Jonathan King
Encyclopedia
Jonathan King is an English singer, songwriter, impresario
Impresario
An impresario is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays or operas; analogous to a film producer in filmmaking, television production and an angel investor in business...

 and record producer. He is also the author of three novels, Bible Two (1982) and The Booker Prize Winner (1997), and Beware the Monkey Man (2010, using the pen name Rex Kenny), and an autobiography, 65 My Life So Far (2009).

King first came to prominence as an undergraduate at the University of Cambridge in 1965 when he wrote and sang "Everyone's Gone to the Moon
Everyone's Gone to the Moon
"Everyone's Gone To The Moon" is a song that was written and recorded as the debut single of the British singer-songwriter, producer and impresario Jonathan King. The song, which was released in 1965 whilst King was still an undergraduate at Cambridge University, immediately shot him to...

," an international best seller. He went on to become a media entrepreneur, discovering and producing material for a number of artists, including Genesis
Genesis (band)
Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...

, whom he signed up in 1967, giving them their name and producing their first album, From Genesis to Revelation
From Genesis to Revelation
From Genesis to Revelation was the first album by Genesis, released in March 1969 on Decca Records in England...

. He ran Decca Records
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....

 twice and created his own record label, UK Records
UK Records
UK Records was launched in 1972 by Jonathan King to distribute his own releases and some other artists. The abbreviation UK stands for "United King". The label was distributed at first by Decca Records and, after 1976, by PolyGram...

, reported as the most successful independent label in the business, and worked with 10cc
10cc
10cc are an English art rock band who achieved their greatest commercial success in the 1970s. The band initially consisted of four musicians -- Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, and Lol Creme -- who had written and recorded together for some three years, before assuming the "10cc" name...

 and the Bay City Rollers
Bay City Rollers
The Bay City Rollers were a Scottish pop band who were most popular in the 1970s. The British Hit Singles & Albums noted that they were "tartan teen sensations from Edinburgh", and were "the first of many acts heralded as the 'Biggest Group since The Beatles' and one of the most screamed-at...

.

He also became known for a string of 1970s hits, such as "Una Paloma Blanca
Paloma Blanca
Paloma Blanca, often called Una Paloma Blanca, is a 1975 song written by the Dutch musician George Baker and first recorded by his band The George Baker Selection. The single was a hit throughout Europe, and was taken from the group's fifth album of the same name.The song became a #1 hit on the U.S...

," "Sugar Sugar", "It Only Takes A Minute
It Only Takes a Minute
"It Only Takes a Minute" is a 1975 song by Tavares. It would become the group's only Top 10 pop hit in the United States, peaking at #10. It also became their second #1 song on the American soul charts....

", "Johnny Reggae", "Lick A Smurp For Christmas" and "Loop di Love." Billboard reported in September 1972 that he had produced 10 of the Top 30 singles in the UK in the previous 12 months. Rod Liddle
Rod Liddle
Roderick E. L. Liddle is an English print, radio, and television journalist.He is an associate editor of The Spectator, and former editor of BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he is the author of Too Beautiful for You , Love Will Destroy Everything , and co-author of The Best of Liddle Britain...

 described him in 2010 as truly talented and fabulously cynical, someone who could "storm the pop charts at will, under a hundred different disguises ..."

King was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2001 for the sexual assault of five teenage boys between 1983 and 1989. He protested his innocence, arguing that he was unable to defend himself adequately because of the length of time that had passed. He was refused leave to appeal and was released on parole in 2005.

Early life and education

King was born in London, the first child of an American father and English mother. His father was the managing director of a textile firm, and died when King was nine. The family moved to Surrey, and King and his two brothers, Jamie and Andy, were raised near Dorking
Dorking
Dorking is a historic market town at the foot of the North Downs approximately south of London, in Surrey, England.- History and development :...

. He was sent to Stoke House boarding school and later Charterhouse
Charterhouse School
Charterhouse School, originally The Hospital of King James and Thomas Sutton in Charterhouse, or more simply Charterhouse or House, is an English collegiate independent boarding school situated at Godalming in Surrey.Founded by Thomas Sutton in London in 1611 on the site of the old Carthusian...

, both private schools. He took six months off to travel round the world before taking up a place at Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...

. During his travels he met a number of pop managers, including Brian Epstein
Brian Epstein
Brian Samuel Epstein , was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle...

