Category Archives: Worlds Shortest Radio Show

And are you a girl? If so, this is one of the great “getting ready” records. It declares “Get dressed to kill and knock ‘em dead, girl”. I love early 80s synth-funk and I’m not the only one. Much underrated genre and I know a lot of blokes got ready to it too. Clean shirt, […]

Who knows? Dave Beasant was England’s substitute goalkeeper when England played Germany in that famous 1990 World Cup semi-final. In the 119th minute, with the game clearly going to penalties, should Beasant have been brought on? Peter Shilton was still England’s No.1 keeper but at 40, was well past his peak. Beasant was ten years […]

… to meet my friend Julian. He’s cracking good company and Pellicci’s is my favourite cafe in the world. Unchanged since the 1940s and still run by the same family, it’s a rare relic of the old East End. But whenever I’m in that area, I’m reminded of living in Greenwich and being late for […]

It’s certainly one of them. Nessun Dorma was an inspired musical choice for the BBC’s coverage of the 1990 World Cup, pushing the drama and excitement of football upmarket by comparing it to opera. Suddenly it didn’t seem so rough and threatening. The other reason was the Taylor Report which, post-Hillsborough, recommended safer (and more […]

I hope so. My kids are 19 and 16 now so the “bringing up” is practically done. Like any parent, I’ve done my very best – giving them unconditional love and support without spoiling them or letting them think the world revolves around them. I always followed two rules inherited from my own father: “Never […]

……this has to be today’s tune. England play their first World Cup game tonight and this was the very first hit record by a football team. It was No.1 when I was at primary school and last night, I visited that primary school. It’s being razed to the ground and re-built but, before it is, […]

It’s supposed to be unlucky. Some old nonsense about Jesus being crucified on a Friday and Judas being the thirteenth disciple. But London doesn’t look unlucky today. I’ve been pedalling around all day and seen nothing but sunshine and happiness. And this is the song I find myself singing on days like this. Isn’t it […]

……there’s one bit of it that has always made me cringe. It is of course, John Barnes “rapping” about two and a half minutes in. Don’t you find it embarrassing too? It’s as if someone said, “Hey, this rapping’s pretty cool, isn’t it? We need a rapper on this record. John, you’re black, you do […]

Burnt Oak was always an extraordinary place. In the 1930s, the Watling Estate was built there for families cleared out of the appalling slums around Kings Cross. Thousands of Cockneys were moved across London and they were not to be trifled with. At Burnt Oak tube, you’d usually find a couple of skinheads on “station […]

I refer, of course, to Prince Philip who celebrates his 93rd birthday today. 93?? I always think of him as “about sixty” but he’s now just a few years away from getting a telegram from his wife. Prince Philip isn’t the only famous person who’s actually much older than we think. David Bowie is 67, […]