Janice Long

Janice Long (born Janice Chegwin on 5 April 1955)^[1] is an English radio broadcaster currently working on BBC Radio 2. Her show is on Monday to Thursday mornings from midnight to 3 am. She is the elder sister of TV and radio personality Keith Chegwin.

Early career

Following two years employed by Laker Airways as cabin crew and work as a shop assistant, in telesales and as an insurance clerk,^[2] Long became a station assistant at BBC Radio Merseyside in Liverpool. She started presenting shows for the station shortly thereafter. After interviewing Paul Gambaccini, the latter recommended her to Radio 1. In 1978 she and her husband Trevor were the first winners on Yorkshire Television's show 3-2-1, presented by Ted Rogers. The couple won a sterling silver tea service, after rejecting the car.

BBC Radio 1 and television

Long joined Radio 1 in December 1982 with her own Saturday evening show from 7:30 pm to 10 pm. From 1984 to 1987 she presented the Monday–Thursday Janice Long Show from 7:30 pm to 10 pm, a mix of new music and current affairs, and record review programme Singled Out on Friday evenings from 5:45 pm to 7 pm. On television, Long was a regular presenter of the BBC One chart show Top of the Pops between December 1982 and August 1988, and she returned to co-present its final show in July 2006.

The Superstation, GLR and Radio 5

In 1989, she joined London station BBC GLR, taking over from Nick Abbot on the breakfast show. At the time GLR was being run by future Radio 1 controller Matthew Bannister and future Radio 1 executive Trevor Dann. In 1991 Long left the breakfast show of her own volition but continued to work for the station, where she took over a weekend show. In addition to this, she was heard presenting and producing occasional shows on the old BBC Radio 5. Long became involved with XFM in London when it had a restricted service licence, and played a crucial part in its bid for a permanent licence.

Crash FM

In 1995, Long moved back up to Liverpool, where she set up her own radio station Crash FM. With support from Bob Geldof, Boy George and Primal Scream amongst others, she put together an RSL and a successful bid for a permanent licence.

BBC Radio 2

In 1999, Long started appearing on the rejuvenated BBC Radio 2, presenting a Saturday afternoon show from 3 pm to 6 pm. Since 2000, she has been a weekday presenter. She hosted originally from Birmingham but since April 2008 from BBC Radio 2 studios in London. Live music has included sessions from Adele, the Zutons, Primal Scream, Kasabian, Amy McDonald, Hard Fi, Faithless, the Manic Street Preachers, Marillion, Josh Ritter, the Stranglers, Paul Weller, Morrissey, Moby, the Dandy Warhols, Stereophonics, Aslan and a significant number of new and unsigned bands such as Elle S'Appelle, Vijay Kishore, Damien Dempsey, Amsterdam, Senses and Sam Isaac. Amy Winehouse performed her first radio session after Long was the first presenter to give her airtime.

From late 2007, Long began to champion her listeners under the group name 'the two percenters'. This came about due to a word choice game that employed tricks to produce the same answer for all that played it. However, most of the listeners to Janice Long did not produce the intended answer and thus were said to fall into the 'two percent category' of people for whom the game does not work.

In January 2010, due to a reorganisation of the breakfast schedule on Radio 2, her show was cut to two hours, and ran from midnight to 2 am, Monday to Friday.

With the announcement of the new After Midnight programme on Radio 2 from October 2014, the show was on Mondays to Thursdays, midnight to 3 am.

BBC Radio 6 Music

From the station's founding and launch in 2002 to 2004 Long presented the Dream Ticket^[3] on BBC Radio 6 Music, which aired from 10 pm to midnight five days a week, with a Saturday and Sunday early morning follow-up from 6 am to 8 am.^[4]

Other radio work

As well as a daily show on Radio 2, Long presented for a time on BBC WM on Saturday mornings from 9 am to noon, but left in July 2010.^[5]

Other work

Long has appeared on the X Factor, Countdown and The Biography Channel, and provides the voiceover for the documentary Desperate Midwives on BBC Three TV. She was one of the personalities at the Live Aid concert in 1985, in which she mainly interviewed the performers back stage.^[6] Long won The Weakest Link DJ celebrity special, shown on BBC One on 5 September 2009. In the mid-'90s she presented a programme on the BBC World Service which was a mix of science and popular music called Pop Science. She also presented The Janice Long Review Show on Vintage TV.

Personal life

She married Trevor Long in Liverpool in 1977,^[7] with whom she appeared as a contestant on the first edition of the game show 3-2-1 in 1978. Her partner since 1987 is Paul Berry. They have two children.

In September 2011, Long was assaulted outside Broadcasting House after attending a concert by Echo & the Bunnymen at the London Palladium and her VIP access-all-areas concert pass was stolen.^[8]

References

External links

• After Midnight at BBC Programmes
  
• Janice Long discography at Discogs
• Janice Long at the Internet Movie Database