On July 10, Cowes Parade came to a standstill as Radio 1’s Giant DJ Hunt came to an elaborate climax in front of dozens of radio fans who braved the traditional British summer weather.
As soon as I got wind that the station had come over to the Island, I took my sound equipment and business cards in the hope of securing some big star names on my podcast Beyond the Title.
The irrepressible Greg James has forever been on my bucket list of dream guests since I started Beyond The Title back in 2016 yet has forever escaped my radar.
Therefore standing (or in my case; sitting!) just a few metres from him, this was my moment to ask the all important question…podcast?
As I sat and watched the radio broadcast unfold, I was taken back to my childhood in 1995 when Channel Four’s Big Breakfast took their all star roadshow Eggs On Legs to Cowes Yacht Haven for an early morning entertainment extravaganza hosted by Dannii Minogue and Richard Orford.
It was here I discovered that being disabled has its perks as we were invited into the backstage area to watch the proceedings from probably the best place in the marina.
It’s hard to say all these years later but I wonder if this experience further ignited my passion for entertainment which I built upon throughout the succeeding years.
Therefore there was a certain synergy as I watched yet another entertainment roadshow in Cowes over a quarter of a century since the last.
I was fascinated by all the elements that went into keeping the show on air on somewhat of a remote location of Cowes Parade.
The Radio 1 outside broadcast truck had been sat on the Parade since the start of the week without any real fuss made of it but now it was right at the very heart of the climax of the station’s Giant DJ Hunt.
To think that the Parade, the place where I grew up, was now the location of a nationwide broadcasting feat was just amazing and to be present for such an occasion really blew my mind.
To be able to watch a live radio show unfold on your doorstep was a real thrill for me as someone who remains passionate about the world of broadcasting and there was never any doubt that I was going to stay until the very end.
After the broadcast had finished, I waited along with dozens of avid listeners to get a few moments with Mr James himself as I figured that having waited this long, it would be a shame not to ask him to appear on the podcast and to my utter delight, he agreed.
And so in the first week of December my guest on Beyond The Title shall be the evergreen Greg James and all because of this incredible day on Cowes Parade.
Thank you Isle of Wight, I owe you one!
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