Liz Kershaw
Encyclopedia
Liz Kershaw is a UK radio broadcaster.
, she began her career as a pop journalist
for the Yorkshire Post
before joining Leeds
station Radio Aire, where her brother also worked for a time.
While in Leeds, she recorded a version of The Undertones
' "Teenage Kicks
" under the name of Dawn Chorus & The Blue Tits. Kershaw was Dawn Chorus and TV presenter Carol Vorderman
was briefly one of The Blue Tits, along with friend Lindsay Forrest. Andy Kershaw was also an occasional member of the group, who recorded a session for John Peel
in 1985.
In the late 1980s Kershaw worked for British Telecom helping to produce the telephone music line service called Livewire. Kershaw helped produce Radio 1 DJ Mike Smith
, who recorded introductions to the records in a similar fashion to Dial-a-disc from some years earlier.
Her next move was to the BBC
and local station Radio Leeds before the call came from BBC Radio 1
to present a music magazine show called Backchat. After winning a number of awards, she progressed to the evening show and then her best known slot, the weekend breakfast show which she co-hosted with Bruno Brookes
from 1989 to 1991. The two projected a 'love-hate' relationship on-air, and got their fair share of PR in the tabloids as a result, including Kershaw smashing a turntable live on air because she hated a Wet Wet Wet
record being played on it; and the two pulling a stunt of getting married as an April Fools' Day
joke. During this period they also made a charity
record for the BBC's Children in Need
campaign; a version of It Takes Two. They later made two more fundraising records featuring their Radio 1 colleagues and guest vocalists Frank Bruno
and Samantha Fox
, though only one charted.
She left Radio 1 in 1992 to present a weekly phone-in on BBC Radio 5
in its original form. She was part of the team which would later relaunch the station and give it its current name of BBC Radio 5 Live
. At the same time she also went back to local radio for a spell, presenting BBC Radio Northampton
's breakfast programme, and presented documentaries for the other 4 BBC national networks - Radio 1
, Radio 2
, Radio 3
and Radio 4
.
where she presented the weekday afternoon show from 1-4pm, before moving to the weekend mid-morning slots in April 2004, from 10am-1pm.
In September 2005 Kershaw also became a weekday presenter on the BBC's BBC Coventry & Warwickshire
radio station, where she took over the Drivetime show. She later presented the weekday Breakfast Show for the station and continued to present a show on BBC 6 Music
, but on Saturdays only.
Kershaw and Bruno Brookes re-united for a one-off special on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire on Christmas Morning in 2006.
In July 2007, her show was cited in a BBC phone-in competition scandal, with pre-recorded shows being aired as live, and members of the production team pretending to be members of the public ringing in to a competition which did not exist.
On 30 July 2008, the BBC was fined £400,000 (a record for the corporation) by media watchdog Ofcom
. It was accused of 'misleading its audiences' by 'faking' telephone phone-ins. Amongst those affected were Kershaw's show on BBC 6 Music
. Kershaw's programme had the biggest censure of £115,000 being penalised for seventeen cases of deception in seventeen months between May 2005 and January 2006.
Ofcom
stated that the organisation 'deceived its audience by faking winners of competitions and deliberately conducting competitions unfairly.
She can currently be heard on BBC 6 Music Saturday lunchtimes 1-4pm and between 10am and 1pm on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire on Sundays.
She left the breakfast show at BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on Friday 17 July 2009 when the management decided to change the hosts, moving to a Sunday programme which she presented until April 2011.
On 2 October 2010, she reprised her performance of The Undertones
Teenage Kicks at the celebration of the reprieve of BBC 6 Music
, 6 Fest with Damian O'Neill
of The Undertones, and Doyle & The Fourfathers, a charity gig in aid of Nordoff-Robbins and the Chilean Miners in the 2010 Copiapó mining accident
.
