Most people who know me know that I have always regarded radio as a far superior medium to television. Even as a kid I used to turn the dial to tune in to comedy on Radio 4, try and find other local stations, (when I was a kid in Skegness I had a really top quality radio that allowed me to listen to stations from as far away as Norwich!), but my default at the time was Radio 1. What fascinated me about Radio 1, and radio as a whole, was DJs. At the time I didn't know that I wanted to work in radio, but the life of a Radio 1 jock seemed so glamorous and showbiz. The fact that it all took place down in that London probably added to the magic, as the handovers between the likes of Gary Davies and Steve Wright appeared to portray a lifestyle of partying and hanging out with pop stars. Steve Wright's comedy characters, (although without the Internet to download old Kenny Everett shows from), seemed so original and fresh.

Then along came Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse to show the British public what Radio 1 really was like. Matthew Bannister took charge in the early 1990s with a mission to freshen things up, and he did so by culling the 'Smashie and Nicey' brigade. Out went Dave Lee Travis, Alan Freeman, Bob Harris, Gary Davies and Simon Bates among others, and in came the likes of Chris Evans. 

This evening I attended a lecture at The University of Nottingham given by Matthew Bannister, who studied here. The talk was about his love of radio from childhood, his sometimes controversial career in BBC management, and what the future holds for the medium.

Something that struck me was how few radio stations there used to be, as recently as the 1970s, compared with now. Noel Edmonds used to command an audience of twenty million or more on the Radio 1 breakfast show, which no radio station, however big, could possibly achieve now. When BBC Radio Nottingham and Radio Trent started, they were the only exclusively Nottingham radio stations, so it is a shame that Radio Trent, (later Trent FM), is now a generic station re-branded as Capital. I remember when I lived in London just how 'London' Capital Radio was, which is how it should be.

During the talk I thought about John Osbourne's book Radio Head, in which the author listened to a different radio station every day. I started idly wondering if it would be possible to present one show on every UK radio station, and how long it would take. I'd tailor it to the remit of the show, and wouldn't just make it my own show on a different station. There would be a book in it I'm sure. I'd have to find out how many stations there actually are in this country first, including Internet ones of course, as they are the future of radio!

After the lecture, the university laid on a wine and canapes reception, so I hung around for a couple of glasses of a rather nice red and some nibbles. This was a free lecture that was open to the public. My daughter once remarked about how you could eat and drink quite well just by walking past sample stalls in supermarkets and farmer's markets, and popping in Whittards to try whatever tea they were trying to push. You could actually eat rather well just by attending public university lectures. Nobody checks if your name is on a list, and once out of the lecture I went along a very long corridor to the toilet. On my return I wasn't challenged, I just blended straight into the crowd and picked up a glass. With that in mind, you don't even need to attend the lecture, just obtain a list of finishing times!