Radio stars come out from behind mic into limelight
● Last year David Kau suffered every comedian’s worst nightmare when, as the host of the Liberty Radio Awards, one of his jokes fell flat.
I was keen to find out if the comedy king would be steering the ship for the third time in a row as I made my way to the Sandton Convention Centre for this year’s awards.
Arriving at the venue in Joburg’s moneyed north, I bump into one of the shortest blokes in radio. Cape Town station KFM’s Carl Wastie makes up for his size with a hairraising Mohican and bubbly personality.
The drive-time presenter is with arguably the prettiest lass in radio, Carl’s colleague Zoë Brown, who is also a presenter on SABC3’s breakfast show, Expresso.
I ask Zoë, looking like a dream in a long velvet gown, which medium she prefers.
“My Tinder bio says I can’t stand The Buggles,” says the brunette, referring to the English band who had a hit in the
’80s with Video
Killed The Radio
Star. “I really can’t choose.”
Then it’s saying hello to Gavin
Koppel, or, as I prefer to say,
Daddy K, who is the father of crooner Danny K.
Gavin is there for his night job, broadcasting live from the convention centre for his Radio 2000 slot.
From Danny K’s dad and on to funnyman Darren Maule, with whom I spent time on a desert island as a contestant in the celebrity version of Survivor.
Darren heads the breakfast team for Durban station East Coast Radio.
I ask the stand-up comedian how he feels failing to score a nomination while his show was up for one of the night’s awards.
“I am screaming into my pillow at night,” he admits.
Into the hall, and I find myself seated with Darren and his colleagues, including Boni Mchunu, the station’s general manager, and Carol Ofori, who leaves the Durban station next month for Radio 2000.
We tuck into starters, marinated bocconcini, sun-dried tomatoes, grilled artichoke and olive mayonnaise, as the show gets under way.
No appearance by David Kau, but instead we have not one but two hosts — comedy star Loyiso Madinga and that inspiring poet Lebo Mashile.
“How’s the weather now that Hlaudi is no longer around?” Loyiso asks the SABC radio personalities in the audience, to much guffawing.
Then it’s on to the awards, the winners coming thick and fast.
They include young upstarts like Mike V, who lands the nod for afternoon drive presenter in the campus category for his show on Voice of Wits, while East Coast Radio’s Bongani Mtolo wins the title for commercial for the second year in a row.
Martin Bester from Jacaranda lands the coveted prize for the category Darren wasn’t
I am screaming into my pillow at night
even nominated for, pipping contenders including Kaya FM’s David O’Sullivan and that jock with the whining voice, Darren “Whackhead” Simpson at KFM.
Zoë takes home the traffic presenter crown while Iman Rappetti’s Power Talk on Power 98.7 lands the gong for daytime show in the commercial category, pipping competition from Cape Talk’s Lunch with Pippa Hudson and Workzone with Alex Jay.
My table erupts when East Coast Breakfast wins its category.
On the other side of the room, Greg Maloka, David and their colleagues are over the moon when Kaya FM is named station of the year.
As for the rest of the grub, a tasty beef fillet with marrow and mushroom duxelles was the main.
We were served mini tubs of Paul’s Homemade ice cream for dessert.