Brian Matthew
| Brian Matthew | |
|---|---|
| Born |
17 September 1928 Coventry, Warwickshire, England |
| Died | 8 April 2017 (aged 88) |
| Station(s) | BBC Radio 2 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Previous show(s) | Saturday Club, Easy Beat, Thank Your Lucky Stars, Round Midnight, Sounds of the 60s |
| Spouse(s) | Pamela Wickington (m. 1951; his death 2017) |
| Children | 1 |
Brian Matthew (17 September 1928 – 8 April 2017) was an English broadcaster who worked for the BBC for 63 years from 1954 until 2017. He was the host of Saturday Club among other programmes, and began presenting Sounds of the 60s in 1990, often employing the same vocabulary and the same measured delivery he had used in previous decades.
In January 2017, after a short break from the programme due to a minor illness, the BBC announced, against Matthew's wishes, that he would not be returning to the programme and that he would be replaced. He was succeeded by Tony Blackburn. Matthew died on 8 April 2017.
Matthew was born on 17 September 1928 in Coventry, Warwickshire, the son of musical parents. His father was a conductor of the Coventry Silver Band and his mother a professional singer. Matthew was educated at the city's Bablake School.
Matthew first broadcast in Germany in 1948, and trained as an actor at RADA before joining the BBC in 1954. On the BBC Light Programme, he hosted Saturday Club (originally called Saturday Skiffle Club, starting in 1957 and changing to its more familiar name in 1958) and Easy Beat (starting in 1960). At the time, pop music played on BBC Radio was limited, and the demand for it among young people meant the shows attracted large audiences. Virtually all the big names of the era, including the Beatles, appeared on the shows. Matthew's voice is present on the Beatles' Live at the BBC and On Air – Live at the BBC Volume 2 CD compilations. On television, he was the presenter of Thank Your Lucky Stars (ITV 1961–66).
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