The Rise and Fall of Tommy Boyd - Radio

now · 06-09-2009, 07:59

This guy was (and still is) a legend, and it makes me really sad that he's ended up on a tiny little local station on the South Coast.

I remember him on LBC. He was brilliant. I didn't think that could be topped until Talk Radio launched. Some of his shows on there were the best I've ever heard.

I was just looking at some of the survey areas and reach for the stations he has worked at, and it seems that it has only been downhill since Talk Radio.

He's gone from being on a station with millions of listeners nationwide to one with 26,000 listeners. Each station he's worked at seems to be smaller and smaller (SCR, Original, etc).

What went wrong? PDs that can't handle him properly? Or have tastes moved on which means he isn't in fashion anymore?

wavy-davy · 06-09-2009, 08:01

Surely LBC would have him at elast for cover work if he wanted to do it?

Marcus Bradshaw · 06-09-2009, 08:47

Perhaps he just can't be arsed with the whole London radio thing?

Christopher WW · 06-09-2009, 10:22

Well, he can, having covered for Gaunty on SunTalk, which is in London. Not that, that was any good. I can't stand SunTalk infact, the jingles are way too annoying, and it's all just one big plug for the sun rather than the advertised "free speech"

Inkblot · 06-09-2009, 11:01

I think one reason he was so good on Talk Radio UK is that other presenters raised the bar, for example Scott Chisholm who was a very authoritative broadcaster, so Boyd had to raise his game.

R300 · 06-09-2009, 12:38

I like his shows, although admit to not listening to him that much over the past few years. I gave him a try when he was on BBC Southern Counties via the web feed a couple of years back. He spent way too long chatting to the girl in the studio than to the callers - maybe he wasn't getting enough callers (or the right calibre of callers).

I do think though that his days on the afternoon slot on Talk Radio were his best.

HappyTree · 06-09-2009, 15:20

When you base your career on inventing arguments with stupid people so you can laugh at them, you get fired a lot. When you court controversy by using racism for entertainment you really shouldn't be on the radio at all. A few years ago I don't think he'd have stooped that low, but I suppose recent times are desperate.

He is where he deserves to be.

easter unny · 06-09-2009, 15:45

surely , you must realise by now he is the most fantastic wind up radio jock there has ever been. if you said it was sunday he would argue the toss that it was monday. by the time the conversation you would admit you were wrong and to put the icing on the cake - he would make you look a right tit.
his weekend show on talk sport 1999-2002 was the best radio show on british radio . there has been nothing like that before or after. it was such a shame that mckenzie seems to dislike him.
it is also a bit baffling to me is that he was not approached to take over from whale by the new owners. at least it would have been some sort of contunity. he has stated that he would have turned it down anyway- but i dont believe that.
anyway, im glad he is at least on a radio station somewhere (shame theres no podcasts)

make the most of him. theres still nobody around to rival him.

BrainofMorbius · 06-09-2009, 16:08

He covered for Roberto Perrone At 3CR a few years back and all he did was spit venom, shout down callers and be down right obnoxious.
The bloke is a first class, one trick pillock.
Infact he lost it on air at 3CR when one texter reffered to him as "The Muppet From Magpie"
No wonder he is where he is.

Mapperley Ridge · 06-09-2009, 16:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by easter unny

surely , you must realise by now he is the most fantastic wind up radio jock there has ever been.

Ever? Are you sure?

easter unny · 06-09-2009, 16:51

certaintly not on british radio. penk has nothing on boyd.

Martin Phillp · 06-09-2009, 16:56

If anyone remembers his LBC Breakfast show with Anne Diamond, the less said the better!

easter unny · 06-09-2009, 16:59

im sure they didnt get on.....

Martin Phillp · 06-09-2009, 17:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by easter unny

im sure they didnt get on.....

I think also Boyd would do the final hour of breakfast on his own as a phone-in.

Blabermouth · 06-09-2009, 18:10

He recently stood in for Jon Gaunt on Sun Talk for a week and I must say he was a shade of his former presentation self. He was presenting a daily three hour show and it could only be described as dire, boring , self indulgent.....*****. I seriously would have loved to have praised the guy and maybe reflect on the zoo days of Talk, but it was the most tedious , boring radio Ive heard for years.

easter unny · 06-09-2009, 18:17

lack of callers doesnt help......

marshmallows · 06-09-2009, 18:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by easter unny

surely , you must realise by now he is the most fantastic wind up radio jock there has ever been. if you said it was sunday he would argue the toss that it was monday. by the time the conversation you would admit you were wrong and to put the icing on the cake - he would make you look a right tit.

