TBI has been nominated four times in the latest New York Radio Festival Awards.  ‘Faith and 9/11’ and ‘Kylie on Blossom’, both documentaries broadcast last year on BBC Radio 2, were nominated in the Religious and Culture & Arts categories respectively.  ’Killer Queen’, a two-part special for Absolute Radio to mark the great band’s 50^th anniversary, was shortlisted for two awards – Best Music Special and Best Editing.  With entries coming in from all over the globe – 27 different countries – competition was tough so the team at TBI is thrilled to be in the running for 4 awards. Fingers crossed for the ceremony on June 18^th…

Greg James plus England cricketers Jimmy Anderson and Graeme Swann return to 5 live for a Bank Holiday edition of Not Just Cricket – the occasional cricket show which pops onto the airwaves when Graeme and Jimmy can find the time in between bamboozling batsmen across around the world.

Featuring an array of special guests, they look back at England’s tours against Pakistan and Sri Lanka and look ahead to a bumper summer of cricket.

Broadcast 7th May 2012 on BBC Radio 5live as a joint production between TBI Media and Bite Yer Legs

Richard Hawley celebrates the sound of a genre close to his heart, rockabilly. Over eight weeks, he delves into his own vast collection of vinyl records to celebrate rockabilly’s inspirations including R&B, country, blues, hillbilly, honky tonk and rock & roll.

You can hear Richard every Thursday at 9.30pm on BBC Radio 2 until the middle of June – and of course episodes will be on the iplayer for 7 days after broadcast.

TBI Media – at the heart of new music on Radio 1 and 1Xtra

TBI is now home to 4 specialist music shows on BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra.  Nihal plays the best in Asian and Desi beats between 02:00 and 04:00 every Wednesday morning. Benji B continues to curate future electronic beats at the same time on Thursday, while Toddla T is to deliver a brand new show playing an eclectic and up tempo two hours of Dancehall infused beats early on Friday morning.  The week culminates with a 1Xtra takeover of Radio 1 every Saturday night at 1am by ‘Diplo and Friends.’ One of the hottest producers in the world, Diplo and his favourite DJ’s will be laying down the biggest and most exclusive tunes to ignite the weekend on Radio 1 and 1Xtra. The TBI team is delighted to be working at the cutting edge of electronic music with four massively exciting weekly shows on Radio 1 and 1Xtra.

Diplo is managed by Mad Decent and in the past has worked with the likes of DJ Low Budget, M.I.A. He has also cut his teeth as a producer with artists such as Rolo Tomassi, Snoop Dog and Beyoncé.
His show, Diplo and Friends, broadcasts across Radio 1 and Xtra on Sunday Mornings from 1am.

The team at TBI are delighted with the fantastic reaction to our live programme which went out on Saturday night on BBC Radio 2.  It started at 11.35pm just before the iceberg hits and ended at 2.20am when the ship disappears. If you missed it, catch it while it’s still up on iplayer.

The programme is presented by Jeremy Vine, Dermot O’Leary and Penny Smith, who together with experts take us through minute by minute what’s happening to the passengers and crew, the structure of the ship and the musicians who made up the ship’s band.  We have actors reading the accounts of over 30 eye-witnesses – from First Class aristocracy to steerage passengers.  By sticking to the facts the programme gives you a better idea of what really happened than any drama…

Music is at the heart of the programme. We have our own Titanic orchestra recreating the music that was played on the ship – a mixture of classical pieces, ragtime (the rock ‘n roll of the age) and stirring anthems.  We have special musical performances from Billy Bragg (who has written a song especially for us) Paul Carrack, Hue and Cry, Hal Fowler, Jacqui Dankworth, Charlie Wood and BBC2 Folk Awards winner Bella Hardy.

As the Titanic sank it was to a surreal soundtrack. The ship’s band played foxtrots, show songs and extracts from operas such as Madam Butterfly and Aida.   It seems strange now and must have seemed strange then, that as the boats were lowered Alexander’s Ragtime Band echoed around the decks and over the water. This was surely one of the most poignant performances in history.

They performed as the water rose around them, some still smoking.  One eye-witness wrote ‘Only the engulfing ocean had the power to drown them into silence.’

Photo: Jonathan Smith Collection

2012 brings a new series of Hot Gossip on Radio 2. Claudia Winkleman is joined by the likes of Jason Manford, Mark Watson, Jenny Éclair and Russell Kane every week throughout January.

Kylie Minogue pays a personal tribute to one of the most unique jazz artists of the last 50 years; Blossom Dearie. A ‘musician’s musician’, Dearie was an iconic figure on the cabaret circuit in New York, Paris and London. Citing her as a major influence – indeed the two singers met shortly before Blossom died in 2009 – Minogue explores, first hand on both sides of the Atlantic, this fascinating musical career.

‘Kylie on Blossom’: Thursday 22^nd December at 10.00pm, BBC Radio 2.

Whether it’s The Goon Show, Morecombe and Wise, Only Fools and Horses or The Office, the Christmas edition of a hit comedy show has always been a hugely anticipated occasion.

As well as clips from the nation’s favourites, the series  features new interviews with a host of stars, writers and executives involved in the commissioning and production of these comedy classics – including contributions from the likes of Bill Pertwee and Ronnie Corbett.

David Jason’s Comedy Christmas : 6.00pm on Christmas Day 2011, BBC Radio 2.

Kylie Minogue pays a personal tribute to one of the most unique jazz artists of the last 50 years; Blossom Dearie. A ‘musician’s musician’, Dearie was an iconic figure on the cabaret circuit in New York, Paris and London. Citing her as a major influence – indeed the two singers met shortly before Blossom died in 2009 – Minogue explores, first hand on both sides of the Atlantic, this fascinating musical career.

‘Kylie on Blossom’: Thursday 22^nd December at 10.00pm, BBC Radio 2.