Why I don't listen to George Lamb

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I used to listen to BBC 6 Music all the time. Phill Jupitus was an excellent breakfast show host, because he made no attempt to sound peppy and jolly when he wasn't. He was 100% honest: sometimes his shows sounded terrible because he'd be half asleep, but I'd rather hear that then a cheesy "good morning!" every 2 minutes. Andrew Collins was a great host for the drive-time ("Teatime") slot: engaging, entertaining, friendly. Gideon Coe's mid-morning show was an absolute masterpiece:

He is a funny man with good taste in music. You will probably want to go out with him a little bit. He wins a lot of awards.

Zoe Williams, The Guardian

Every single one of these presenters – and many more I could name: Vic McGlynn, Suggs, Bob Harris – bought a very different style to their programme, but they all had something in common. A passion for, dedication to, and indisputable knowledge about music.

There have been radical changes to the station and its schedule since the original (and possibly best) line-up. Phill Jupitus left of his own accord, to be replaced by Shaun Keaveny (from XFM); Andrew Collins appeared to be shunted off (although he left to work on other projects) and was replaced by Steve Lemacq (Radio 1 legend); I'm not sure why Vic McGlynn went, but she was replaced by Nemone (Radio 1). Looking back, it would appear that the roots of 6 Music's recent demise can be traced back to these departures, but no-one realised at the time.

From a personal point of view, the station is now in a very sorry state indeed. The final 'nail in the coffin' came when Gideon Coe's show was shifted from 10am to 10pm: and from where once an award-winning, knowledgeable radio presenter had broadcast came... George Lamb.

The move has been widely criticised. 6 Music may not have a massive listenership, but it is a dedicated one. Complaints have been aired on BBC Radio 4's Feedback programme, and 6 Music controller Lesley Douglas's response has done nothing but fan the flames.

It's partly how you talk about music. For women, there tends to be more emotional reaction to music. Men tend to be more interested in the intellectual side of the music, the tracks, where albums have been made, that sort of thing.

Lesley Douglas

This answer is not only condescending to both sexes, but also deeply offensive to listeners who rightly expect a dedicated music network to focus on music rather than 'personality DJs', shows based around childish sound effects and 'cheeky-chappy' faux-cockney vocabulary.

There are lots of shows I would like to listen to on 6 Music, but it's not always convenient to listen again online. I (and I suspect many others) would prefer to have a daytime schedule that they can enjoy 'live' – the current batch leave me feeling short-changed. If this is the shape of things to come, no wonder DAB is struggling.

See also: Follow-up post

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