Early career
The elder sister of fellow broadcaster and world music exponent Andy KershawAndy Kershaw
Andy Kershaw is a British broadcaster, known for his interest in world music.His shows feature a mix of country, blues, reggae, folk music, spoken word performance from the likes of Ivor Cutler, and other music from around the world.- Early Life :Kershaw and his sister, fellow broadcaster Liz...
, she began her career as a pop journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
for the Yorkshire Post
Yorkshire Post
The Yorkshire Post is a daily broadsheet newspaper, published in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England by Yorkshire Post Newspapers, a company owned by Johnston Press...
before joining Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
station Radio Aire, where her brother also worked for a time.
While in Leeds, she recorded a version of The Undertones
The Undertones
The Undertones are a punk rock/new wave band formed in Derry, Northern Ireland, in 1975.The original line-up of the Undertones released thirteen singles and four studio albums — The Undertones , Hypnotised , Positive Touch and The Sin of Pride — before disbanding in July 1983.Music guide Allmusic...
' "Teenage Kicks
Teenage Kicks
"Teenage Kicks" is a 1978 song originally recorded by Northern Irish punk rock group The Undertones. Composed by the band's principal songwriter, John O'Neill, it was championed by DJ John Peel, and was his all-time favourite song.-John Peel:...
" under the name of Dawn Chorus & The Blue Tits. Kershaw was Dawn Chorus and TV presenter Carol Vorderman
Carol Vorderman
Carol Jean Vorderman MBE is a British media personality, best known for co-hosting the popular game show Countdown for 26 years from 1982 to 2008. In September 2011 she became a co-anchor of the ITV1 panel show Loose Women....
was briefly one of The Blue Tits, along with friend Lindsay Forrest. Andy Kershaw was also an occasional member of the group, who recorded a session for John Peel
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter, record producer and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004...
in 1985.
In the late 1980s Kershaw worked for British Telecom helping to produce the telephone music line service called Livewire. Kershaw helped produce Radio 1 DJ Mike Smith
Mike Smith (television presenter)
Mike Smith is a British television, radio presenter, racing driver, pilot, and businessman.-Radio career:...
, who recorded introductions to the records in a similar fashion to Dial-a-disc from some years earlier.
Her next move was to the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and local station Radio Leeds before the call came from BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
to present a music magazine show called Backchat. After winning a number of awards, she progressed to the evening show and then her best known slot, the weekend breakfast show which she co-hosted with Bruno Brookes
Bruno Brookes
Bruno Brookes is a British radio presenter who became prominent in the 1980s.-Early life and career:...
from 1989 to 1991. The two projected a 'love-hate' relationship on-air, and got their fair share of PR in the tabloids as a result, including Kershaw smashing a turntable live on air because she hated a Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet
Wet Wet Wet are a Scottish pop rock band that formed in the 1980s. They scored a number of hits in the British charts and around the world. The band is composed of Marti Pellow , Tommy Cunningham , Graeme Clark and Neil Mitchell...
record being played on it; and the two pulling a stunt of getting married as an April Fools' Day
April Fools' Day
April Fools' Day is celebrated in different countries around the world on April 1 every year. Sometimes referred to as All Fools' Day, April 1 is not a national holiday, but is widely recognized and celebrated as a day when many people play all kinds of jokes and foolishness...
joke. During this period they also made a charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
record for the BBC's Children in Need
Children in Need
Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
campaign; a version of It Takes Two. They later made two more fundraising records featuring their Radio 1 colleagues and guest vocalists Frank Bruno
Frank Bruno
Franklin Roy Bruno MBE is an English former boxer whose career highlight was winning the WBC Heavyweight championship in 1995. Altogether, he won 40 of his 45 contests...
and Samantha Fox
Samantha Fox
Samantha Karen "Sam" Fox is an English dance-pop singer, actress, and former glamour model. In 1983, at the age of 16, she began her topless modeling career on Page Three of The Sun, and went on to become a popular pin-up girl...
, though only one charted.
