Bye just now….

…..were the words with which Desmond Carrington would sign off from his wonderful show on Radio 2. This was the track with which he closed his final show last year when ill-health forced him to retire last year aged 90. He had a huge cult following and I was an unabashed Desmond devotee. Most of the tunes he played were very old but the selection was so broad and eclectic that you’d usually be hearing them for the very first time. Desmond Carrington died yesterday but here’s the spooky thing: Last night on Radio 2 there was a celebration of his long and distinguished broadcasting career but he died just hours before it went out. So if I were Pete Murray or Brian Matthew and Radio 2 were about to broadcast a celebration of my long and distinguished career, I’d be feeling ever so slightly nervous.