, manager of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...

—who were on tour in Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...

; Derek Taylor
Derek Taylor
Derek Taylor was an English journalist, writer and publicist, best known for his work as press officer for The Beatles...

, the Beatles' press officer; Peter Asher
Peter Asher
Peter Asher is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He first came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a record producer.-Early life:He was born at the Central Middlesex Hospital, a child actor and...

 of Peter and Gordon and Tommy LiPuma
Tommy LiPuma
Tommy LiPuma is an American music producer. In his long career, he has worked with many musicians, including Barbra Streisand, Miles Davis, Al Jarreau, Anita Baker, Natalie Cole, Claudine Longet, Dave Mason, the Yellowjackets, Michael Franks, Diana Krall, and The Story...

, a record producer. He has an M.A. in English literature.

1960s–1970s

While he was still a first year undergraduate, King wrote and sang his first hit, "Everyone's Gone to the Moon", which he claimed sold over one million copies in the UK and 4.5 million around the world. It was later performed by Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...

, Nina Simone
Nina Simone
Eunice Kathleen Waymon , better known by her stage name Nina Simone , was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, arranger, and civil rights activist widely associated with jazz music...

, Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...

, Bette Midler
Bette Midler
Bette Midler is an American singer, actress, and comedian, also known by her informal stage name, The Divine Miss M. She became famous as a cabaret and concert headliner, and went on to star in successful and acclaimed films such as The Rose, Ruthless People, Beaches, and For The Boys...

 and many others; it won King a gold disc.

Still at university, continuing his studies, King wrote and produced other hits, such as "It's Good News Week" by Hedgehoppers Anonymous
Hedgehoppers Anonymous
Hedgehoppers Anonymous were a 1960s beat group from the United Kingdom. They formed in November 1963 as The Trendsetters, and became The Hedgehoppers the following year...

, and, later, "Johnny Reggae" by The Piglets. During a visit to his old school, Charterhouse, he was handed a recording by a friend of one of the school bands, which included Peter Gabriel
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...

 as their lead singer. He decided to produce them, choosing their name — Genesis — to mark the start of his production career. He produced their first album, From Genesis to Revelation, which was a flop at the time partly because shops placed it in their religious music sections. Phil Collins was not in the band at that time.

Soon after graduating, he hosted a Saturday evening show on ITV, Good Evening; I'm Jonathan King, which was broadcast nationally for six months. He continued to perform and produce a large number of hits under a variety of names. Among these were "Let It All Hang Out" (a cover of the 1967 track by The Hombres
The Hombres
The Hombres were a Memphis, Tennessee, band best known for the 1967 single "Let It Out ".Formed in 1966, The Hombres comprised Gary Wayne McEwen on guitar, B.B. Cunningham on lead vocals and electric organ, Jerry Lee Masters on bass and John Will Hunter on drums...

), "It Only Takes A Minute" (a cover of the Tavares track), "Sugar, Sugar
Sugar, Sugar
"Sugar, Sugar" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was a four-week 1969 number-one hit single by fictional characters The Archies. Produced by Jeff Barry, the song was originally released on the album Everything's Archie. The album is the product of a group of studio musicians...

", "Loop di Love", "Hooked on a Feeling
Hooked on a Feeling
"Hooked on a Feeling" is a 1968 pop song written by Mark James and originally performed by B. J. Thomas. Featuring the sound of the electric sitar, the song reached number five in 1969 on the Billboard Hot 100.-History:...

" (a cover of the track by B J Thomas), "Lazybones", "It's The Same Old Song" (originally by The Four Tops) and "The Sun Has Got His Hat On
The Sun Has Got His Hat On
The Sun Has Got His Hat On is one of the main songs in the musical Me and My Girl. It was written by Noel Gay and Ralph Butler, and recorded in 1932 by Ambrose and his Orchestra, with vocals by Sam Browne....

". He produced such hits as "Leap Up And Down And Wave Your Knickers In The Air" for St Cecilia and also acts such as the Bay City Rollers, singing all the backing vocals on their first hit, "Keep on Dancing". He was one of the original investors of the London production of the play The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show
The Rocky Horror Show is a long-running British horror comedy stage musical, which opened in London on 19 June 1973. It was written by Richard O'Brien, produced and directed by Jim Sharman. It came eighth in a BBC Radio 2 listener poll of the "Nation's Number One Essential Musicals"...

with Michael White
Michael White (producer)
Michael White is a British theatrical impresario and film producer.Theatre impresario and film producer Michael White was born in Scotland on 16 January 1936, and educated at the Sorbonne in Paris....

 and produced the original cast soundtrack album in one long 48 hour session over an early weekend.

