MY TV LIFE
Mark Radcliffe
Bolton-born Mark, 61, is a Radio 2 and 6 Music DJ, TV presenter and musician
What was your first TV memory?
Thewhite Heather Club – heaven knows why! It was a Scottish country dancing show with Robin Hall and Jimmie Macgregor. I loved to watch it and copy the dances. I was so enamoured of it, my mum made me a little kilt – I don’t know if that’s charming or tragic. Maybe my aspiration to perform on stage dates from this.
Who was your first TV crush?
Louise Clarke and Sue Menhenick out of Pan’s People – emphatically! And Susan Dey who played David Cassidy’s sister onthe Partridge Family. I was just entering adolescence and remember thinking she was lovely. She still is.
What was your first TV appearance?
It was when I was producing a session for John Peel’s radio show that was filmed for The Old Greywhistletest in about 1984.The band were Tools You Cantrust. I had a mullet and was smoking fags, trying to look like I knew what I was doing.
What is your favourite current show?
I really liked Lesley Manville’s Mum. I liked Deadwater Fell but found the ending disappointing. And Dracula, although the third episode let it down. I liked the wit and the gothic feel.
Which TV show would you take to a desert island?
Dad’s Army – every character is perfect. I try not to be crippled by nostalgia, but it’s an England that’s gone now. It reminds me of my childhood. My wife complains that I’m either watching dead musicians or dead comedians.
What TV show would you like to put out of its misery?
The X Factor,thevoice, even Strictly. I can’t engage with any of them. I know people like the repetition and security of them but I don’t. I don’t watch Love Island or I’m A Nonentity... Get Me Out Of Here! either.they’re so boring.
Guiltiest TV pleasure?
Either Antiques Roadshow or the celebrity version.the forced eccentricity of the experts makes me want to punch the screen but I love the idea of driving down country lanes in a soft-top Morris Minor and coming across these little shops full of treasures.
What are you up to at the moment?
I have the weekend breakfast show on 6 Music and the folk show on Radio 2, and lots of live shows with my band Une – we play electronic music. I’m at the Radio 6 Music Festival next weekend and I’ll be co-hosting the Glastonbury coverage again.
● The BBC Radio 6 Music Festival, March 6-8, live in London’s Camden, will be broadcast on 6 Music and BBC Sounds. Performances will also be on BBC iplayer and bbc.co. uk/6music, with highlights on
BBC Four.