John Peel

John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE (30 August, 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was a British disc jockey, radio presenter, and journalist.

Later years

In his later years Peel appeared to mellow somewhat. Between 1995 and 1997 he presented a show about children, called Offspring, on Radio 4. In 1998 Offspring grew into the magazine-style documentary show Home Truths. When he took on the job presenting the programme, which is about everyday life in British families, Peel requested that it be free from celebrities, as he found real life stories more entertaining. Home Truths was described by occasional stand-in presenter John Walters as being "about people who had fridges called Renfrewshire". He also made regular contributions to BBC Two's humorous look at the irritations of modern life Grumpy Old Men.

Related Topics:
Radio 4 - 1998 - Home Truths - John Walters - BBC Two - Grumpy Old Men

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In the 1970s John and his wife Sheila moved to a thatched cottage in a small village near Stowmarket in Suffolk, starting a family of four children. In the eight-acre (32,000 m²) garden, referred to on the radio as Peel Acres, he housed his record collection, estimated by then to be in the hundreds of thousands, in a number of barns and stables. In his later years Peel introduced many of his radio shows from a studio at Peel Acres.

Related Topics:
1970s - Thatch - Stowmarket - Suffolk

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He was also in demand as a voice-over artist for television documentaries, such as BBC One's A Life of Grime, and advertisements, though he reportedly refused to work on adverts for products that he didn't use himself.

Related Topics:
BBC One - A Life of Grime

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Awards and honorary degrees

Peel was 11 times Melody Makers DJ of the year, Sony Broadcaster of the Year in 1993, winner of the Godlike Genius Award from the NME in 1994, Sony Gold Award winner in 2002 and is a member of the Radio Academy Hall of Fame. At the NME awards in 2005 he was Hero of the Year and was posthumously given a special award for "Lifelong Service To Music". At the same event the "John Peel Award For Musical Innovation" was awarded to The Others.

Related Topics:
Melody Maker - Sony - 1993 - NME - 1994 - 2002 - Radio Academy - The Others

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He was awarded many honorary degrees including an MA from the University of East Anglia, Doctorates (Anglia Polytechnic University and Sheffield Hallam University), various Honorary Degrees (University of Liverpool, Open University, University of Portsmouth, University of Bradford) and a Fellowship of Liverpool John Moores University.

Related Topics:
Honorary degree - University of East Anglia - Anglia Polytechnic University - Sheffield Hallam University - University of Liverpool - Open University - University of Portsmouth - University of Bradford - Liverpool John Moores University

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He was appointed an OBE in 1998, for his services to British music.

Related Topics:
OBE - 1998

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In 2002, the BBC conducted a vote to discover the 100 Greatest Britons of all time. Peel was voted 43rd, an amazing feat for a radio broadcaster.

Related Topics:
2002 - BBC - Vote - 100 Greatest Britons

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In April 2003 the publishers Transworld successfully wooed Peel with a package worth up to £1.6 million for his autobiography, having placed an advert in a national newspaper aimed only at Peel. The planned release date was in 2005.

Related Topics:
2003 - Transworld - 2005

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Health in later years and passing

Peel was diagnosed with diabetes in 2001 and two weeks before his death he told friend and colleague Andy Kershaw that the move of his show, in summer 2004, back an hour from a 10pm start to 11pm, caused him a lot of stress and that he felt marginalised and unappreciated.

Related Topics:
Diabetes - 2001 - Andy Kershaw

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Peel died suddenly at the age of 65 from a heart attack on October 25, 2004, on a working holiday in the Inca city of Cuzco in Peru. Shortly after the announcement of his death, tributes began to arrive from fans and supporters both in and out of public life. Among the first to pay their respects were such seminal British artists as Blur, Oasis, and New Order. Prime Minister Tony Blair also paid tribute.

Related Topics:
Heart attack - October 25 - 2004 - Inca - Cuzco - Peru - British - Blur - Oasis - New Order - Prime Minister - Tony Blair

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On October 26, 2004 Radio 1 cleared its schedules to broadcast a day of tributes, while BBC Three added a small and discreet caption to its logo: "Dedicated to John Peel". A stage for new bands at the Glastonbury Festival, previously known simply as 'The New Tent' has been renamed 'The John Peel Stage'.

Related Topics:
October 26 - BBC Three - Glastonbury Festival

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Peel often spoke wryly of his eventual death. He once said on the show Room 101,

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I've always imagined I'd die by driving into the back of a truck while trying to read the name on a cassette, and people would say, 'He would have wanted to go that way.' Well, I want them to know that I wouldn't.

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At one point, he said that if he died before his producer John Walters (he didn't), he wanted the latter to play Roy Harper's "When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease." Another time, he said he'd like to be remembered with a gospel song.

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His funeral, on November 12, 2004, in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, was attended by over a thousand people including many of the artists he had championed. Eulogies were read by his brother, Alan Ravenscroft, and DJ Paul Gambaccini. The service ended with clips of him talking about his life and his coffin was carried out to the accompaniment of his favourite song: The Undertones' "Teenage Kicks". (In 2001 Peel had told The Guardian that apart from his name all he wanted on his gravestone were the words, "Teenage dreams, so hard to beat," from the track's lyrics http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/news/story/0,11711,1336872,00.html.) A private family service was held after the public funeral.

Related Topics:
November 12 - 2004 - Bury St Edmunds - Suffolk - Paul Gambaccini - Coffin - The Undertones - 2001 - The Guardian

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