AnnieNIGHTINGALEIconic Radio 1 DJ Annie Nightingale has died at the age of 83 after a short illness, her family has announced.
The radio and TV broadcaster was the first female presenter on BBC Radio 1 in 1970 and remained there until the present day, specialising in supporting new and underground music all while supporting women in a male-dominated industry. Annie was BBC Radio 1's longest-serving broadcaster and even held the Guinness World Record for the longest career as a female radio presenter.
The Middlesex-born star began her career as a journalist in Brighton. In the early to mid-60s, she explored other options in television as a reporter on South Today and in light entertainment and music programmes.
She joined the Brighton and Hove Gazette as a general reporter and was quickly promoted to the Brighton Evening Argus as a general reporter, feature writer and diarist. Her later work saw her interview Sean Connery in his first James Bond role. She even became the paper's first pop music columnist.
Annie met Dusty Springfield and her manager Vicki Wickham, who was the editor of the pop TV show, Ready Steady Go! She was soon invited to host a new sister show. She presented her own show, That's For Me and made sure to book talented musical guests who were not previously seen on television.
She co-hosted music series, Sing A Song Of Sixpence and appeared on A Whole Scene Going. The multi-talented icon also launched a chain of fashion boutiques. During the '60s, she wrote columns for many magazines writing about teen and social issues. She was the pop music columnist for Cosmopolitan and regularly wrote for the Sunday Mirror and Daily Express.
Annie became a DJ after being inspired by the impact of pop pirate ships. She applied for a job as a Radio 1 DJ but was first rejected for being a woman. She tried for three years and was finally given a chance to audition by her friends the Beatles. She was given a trial of six shows before she got the job as the first female radio DJ on BBC Radio 1.
She remained the station’s only female DJ until 1982, when Janice Long joined, and is credited with helping to pave the way for the likes of Sara Cox, Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball. Along with her radio work, Annie also published memoirs, hosted interview series, and presented many iconic shows such as The Old Grey Whistle Test.
She introduced and championed legendary artists such as Talking Heads, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Clash, The Ramones and many more. Annie helped launch many artists' careers and was called a trailblazer by many people such as Lauren Laverne, Jo Whiley, Zoe Ball and Annie Mac. The radio DJ remained on the air until late last year with Annie Nightingale Presents.
In 2021, BBC Radio 1 launched a new scholarship for female and non-binary dance music DJs which was named after Nightingale. In 2019, she was made a CBE for services to radio having previously been made an MBE in 2002. In her personal life, Annie married writer Gordon Thomas and welcomed children Alex and Lucy. She went on to marry Binky Baker (known for Gangster No. 1). The marriage ended in divorce.
Appearing on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs a number of years ago, Annie shared the one poignant regret she had in her life as she talked about the time she spent at the Fab Four’s Apple Studios sessions in London.
She said: "I was accepted but also knew that they had a kind of code – one strike and you’re out. You let them down, you break that trust, and that’s it, it’s over,’ she tells host Lauren Laverne.
"And I thought that was perfectly fair. I knew about John and Yoko before it was announced. If that story breaks then they’ll think, "Oh, it’s your fault.” And when they did go public it was a great relief because sometimes it’s not good to be in the right place at the right time."
Happily, she carried on working up until the time of her death, but admitted her biggest financial error was not caring about money - once telling the Daily Mail: "My mistake is probably not caring enough about money. Not investing in anything for the long term when younger.
"Then again, had I invested in the stock market or property, it might have gone horribly wrong. I used to say: when I'm old, I'll have to live off my wits. Well, that's what I'm doing and I'm terribly grateful that I'm still able to do what I do. I hate the 'R' word: retire. I don't want to watch daytime TV."
Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Annie, and invite you to pay tribute below.
*Credit mirror.co.uk for the story.
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