He was twice involved in running Decca Records at the request of the founder Sir Edward Lewis
Edward Lewis (Decca)
Sir Edward Roberts Lewis was an English businessman, best known for leading the Decca recording and technology group for five decades from 1929. He built the company up from nothing to one of the major record labels of the world.A financier by profession, Lewis was professionally engaged by the...

 who had also been at Trinity, Cambridge many years earlier. In September 1972, he set up his own record label, UK Records, which had dozens of hits with artists such as 10cc, whom he also named, Terry Dactyl and the Dinosaurs
Terry Dactyl and The Dinosaurs
Terry Dactyl and The Dinosaurs was an English novelty band, that issued a few recordings in the early 1970s. The band name was especially created for Brett Marvin and the Thunderbolts to promote the hit single "Seaside Shuffle"; band members being Jona Lewie ; Keef Trouble ; Graham Hine ; John...

 "Seaside Shuffle", Roy C
Roy C
Roy C , is an American southern soul singer, songwriter and record executive, best known for his 1965 hit, "Shotgun Wedding".-Career:Roy C was born in Newington, Georgia...

 "Shotgun Wedding", Carl Malcolm with "Fattie Bum Bum", The First Class
The First Class
The First Class was a British pop music studio-based group, put together by songwriter and record producer John Carter.-Career:The First Class was the studio creation of the British singer-songwriter John Carter and singers Tony Burrows and Chas Mills as an outlet for material Carter wrote with his...

 with "Beach Baby", Lobo
Lobo (musician)
Roland Kent LaVoie, better known by the stage name Lobo , is an American singer-songwriter who was successful in the early 1970s, scoring several U.S...

 "Baby I'd Love You To Want Me", and many others, sometimes three or four on the charts at the same time. King frequently performed under pseudonyms such as "Shag", "Sakkarin", "Bubblerock", "100 Ton and a Feather" and "Nemo", although, in 1975, a rendition under his own name of the song "Una Paloma Blanca (White Dove)
Paloma Blanca
Paloma Blanca, often called Una Paloma Blanca, is a 1975 song written by the Dutch musician George Baker and first recorded by his band The George Baker Selection. The single was a hit throughout Europe, and was taken from the group's fifth album of the same name.The song became a #1 hit on the U.S...

" was awarded the Record of the Year trophy at the Ivor Novello Awards
Ivor Novello Awards
The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and were first introduced in 1955.Nicknamed The Ivors, the awards take place...

. Between 1965 and 1979, King had seventeen hits on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 under a variety of pseudonyms and his own name, five of which made the Top 10. The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...

reported he sold over 40 million records as a singer during his active career.

1980s–1990s

King moved on from the music industry in the 1980s to further his involvement in television and radio. He presented a daily talk show on New York's WMCA radio from 10–12 weekday mornings throughout 1980 and 1981 and regularly reported from the U.S. on Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...

. A spinoff series, Entertainment USA, was very successful on BBC2, getting over nine million viewers each week. He also created the Youth TV show No Limits which topped the BBC ratings. He hosted the ITV programme The Ultra Quiz
Ultra Quiz
Ultra Quiz was an elimination game show series that was produced by TVS and aired for three series and a total of 24 episodes on the ITV network from 9 July 1983 until 17 August 1985. The British version was devised by Jeremy Beadle...

. King wrote a page in The Sun for eight years called "Bizarre USA" and his criticism of Band Aid
Band Aid (band)
Band Aid was a charity supergroup featuring British and Irish musicians and recording artists. It was founded in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia by releasing the song "Do They Know It's Christmas?" for the Christmas market that year. The single...

 and Live Aid
Live Aid
Live Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...

 provoked 18,500 letters in one day. He wrote regular features in many other newspapers and magazines such as the Mail and the Sunday Times. He also completed two published novels, Bible Two and The Booker Prize Winner. He continued some music projects, including the bizarre supergroup project "Gogmagog
Gogmagog (band)
Gogmagog were a British supergroup put together by British record producer Jonathan King that featured former Iron Maiden members Paul Di'Anno and Clive Burr, former White Spirit and Gillan guitarist Janick Gers , original Def Leppard guitarist Pete Willis, and bassist Neil Murray, who has played...

