STEVE WRIGHT A LIFE IN RT
Paul Gambaccini pays tribute to the man who revolutionised the sound of British radio
Veteran broadcaster Paul Gambaccini was among the first to spot the talent of Steve Wright, who would become his friend and colleague. More than 40 years ago, Gambaccini used his column in Radio Times to tell readers, “Steve Wright is likely to be one of [BBC Radio’s] big names in the 80s, so you should get to know him before seven million others do.”
“I was instantly captivated by Steve, because of what tens of millions would go on to hear in the coming years,” says Gambaccini. “With very little resources, he was creating an entire world – a world of optimism, humour and sunlight. He illuminated the lives of generations.”
It was as if Wright created a club, says Gambaccini, and all you had to do to join was listen. “And if you were in this club, you had a one-to-one relationship with Steve Wright.”
“Wrighty” did what all the greats did, according to his fellow broadcaster: “Go with what you’ve got”. He didn’t try to be a music expert but he had an intuitive knowledge of radio, the medium he would dominate with unassuming mastery for more than four decades.
According to Gambaccini, after he was hired by Radio 1, Wright would often fly to the United States for the weekend, book a hotel or drive around, simply to sample different radio shows and pick up ideas. The DJ was excited by the “zoo format”, in which the presenter is joined in the studio by sidekicks and co-hosts. Wright was the first to introduce it to British schedules, even creating f ictional on-air partners and comedy characters, including Gervais the hairdresser and Mr Angry.
Many of our best-loved broadcasters owe a debt to Wright for the radio revolution he launched, as they have been quick to acknowledge. “Greg James of Radio 1 said that without Steve Wright there would be no Greg James Show, nor many of the breakfast shows that came before it,” Gambaccini says.
Wright’s effortless style belied meticulous presentation. He was very good technically, according to Gambaccini. “There are people like Steve and Noel Edmonds who were very good at making it all look spontaneous. Both of them were geniuses of timing, of putting a show together for maximum impact.”
A former controller of Radio 2, Jim Moir, who brought Wright to the station, used to say of another presenter, “He thinks about his show the moment his arse hits the seat.” By contrast, Wright would come in hours before his programme every day to prepare it. “He was putting in a nine-to-five day for a threehour show,” says Gambaccini.
“Like Kenny Everett, whom Steve greatly admired, he treated the studio like an instrument. Mos
