hosted by Sara Pascoe and

Aisling Bea Aisling Clíodhnadh O'Sullivan (born 16 March 1984), known professionally as Aisling Bea ( ), is an Irish comedian, actress and screenwriter. She created, wrote and starred in the comedy series '' This Way Up'' on Channel 4. As a stand-up comedi ...

, and broadcast on

. Lloyd has appeared several times on the Channel 4 show ''

Richard & Judy ''Richard & Judy'' (also known as ''Richard & Judy's New Position'') is a British television chat show presented by the married couple Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan. The show originally aired on Channel 4 from 26 November 2001 to 22 Augus ...

''; as a commentator on '' Big Brother's Little Brother'' with

Dermot O'Leary Seán Dermot O'Leary (born 24 May 1973) is a British-Irish broadcaster. He presented the television talent show ''The X Factor'' on ITV from 2007 until its final series in 2018, with the exception of 2015. Since 2021, O'Leary has presented ITV' ...

; and as a celebrity contestant on the gameshows '' Eggheads'' and ''Win, Lose or Draw Late''.

Awards

* Silver Sony Radio Academy Award for ''The Pete & Geoff Afternoon Show'' on

, 1998 * Gold Sony Radio Academy Award for The Best Daily Music Programme for ''The Pete & Geoff Show'' on

, 2002 * European Radio Award for Best Radio Personality, 2007 * Bronze Sony Radio Academy Award for Music Personality of the Year, 2008 *

Arqiva Arqiva () is a British telecommunications company which provides infrastructure, broadcast transmission and smart meter facilities in the United Kingdom. The company is headquartered at the former Independent Broadcasting Authority headquart ...

Commercial Radio Presenter of the Year (large – broadcasting to more than 1 million), 2010 * Gold Sony Radio Academy Award for Best Single Promo/Commercial for ''Geoff Lloyd's Hometime Show'' – "The Complaints", 2012 * Nominee, Sony Radio Academy Award for Best Entertainment Programme for ''Geoff Lloyd's Hometime Show'', 2013 * Nominee,

Broadcasting Press Guild The Broadcasting Press Guild (BPG) is a British association of journalists dedicated to the topic of general media issues. History The Guild was established in 1974 as a breakaway of The Critics' Circle and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 20 ...

Radio Broadcaster of the Year, 2015 * Winner,

Awards 2018 Podcast of the Year * Nominee, British Podcast Awards – Best New Podcast for 'Reasons to be Cheerful with Ed Miliband and Geoff Lloyd' * Nominee, British Podcast Awards – Best Current Affairs Podcast for 'Reasons to be Cheerful with Ed Miliband and Geoff Lloyd' * Bronze Award, British Podcast Awards – Best New Podcast for 'Adrift with Geoff Lloyd and Annabel Port'

References

External links

*
''Reasons to Be Cheerful'' podcast''Firecrotch & Normcore'' podcast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lloyd, Geoff 1973 births Living people English radio DJs Absolute Radio Virgin Radio (UK) English television presenters People from Withington People from Macclesfield

Early life

Radio career

Beginnings in radio (1991–96)

Pete and Geoff (1996–2005)

''Geoff Lloyd with Annabel Port'' and other shows (2006–2017)

After Absolute (2017–present)

Writing and television

Awards

See also

References

External links