Liz Kershaw

Liz Kershaw
Godiva Festival 2007, Coventry
Born	Elizabeth Marguerita Mary Kershaw (1958-07-30) 30 July 1958 (age 58) Littleborough, Lancashire, England
Nationality	British
Occupation	Broadcaster and journalist
Years active	1980–present
Relatives	Andy Kershaw

Elizabeth "Liz" Marguerita Mary Kershaw (born 30 July 1958 in Littleborough, Lancashire) is an English radio broadcaster. She is the third longest serving female radio DJ (after Annie Nightingale and Janice Long) in the UK celebrating 25 years on national BBC radio in 2012.

The sister of broadcaster Andy Kershaw, she began her media career in Leeds (after graduating from the university) with a music column in the Yorkshire Post.

Her first radio show was in 1981 on Radio Aire where her brother worked for a time. In 1985 she moved to BBC Radio Leeds to present a weekly rock show showcasing local bands.

In 1986 her day job with British Telecom saw her move to London to set up "Livewire" a dial-in pop service which superseded Dial-a-Disc. In running this she produced Radio 1 DJs Mike Smith, Janice Long and Dave Pearce before devising her own show for Radio 1 in 1987, Backchat, which won several awards.

This was followed by her presenting the Radio 1 Evening Show and then, with Bruno Brookes, Radio 1's Weekend Breakfast Show and the Radio 1 Roadshow from 1989 to 1992. The two DJs projected a 'love-hate' relationship on-air, and got their fair share of PR in the tabloids, including Kershaw's smashing up of a Wet Wet Wet record, and the studio turntable under it, live on air (for which she was fined £1,000 by the BBC) because she hated the band for disappointing their fans by not turning up at the Radio 1 Roadshow; and the two pulling a stunt of getting married as an April Fools' Day joke. During this period they also made three charity records for the BBC's Children in Need campaign; a version of "It Takes Two" which charted at No. 43 and two more records featuring their Radio 1 colleagues and guests Status Quo, Frank Bruno and Samantha Fox.