" with ex members of Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...

, Def Leppard
Def Leppard
Def Leppard are an English rock band formed in 1977 in Sheffield as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Since 1992, the band have consisted of Joe Elliott , Rick Savage , Rick Allen , Phil Collen , and Vivian Campbell...

, Whitesnake
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English rock band, founded in 1978 by David Coverdale after his departure from his previous band, Deep Purple. The band's early material has been compared by critics to Deep Purple, but by the mid 1980s they had moved to a more commercial hard rock style...

, and other classic rock bands.
In 1987, he suggested in his Sun column that the Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....

 had borrowed the melody of Cat Stevens
Cat Stevens
Yusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....

's 1970 song "Wild World
Wild World
"Wild World" is a song written and recorded by English singer-songwriter Cat Stevens. It first appeared on his fourth album, Tea for the Tillerman, recorded and released in 1970 and, continuing the change in Stevens' sound, after leaving Deram Records and signing with Island Records...

" for their UK #1 single "It's a Sin
It's a Sin
"It's a Sin" is a song recorded by Pet Shop Boys which reached number one on the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in 1987.-Background and writing:...

". King also released his own cover version of "Wild World" as a single, using a similar musical arrangement to "It's a Sin", in an effort to demonstrate his claims. The single flopped, while the Pet Shop Boys sued The Sun, accepting out-of-court damages from the newspaper that they donated to charity. He had done the same in the 1970s with his version of "He's So Fine
He's So Fine
"He's So Fine" is a recording by The Chiffons which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks in the spring of 1963. One of the most instantly recognizable Golden Oldies with its doo-lang doo-lang doo-lang background vocal, "He's So Fine" is also renowned as the plaintiff song in the now-infamous...

" to the arrangement of George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...

's "My Sweet Lord
My Sweet Lord
"My Sweet Lord" is a song by former Beatles lead guitarist George Harrison from his UK number one hit triple album All Things Must Pass. The song was written in praise of the Hindu god Krishna...

", which was played in the plagiarism court case, which The Chiffons
The Chiffons
The Chiffons was an all girl group originating from the Bronx area of New York in 1960.-Biography:The Chiffons were one of the top girl groups of the early 1960s...

 eventually won.

King wrote and hosted the BRIT Awards
Brit Awards
The Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain" or "Britannia", but subsequently became a backronym for British Record Industry Trust...

 for the BBC in 1987 and he returned to produce them from 1990 to 1992. He produced "A Song for Europe
A Song for Europe
A Song for Europe may refer to:*A Song for Europe, former name of British pre-selection competition for the Eurovision Song Contest, now known as Eurovision: Your Country Needs You...

", the BBC quest for a Eurovision Song Contest
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual competition held among active member countries of the European Broadcasting Union .Each member country submits a song to be performed on live television and then casts votes for the other countries' songs to determine the most popular song in the competition...

 winner. The 1996 entrant by Gina G
Gina G
-Albums:*1997 Fresh! — #12 UK #40 Norway.*1998 Gina G Remix Album *2005 Get Up & Dance -Singles:...

, "Ooh Aah... Just a Little Bit", went to number one in the UK Singles Chart, and the 1997 entry by Katrina and the Waves
Katrina and the Waves
Katrina and the Waves was an English pop rock band, best known for their 1985 hit "Walking on Sunshine" and their 1997 Eurovision Song Contest victory with the song "Love Shine a Light".-Pre-history: The Waves and Mama's Cookin' :...

, "Love Shine a Light", won the contest. He is also responsible for the concept and format of the Record of the Year
The Record of the Year
The Record of the Year is an award voted by the UK public. For many years it was given in conjunction with television programmes of the same name...

shows on British television, regularly shown in December, which continue online. At the end of the Thatcher government, he released "We Can't Let Maggie Go"; it did not chart.

In 1993, he founded The Tip Sheet
The Tip Sheet
The Tip Sheet was a weekly magazine and CD insert for UK music industry insiders. Jonathan King founded it and was managing editor until his imprisonment in 2001. His brother, Andy, took over the position, helped by Joe Taylor....

, which continues online as a message board promoting unknown and unsigned musical acts.

