For almost twenty five years, iconic radio broadcaster Gary Davies cast away the microphone for music production and entrepreneurial avenues which would take him far from his credentials as one of the most enduring voices on national radio. A constant, familiar voice on Radio 1 throughout the 1980’s Gary remained on the forefront of the ever changing musical landscape for over a decade and oversaw the network through one of its most potent eras. Beginning his broadcasting career on the Manchester radio station Piccadilly in 1979, Gary witnessed firsthand the huge significance that geography plays in our culture and the many different aspects that make up pockets of regional culture. Whether it’s football, music or television, Gary realised he huge significance that environmental influences had on local culture and growing up in Manchester made this all the more potent. Being the younger cousin of Jack, Ivor and Philip Abadi; the joint owners of the legendary Manchester club The Twisted Wheel, Gary had witnessed live music from music icons including Wilson Pickett, Junior Wilson and The All Stars and Rod Stewart. This proved the perfect grounding for a lifetime in music.
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Despite growing up around such a vibrant hotbed of culture, as soon as Gary heard the fresh and exciting sound of Radio 1 as a boy during the late 1960’s, he knew that he had discovered his true calling. Listening to the innovative, rustic sound of Radio Luxembourg and Radio Caroline was to have a profound effect on his childhood as suddenly this was a totally radical approach to broadcasting and represented the world he lived in. It was fresh and exciting which captured the imagination of millions of young listeners. By 1967 and the launch of Radio 1, these ships in the middle of the Atlantic were sadly forced to shutdown bringing to an end a pioneering generation of broadcasting. Yet with the advent of the brand new BBC radio station, many of these mavericks made the transition back across the water to the new sound of Radio 1. Everyone from Tony Blackburn to John Peel made this successful journey and in turn inspired a new generation of broadcasting talent including Gary Davies.
Davies fulfilled a lifetime ambition in 1982 when he joined Radio 1 in an extremely lucrative and productive time for the station. Originally presenting a Saturday evening programme, Gary quickly identified with the network’s demographic and being a similar age to the target audience, he quickly nurtured a style which suited the station’s desired image. This was heralded as a new era for the station and fellow broadcaster Janice Long who joined on the same day as Davies, echoed this change. In 1984 due to his popularity on the station, he was promoted to the lunchtime show ironically titled The Bit In The Middle which became one of the most popular shows on the station. For the boy who had grown up with a fascination with Radio 1, Gary was now living out his dreams and was certain that he had been given the best job in the world.
The Bit In The Middle was, as the name suggests, the show which covered the lunchtime slot, featuring , competitions including The Day To Day Challenge, the occasional celebrity interview and The Classic Track showcasing a well known classical music arrangement. This sounds totally alien to the fast paced, informal tone of contemporary Radio 1 broadcasters who often devote their entire show to reflecting the world through the eyes of the desired demographic. It’s fascinating to realise the evolution of the station from those days to the present day as it would be totally unprecedented for Greg James and co to merely play a song from the nineties let alone a burst of classical music. Yet this just illustrates where music was during the 1980’s and Gary’s cultural roots made him the perfect guide to the range of music that Radio 1 could offer.
This coincided with the rise of the Radio 1 Roadshow and this was where Gary really thrived. Growing up on the nightclub circuit, he was very comfortable with performing in front of crowds and this offered him an advantage over his peers. Similar to 1 Big Weekend, these events were designed to expand the station’s interactivity between the audience and the artists they loved. In a world before social media, it was extremely seldom for fans to create a direct connection with their favourite pop stars and the Radio 1 Roadshow provided one of the only opportunities. The bursting crowds, the eccentric behaviour of pop stars and the collective union of many of the network’s best loved broadcasters were all elements that made it unique. This was the period when radio was king and Radio 1 set the pace for other stations to follow. Gary had found a job which he absolutely loved and realised that his boyhood dream had now come true.
Within a few weeks of beginning his Radio 1 tenure, the station’s management put him forward to present the heavyweight Top Of The Pops. Having never appeared on television before, this was a very daunting prospect for the young broadcaster who had grown up watching the iconic show. It was here that Gary was introduced to legendary BBC producer Michael Hurll who had previously been responsible for the BBC variety shows of the 1960’s featuring an individual pop star at the helm. Hurll had long since been the absolute beating heart of Top Of The Pops and knew the programme inside out. Gary learned so much from this master TV production as he became one of the show’s most regular presenters of the 1980’s. For someone who was utterly petrified of television coverage ironically became synonymous with the famous technicoloured title sequence overlayed with the iconic Led Zeppelin track.
Davies may have been one of the most defining voices of the 1980’s but by the dawn of the nineties Britain was changing. The appointment of new Radio 1 controller Matthew Bannister in 1993 sparked a revolution for the station which had now been on air for a quarter of a century. A shakeup on an unprecedented scale had never been seen before in the world of broadcasting and Gary sadly fell victim to Bannister’s radical ideology. With the benefit of hindsight, it’s clear to Gary that this was vital for the station to regain its youth identity yet remains critical of the abrupt nature in which it was carried out. Changes in broadcasting are frequently better when they’re slow and carefully implemented and such a dramatic overhaul may not have been the best option for the continuity of the station. However, what followed was a very significant shift in the development of British music and therefore it remains difficult to dispute Bannister’s cut throat mentality.
Leaving the BBC, Gary joined Virgin Radio where he struggled with coping with a prescriptive, rock heavy playlist which didn’t suit his eclectic style. By this time, Gary had sadly fallen out of love with the medium which had made him a star and needed some time off to focus on other projects. This is the hugely unique thing about Gary Davies: he’s not just a supremely talented broadcaster but also a businessman and music producer. Many figures who have enjoyed the success and fame of Davies would perhaps struggle to exchange it for a completely different way of life. However, such is his ability to apply a sense of pragmatism to everything he does, Gary was able to know when to do something different. It’s incredible that for over a quarter of a century, he turned his back on the world of entertainment and it didn’t seem to phase him. Yet such a consummate, talented and passionate broadcaster such as the figure in question, it was always a possibility that Gary could return to the BBC.
Such an opportunity arose in 2017 when Sara Cox was on holiday and this left a void for a presenter of Sounds Of The 90’s. Being so synonymous with the decade, Gary was the obvious choice but not having presented live radio for over two decades left him pondering whether he still possessed the ability. Prior to the show, he was extremely nervous, not knowing whether his broadcasting muscles would still work after such a mammoth hiatus. However, as soon as he put his lips to the microphone for his first piece, it all came flooding back and Davies rediscovered the passion for broadcasting which has shaped his career. The show proved popular and just a year later he inherited Sounds Of The 80’s full time, returning to the bedrock of BBC Radio.
The story of Gary Davies remains one of the most fascinating and unique in all of entertainment. To become one of the most prominent figures in daytime radio and then make the brave decision to call time on a career is something that fascinates me greatly. Yet then to re-emerge over a quarter of a century later and become one of Britain’s most popular broadcasters for the second time remains totally unprecedented. This is all testament to Davies’ natural talent for broadcasting and is the ultimate example that fame can be transient whereas talent is for life. It was an absolute privilege to welcome the iconic Gary Davies to my podcast and with such a formidable career behind him, it’s exciting to see what awaits him next!
Beyond The Title