Wogan’s Back On The Wireless

BBC Wogan, 1985Channel 4 quiz host Terry Wogan is returing to BBC Radio 2 this Valentine’s Day, Sunday 14 February, with his new series, Weekend Wogan.

 

The programme is to be broadcast live from the Radio Theatre in the BBC’s Broadcasting House, London, and will feature a lively mix of celebrity interviews, music with star guest performers and contributions from listeners, all staged in front of a 300-strong live audience.

The show will also include a weekly recital of an infamous “Janet and John” story and will feature familiar voices such as John “Boggy” Marsh.

 

In the first programme of the series, Sir Ian McKellen, star of the multi-award winning Lord Of The Rings trilogy and the eagerly awaited film The Hobbit and who is currently performing in the West End production of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting For Godot, will be chatting with Terry and there will also be musical performances from the UK’s biggest-selling jazz artist of all time, Jamie Cullum, and Grammy Award-winning songstress Norah Jones.Each show will feature performances from the eleven-piece house band led by musical director Elio Pace. The show will air for two hours from 11am.

 

Lewis Carnie, Head of Programmes, Radio 2, is looking forward to the launch of Weekend Wogan and its innovative new format: “Terry’s new show will be the perfect accompaniment to Sunday brunch, which will be the magical combination of Terry’s warmth and unique persona, with some of the entertainment world’s leading lights. I hope that fans of Weekend Wogan enjoy listening to the show on Sunday, and watching the highlights package online from Monday morning.”

BBC

 

Wogan first became a household name in Britain, having previously worked in Irish broadcasting, working for BBC Radio 1 when it launched back in the 1960s, but it was at Radio 2 which he became most associated with. Hosting the breakfast show from 1972 until 1984 and again from 1993 until 2009.

 

He’s also had a long and varied television career. His first main chat show was for ATV Network in the 1970s, hosting the live Lunchtime With Wogan from Birmingham. He has also presented the Come Dancing series in its original format and The Eurovision Song Contest. His biggest BBC success was his long-running prime time chat show Wogan that first aired at weekends before going live three times a week for seven years. He returned to daytime chat with Wogan’s Web for BBC One in the late 1990s and in more recent times switched to Channel 4 to present daily game show, Perfect Recall.