In 1995/1996 he hosted the 10-12 daily show on Talk Radio in the UK, now TalkSport.

In 1997 he was awarded the British Phonographic Industry Man of the Year Award with a message of support from the then-prime minister Tony Blair for his "important contribution to one of this country’s great success stories."

2000s–2010s

King was arrested in November 2000 after a man approached Max Clifford
Max Clifford
Maxwell Frank Clifford is an English publicist, considered the highest-profile and best-known publicist in the United Kingdom...

, a British publicist, with allegations. He was released on £150,000 bail, £50,000 of it put up by Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell
Simon Phillip Cowell is an English A&R executive, television producer, entrepreneur, and television personality. He is known in the United Kingdom and United States for his role as a talent judge on TV shows such as Pop Idol, The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent and American Idol...

, the impresario, and was re-arrested, after the media publicity, in January 2001. He was tried in September 2001 and received a seven-year sentence for six offences against five boys aged 14–16 committed between 1983 and 1989. He was acquitted in a second case against him when a witness, whom King maintained he had never met, said that he had consented to sex and had been older at the time than he had initially told police.

Several commentators felt the prosecution was unfair, among them Charles Shaar Murray
Charles Shaar Murray
Charles Shaar Murray is an English music journalist. His first experience in journalism came 1970 when he was asked to contribute to the satirical magazine Oz...

, Howard Jacobson
Howard Jacobson
Howard Jacobson is a Man Booker Prize-winning British Jewish author and journalist. He is best known for writing comic novels that often revolve around the dilemmas of British Jewish characters.-Background:...

, Lynn Barber
Lynn Barber
Lynn Barber is a British journalist, who writes for The Sunday Times.-Early life:Barber attended Lady Eleanor Holles School...

, Richard Stott
Richard Stott
Richard Keith Stott was a British journalist and editor.Born in Oxford, he attended Clifton College in Bristol. He started his journalistic career in 1963...

 and Danny Hammill. King maintained his innocence, protesting that there was no statute of limitations for sex offences, which he said meant he had been unable to defend himself adequately because of the length of time that had passed; that there was no requirement to corroborate the allegations; and that the complainants were allowed to maintain their anonymity. He sought leave to appeal, which was refused in January 2003, and was released on parole in March 2005.

He continues to protest his innocence.

In January 2006 the BBC reported that the Criminal Cases Review Commission had agreed to examine his case. King argued that he was in New York in September 1985 when one of the incidents is alleged to have taken place in King's home in London. He said he had not presented this evidence at his trial because the date of the alleged offences on the charge sheet had been changed after he had completed his defense.

In 2008 it was reported that the European Court of Human Rights was considering his application for an appeal.

In June 2006 he spoke about the need for prison reform at a meeting of Inside Time, the national newspaper for prisoners, alongside former MP Jonathan Aitken
Jonathan Aitken
Jonathan William Patrick Aitken is a former Conservative Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom, and British government minister. He was convicted of perjury in 1999 and received an 18-month prison sentence, of which he served seven months...

.

In 2007 he produced a collection of mainly new songs, entitled Earth to King, one of which attracted criticism for appearing to defend the serial killer Dr. Harold Shipman
Harold Shipman
Harold Fredrick Shipman was an English doctor and one of the most prolific serial killers in recorded history with 218 murders being positively ascribed to him....

.

In May 2008 he released a 96-minute film called Vile Pervert: The Musical
Vile Pervert: The Musical
Vile Pervert: The Musical is a 2008 film written by and starring Jonathan King, produced by Revvolution Movies. In the film King plays all of the 21 different character roles, many of which are based on real-life personalities from King's own life, most noticeably throughout his arrest and legal...

, which included 21 characters played by King, caricaturing the police, media, PR industry, legal system, and his accusers. It has received over 60,000 full length views and downloads since release. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSJL2KBtpAs

In December 2009 he published his autobiography, 65 My Life So Far.

He released a new film, Me Me Me, in May 2011. It premiered in London's West End and screened at the Cannes Film Festival that year.

In October 2011, BBC Director-General
Director-General of the BBC
The Director-General of the British Broadcasting Corporation is chief executive and editor-in-chief of the BBC.The position was formerly appointed by the Board of Governors of the BBC and is now appointed by the BBC Trust....

 Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson
Mark John Thompson is Director-General of the BBC, a post he has held since 2004, and a former chief executive of Channel 4...

 apologised to Jonathan King, following the removal of King's performance of It Only Takes a Minute
It Only Takes a Minute
"It Only Takes a Minute" is a 1975 song by Tavares. It would become the group's only Top 10 pop hit in the United States, peaking at #10. It also became their second #1 song on the American soul charts....

 from a 1976 episode of Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...

 that was repeated on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....

. Thompson stated: "We accept that this should not have happened and we would like to apologise for any upset this caused." King had accused the BBC of a "Stalinist
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...

" revision
Historical revisionism (negationism)
Historical revisionism is either the legitimate scholastic re-examination of existing knowledge about a historical event, or the illegitimate distortion of the historical record such that certain events appear in a more or less favourable light. For the former, i.e. the academic pursuit, see...

 of history.

Single discography

Year Title UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

Credited to
1965 "Everyone's Gone to the Moon
Everyone's Gone to the Moon
"Everyone's Gone To The Moon" is a song that was written and recorded as the debut single of the British singer-songwriter, producer and impresario Jonathan King. The song, which was released in 1965 whilst King was still an undergraduate at Cambridge University, immediately shot him to...

"
#4 Jonathan King
1970 "Let It All Hang Out" #26 Jonathan King
1971 "It's the Same Old Song
It's the Same Old Song
"It's the Same Old Song" is a 1965 hit single recorded by the Four Tops for the Motown label. Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland, the song is today one of The Tops' signature songs, and was notably created—from initial concept to commercial...

"
#19 Weathermen
1971 "Sugar Sugar
Sugar, Sugar
"Sugar, Sugar" is a pop song written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim. It was a four-week 1969 number-one hit single by fictional characters The Archies. Produced by Jeff Barry, the song was originally released on the album Everything's Archie. The album is the product of a group of studio musicians...

"
#12 Sakkarin
1971 "Lazy Bones" #23 Jonathan King
1971 "Johnny Reggae" #2 The Piglets
1971 "Hooked on a Feeling
Hooked on a Feeling
"Hooked on a Feeling" is a 1968 pop song written by Mark James and originally performed by B. J. Thomas. Featuring the sound of the electric sitar, the song reached number five in 1969 on the Billboard Hot 100.-History:...

"
#23 Jonathan King
1972 "Flirt!" #22 Jonathan King
1972 "Loop di Love" #4 Shag
1974 "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction
" Satisfaction" is a song by the English rock band The Rolling Stones, released in 1965. It was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and produced by Andrew Loog Oldham. Richards's throwaway three-note guitar riff — intended to be replaced by horns — opens and drives the song...

"
#29 Bubblerock
1975 "Una Paloma Blanca (White Dove)
Paloma Blanca
Paloma Blanca, often called Una Paloma Blanca, is a 1975 song written by the Dutch musician George Baker and first recorded by his band The George Baker Selection. The single was a hit throughout Europe, and was taken from the group's fifth album of the same name.The song became a #1 hit on the U.S...

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#5 Jonathan King
1975 "Chick-a-Boom (Don't Ya Jes Love It)" #36 53rd and 3rd featuring the Sound of Shag
1976 "In the Mood
In the Mood
"In the Mood" is a big band era #1 hit recorded by American bandleader Glenn Miller. Joe Garland and Andy Razaf arranged "In the Mood" in 1937-1939 using a previously existing main theme composed by Glenn Miller before the start of the 1930s...

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#46 Sound 9418
1976 "It Only Takes a Minute
It Only Takes a Minute
"It Only Takes a Minute" is a 1975 song by Tavares. It would become the group's only Top 10 pop hit in the United States, peaking at #10. It also became their second #1 song on the American soul charts....

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#9 One Hundred Ton and a Feather
1978 "One for You, One for Me" #29 Jonathan King
1978 "Lick A Smurp for Christmas (All Fall Down)" #58 Father Abraphart and The Smurps
1979 "You're the Greatest Lover
You're the Greatest Lover
"You're the Greatest Lover" is a single by Dutch girl group Luv'. It was first released in July 1978 by Philips/Phonogram Records. It appears on the 1978 debut album With Luv and on compilations . It is the group's international breakthrough as it was successful in a large part of Continental...

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#67 Jonathan King
1979 "Gloria" #65 Jonathan King

External links

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