Maybe most listeners don't like to hear wind-up merchants who get a kick out of making callers look like idiots?

easter unny · 06-09-2009, 19:40

fraid its called entertainment. how many viewers watch x factor every week.....

06-09-2009, 20:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by easter unny

fraid its called entertainment. how many viewers watch x factor every week.....

A lot more than would want to listen to Tommy Boyd. If Tommy ever had the 'x factor', he's certainly lost it now...

Gareth56 · 06-09-2009, 21:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by now

This guy was (and still is) a legend, and it makes me really sad that he's ended up on a tiny little local station on the South Coast.

Good the far away the better, I couldn't stand him on LBC and on Talk Radio (now Talk Sport).

aja · 06-09-2009, 21:52

Judging by some of the replies on this thread, I suspect a few of the posters have been made to look foolish by Boyd!

IMHO the best wind-up talk jock was Caeser the Geezer on Talk Radio.

Ridgieman · 07-09-2009, 08:02

I used to listen to Tommy on Southern Sound in the late eighties/early nineties. He was excellent, along with his sidekicks Nicky Keig-Shelvin and David Legge.

thepainter · 07-09-2009, 20:35

It is a shame that one of the best talk presenters in country has been reduced to playing records on a local station. Yes sometimes he is a wind up merchant, but for pure entertainment he is probably the best. The only current talk presenters who come close are James Whale and Nick Abbot.

jonnybebad · 07-09-2009, 22:24

i always enjoy his shows wherever he has been working but i think he has got more and more edgy and arsy recently?? this might work on late evening type shows but not mid afternoons??

Aztec123 · 07-09-2009, 23:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonnybebad

i always enjoy his shows wherever he has been working but i think he has got more and more edgy and arsy recently?? this might work on late evening type shows but not mid afternoons??

Well, he was certainly edgy and arsy when he first joined BBC SCR in 2004/2005 (can't remember precisely) and did the late night Saturday show. Then he was transferred to weekday mid-afternoons and tried to continue with the arsiness, but it didn't really work at that time of day. So he mellowed a bit (or maybe was told to mellow) and started doing some really good interviews and other human interest stuff. Does anyone remember him doing "Off the Street" in those days, when he would literally go out into the street and select a total stranger at random and get them to go into the studio and be interviewed. It just showed what skill he has as an interviewer because he could turn something so unrehearsed into an absolutely fascinating piece of radio. The reason was because he actually listened to what the interviewee was saying to him. There are so many crap radio and TV interviewers who don't listen to the answers they get from the person they're interviewing but instead just bulldoze ahead with their own already prepared agenda.

06-09-2009, 07:59	#1
now Forum Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: North London Services: Sky Digital √ Posts: 114	The Rise and Fall of Tommy Boyd This guy was (and still is) a legend, and it makes me really sad that he's ended up on a tiny little local station on the South Coast. I remember him on LBC. He was brilliant. I didn't think that could be topped until Talk Radio launched. Some of his shows on there were the best I've ever heard. I was just looking at some of the survey areas and reach for the stations he has worked at, and it seems that it has only been downhill since Talk Radio. He's gone from being on a station with millions of listeners nationwide to one with 26,000 listeners. Each station he's worked at seems to be smaller and smaller (SCR, Original, etc). What went wrong? PDs that can't handle him properly? Or have tastes moved on which means he isn't in fashion anymore?

06-09-2009, 08:01	#2
wavy-davy Forum Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 3,952	Surely LBC would have him at elast for cover work if he wanted to do it?

06-09-2009, 08:47	#3
Marcus Bradshaw Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 107	Perhaps he just can't be arsed with the whole London radio thing?

06-09-2009, 10:22	#4
Christopher WW Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 229	Well, he can, having covered for Gaunty on SunTalk, which is in London. Not that, that was any good. I can't stand SunTalk infact, the jingles are way too annoying, and it's all just one big plug for the sun rather than the advertised "free speech"

06-09-2009, 11:01	#5
Inkblot Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: West London Services: Sky+; ADSL; Apples'n'iPears Posts: 12,732	I think one reason he was so good on Talk Radio UK is that other presenters raised the bar, for example Scott Chisholm who was a very authoritative broadcaster, so Boyd had to raise his game.

