Latest news postings and site updates
User avatar
By Chris
#240890
From The Scotsman/PA

Moyles Opens New Show with Rare Burst of Modesty

By Nick Foley, PA News

Chris Moyles, the self-styled Saviour of Radio 1, kicked off his first breakfast broadcast today by modestly admitting he did not know how well his show would work in its new slot.

Motormouth Moyles, 29, who takes over from Sara Cox on the music station’s flagship breakfast show, told listeners: “It’s a learning curve. I’m not sure how much they (the audience) know about us and what we do, or news wise (what they know) – apart from Leeds losing.”

But Moyles, who has earned a reputation for being one of the rudest men on radio, showed he was not about to curb his laddish banter to suit the more mainstream breakfast slot audience.

During the first half-hour of the show, he joked he had married pop star Britney Spears then got the marriage annulled and then admitted he wanted to sleep with US singer Pink, even though “she’s a bit rough”.

Moyles later interviewed Victoria Beckham who said she was pleased her new single, This Groove/Let Your Head Go , had reached number three in the chart and rubbished reports she was trying to become a hip-hop star.

“Can you imagine me rapping? There’s a lot of people who thought that, but it’s just pop music.”

The former Spice Girl also revealed she was struggling to learn Spanish since moving to Madrid with her soccer star husband David Beckham.

She said: “It’s not that great. I’m trying to do it the new way with word association, it’s a lot easier.”

The chunky presenter was joined on the show with his regular side-kicks, Comedy Dave, Aled and Rachel.

Moyles unveiled a new feature Buzz Off – in which listeners and the rest of his team buzz in when they have had enough of a personal favourite record.

But his Lightning Seeds record lasted less than a minute as listeners texted in to stop the rock group’s track Change, prompting a fuming Moyles to declare: “You have got no taste. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

Radio bosses believe he can stem losses from the breakfast show as the station battles in the highly competitive marketplace for 15 to 24-year-old listeners.

He takes over from Cox, who lost more than 500,000 listeners in the three months to June.

But Moyles lost 700,000 listeners from his own daily 3pm slot on Radio 1 in the 12 months to October, according to Radio Joint Audience Research. Radio 1 bosses believe that his talents will flourish at breakfast.

His near-the-knuckle approach has seen him fall foul of the Broadcasting Standards Commission, the broadcasting watchdog.

There was the Charlotte Church incident, where he offered to take her virginity when she turned 16, in which the BSC ruled he had “exceeded acceptable boundaries for the time of transmission”.

In the five years to July 2002, the BSC received complaints about 34 separate programmes and upheld five.

He was found to have “exceeded acceptable boundaries” by making offensive comments about an actor’s wife on his Radio 1 show.

In his previous job at Capital Radio, the BSC upheld a complaint about his “aggressive and sexually suggestive” comments to a young female caller.

His first job was at Radio Topshop in Leeds when he was just 16.

He also fronted television’s Live with ... Chris Moyles on Channel 5. He left in January 2003, with plunging viewing figures, less than three months after it started.

It was broadcast live from a pub in King’s Cross, north London, every weekday night at 7pm and was masterminded by Chris Evans.

Moyles has previously claimed he would do a better job than Cox at breakfast but asked: “Getting up at 4.30 every morning for a little bit more money and more hassle and half a million more listeners – is it worth it?”

Sat and today are up