She left Radio 1 in 1992 to present a weekly phone-in on BBC Radio 5
BBC Radio 5 (former)
BBC Radio 5 was a BBC radio network that carried sport, children's and educational programmes.It was transmitted via analogue radio on 693 and 909 kHz, and lasted for three years and eight months. The success of BBC Radio 4's coverage of the Gulf War, on a service known as Scud FM,...
in its original form. She was part of the team which would later relaunch the station and give it its current name of BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
. At the same time she also went back to local radio for a spell, presenting BBC Radio Northampton
BBC Radio Northampton
BBC Radio Northampton is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Northamptonshire. It broadcasts from its studios in Broadcasting House, Northampton on 104.2 and 103.6 FM. The station also has two studios in Daventry and Corby...
's breakfast programme, and presented documentaries for the other 4 BBC national networks - Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
, Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
, Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
and Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
.
Recent career
In 2002, she was one of the original presenters on the newly launched, digital station BBC 6 MusicBBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
where she presented the weekday afternoon show from 1-4pm, before moving to the weekend mid-morning slots in April 2004, from 10am-1pm.
In September 2005 Kershaw also became a weekday presenter on the BBC's BBC Coventry & Warwickshire
BBC Coventry & Warwickshire
BBC Coventry and Warwickshire is the BBC Local Radio service serving the City of Coventry and the county of Warwickshire. It broadcasts on 94.8, 103.7 and 104 MHz FM, DAB Digital Radio and is streamed on the internet via the ....
radio station, where she took over the Drivetime show. She later presented the weekday Breakfast Show for the station and continued to present a show on BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
, but on Saturdays only.
Kershaw and Bruno Brookes re-united for a one-off special on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire on Christmas Morning in 2006.
In July 2007, her show was cited in a BBC phone-in competition scandal, with pre-recorded shows being aired as live, and members of the production team pretending to be members of the public ringing in to a competition which did not exist.
On 30 July 2008, the BBC was fined £400,000 (a record for the corporation) by media watchdog Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
. It was accused of 'misleading its audiences' by 'faking' telephone phone-ins. Amongst those affected were Kershaw's show on BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
. Kershaw's programme had the biggest censure of £115,000 being penalised for seventeen cases of deception in seventeen months between May 2005 and January 2006.
Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
stated that the organisation 'deceived its audience by faking winners of competitions and deliberately conducting competitions unfairly.
She can currently be heard on BBC 6 Music Saturday lunchtimes 1-4pm and between 10am and 1pm on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire on Sundays.
She left the breakfast show at BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on Friday 17 July 2009 when the management decided to change the hosts, moving to a Sunday programme which she presented until April 2011.
On 2 October 2010, she reprised her performance of The Undertones
The Undertones
The Undertones are a punk rock/new wave band formed in Derry, Northern Ireland, in 1975.The original line-up of the Undertones released thirteen singles and four studio albums — The Undertones , Hypnotised , Positive Touch and The Sin of Pride — before disbanding in July 1983.Music guide Allmusic...
Teenage Kicks at the celebration of the reprieve of BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music
BBC 6 Music is one of the BBC's digital radio stations, was launched on 11 March 2002 and originally codenamed Network Y. It was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years....
, 6 Fest with Damian O'Neill
Damian O'Neill
Damian O'Neill is the lead guitarist in the pop-punk band, The Undertones. He joined the band following the departure of his older brother, Vincent, in 1976, and remained with the band until their break up in 1983...
of The Undertones, and Doyle & The Fourfathers, a charity gig in aid of Nordoff-Robbins and the Chilean Miners in the 2010 Copiapó mining accident
2010 Copiapó mining accident
The 2010 Copiapó mining accident, also known as the "Chilean mining accident", began in the afternoon of Thursday, 5 August 2010 as a significant cave-in at the troubled 121-year-old San José copper–gold mine. The mine is located deep in the Atacama Desert, one of the driest and harshest...
.