06-09-2009, 12:38	#6
R300 Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Scunthorpe Services: Virgin TV and 10mb Broadband also Virgin phone Posts: 2,006	I like his shows, although admit to not listening to him that much over the past few years. I gave him a try when he was on BBC Southern Counties via the web feed a couple of years back. He spent way too long chatting to the girl in the studio than to the callers - maybe he wasn't getting enough callers (or the right calibre of callers). I do think though that his days on the afternoon slot on Talk Radio were his best.

06-09-2009, 15:20	#7
HappyTree Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 100	When you base your career on inventing arguments with stupid people so you can laugh at them, you get fired a lot. When you court controversy by using racism for entertainment you really shouldn't be on the radio at all. A few years ago I don't think he'd have stooped that low, but I suppose recent times are desperate. He is where he deserves to be.

06-09-2009, 15:45	#8
easter unny Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 159	surely , you must realise by now he is the most fantastic wind up radio jock there has ever been. if you said it was sunday he would argue the toss that it was monday. by the time the conversation you would admit you were wrong and to put the icing on the cake - he would make you look a right tit. his weekend show on talk sport 1999-2002 was the best radio show on british radio . there has been nothing like that before or after. it was such a shame that mckenzie seems to dislike him. it is also a bit baffling to me is that he was not approached to take over from whale by the new owners. at least it would have been some sort of contunity. he has stated that he would have turned it down anyway- but i dont believe that. anyway, im glad he is at least on a radio station somewhere (shame theres no podcasts) make the most of him. theres still nobody around to rival him.

06-09-2009, 16:08	#9
BrainofMorbius Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 135	He covered for Roberto Perrone At 3CR a few years back and all he did was spit venom, shout down callers and be down right obnoxious. The bloke is a first class, one trick pillock. Infact he lost it on air at 3CR when one texter reffered to him as "The Muppet From Magpie" No wonder he is where he is.

06-09-2009, 16:51	#11
easter unny Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 159	certaintly not on british radio. penk has nothing on boyd.

06-09-2009, 16:56	#12
Martin Phillp Forum Member Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: London Services: Freeview (Sharp TU-R160H) and DAB Posts: 10,810	If anyone remembers his LBC Breakfast show with Anne Diamond, the less said the better!

06-09-2009, 16:59	#13
easter unny Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 159	im sure they didnt get on.....

06-09-2009, 18:10	#15
Blabermouth Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 492	He recently stood in for Jon Gaunt on Sun Talk for a week and I must say he was a shade of his former presentation self. He was presenting a daily three hour show and it could only be described as dire, boring , self indulgent.....*****. I seriously would have loved to have praised the guy and maybe reflect on the zoo days of Talk, but it was the most tedious , boring radio Ive heard for years.

06-09-2009, 18:17	#16
easter unny Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 159	lack of callers doesnt help......

06-09-2009, 19:40	#18
easter unny Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 159	fraid its called entertainment. how many viewers watch x factor every week.....

06-09-2009, 21:52	#21
aja Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: East Kilbride,Scotland Services: Sky, Freeview, DAB, O2 Broadband Posts: 296	Judging by some of the replies on this thread, I suspect a few of the posters have been made to look foolish by Boyd! IMHO the best wind-up talk jock was Caeser the Geezer on Talk Radio.

07-09-2009, 08:02	#22
Ridgieman Forum Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 439	I used to listen to Tommy on Southern Sound in the late eighties/early nineties. He was excellent, along with his sidekicks Nicky Keig-Shelvin and David Legge.

07-09-2009, 20:35	#23
thepainter Forum Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 96	It is a shame that one of the best talk presenters in country has been reduced to playing records on a local station. Yes sometimes he is a wind up merchant, but for pure entertainment he is probably the best. The only current talk presenters who come close are James Whale and Nick Abbot.

07-09-2009, 22:24	#24
jonnybebad Forum Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 158	i always enjoy his shows wherever he has been working but i think he has got more and more edgy and arsy recently?? this might work on late evening type shows but not mid afternoons??