Spot The Producer

[Lawrence Jones]

What on earth's going on at POTW these days? It's a new producer every week. Hee-hee - very easy to detect Ms. Dilly Barlow's fingerprints on tonight's programme!!! Is POTW the new poisoned chalice for radio producers? How about a guest appearance by Margaret Howard......with some JR stories!!!

I'm sure my old friend Stewart Henry had a big smile on his face tonight.

[Crusoe]

Perhaps they want to change producers along with presenters? I’m not sure that it’s necessarily a good thing, though and could lead to the whole station beginning to take on a generic feel as jobbing producers are shuffled around the week’s output.

[Lawrence Jones]

webb said:

I’m not sure that it’s necessarily a good thing, though and could lead to the whole station beginning to take on a generic feel as jobbing producers are shuffled around the week’s output.

In many ways, I think this is actually happening within R4 these days and I find it quite concerning. Perhaps there’s something unique about pop music, but I always found it easy to identify the individual who was producing a specific pop programme. Bernie Andrews was always my very favourite and I loved the relationship that he had with John Peel. Phil Ward-Large was another R1 producer that I respected and I noticed that he produced the recent R4 programme on Saturday morning about prog. rock. He’s also been producing some of Alex Lester’s early morning shows recently.

Concerning your reference to generic producers, it’s a little like the issue of cabinet ministers – one’s often left wondering how someone can be competent as an environment minister one day and then a health minister the next. It’s ludicrous isn’t it? I think you’re right and believe that there will ultimately be a generic feel to R4. POTW is the classic example: little bit of classical music, some pop rock or blues and an extract from one of the comedy shows – usually ISIHAC which I think has past its peak and should be pensioned off. I never understood how Lisa Jenkinson could produce DID for some years, yet she now produces Any Questions. I’d have thought that a programme such as DID would have required a producer with a unique expertise in that particular area. I’ve noticed that Anne Peacock has produced some editions recently. Given that she usually produces Woman’s Hour, then I’m left wondering how a producer who concentrates on female issues – and presumably also hates men - can produce such a catholic programme as DID. I keep wondering what ever happened to Kate Murphy, since she produced POTW for quite some time. Beatie Rubens is another producer who seems to have vanished – she’s my all-time favorite R4 producer and her work was always easy to identify. Tanya Data is another whose work I rate highly.

[Crusoe]

Lawrence said:

webb said:

it…could lead to the whole station beginning to take on a generic feel as jobbing producers are shuffled around the week’s output.

In many ways, I think this is actually happening within R4 these days and I find it quite concerning.

You’re probably right. The pigeon-holed schedules do not help, either, with certain types of programme broadcast at certain times. There was a time when the producer was the key programme-maker but I cannot see how this can be the case when producers change so often. If it is still the case, it is difficult to see how a programme can establish a strong identity for itself.

Lawrence said:

I…believe that there will ultimately be a generic feel to R4. POTW is the classic example: little bit of classical music, some pop rock or blues and an extract from one of the comedy shows

Yes, that’s true actually. And, irrespective of who will be presenting or producing POTW, you can normally pick out the programmes which will be used on POTW as they are broadcast.

Lawrence said:

Perhaps there’s something unique about pop music, but I always found it easy to identify the individual who was producing a specific pop programme. Bernie Andrews was always my very favourite and I loved the relationship that he had with John Peel. Phil Ward-Large was another R1 producer that I respected and I noticed that he produced the recent R4 programme on Saturday morning about prog. rock. He’s also been producing some of Alex Lester’s early morning shows recently.

I wonder if this is to do with the fact that pop music inspires so much passion in certain people, sop their personalities come out in the programmes? I also wonder if a more “sound based” programme leads to more clues as to the producer than a more “word based” programme would? It’s strange that there are not many distinctive producers of pop music programmes, these days. In fact it seems that many of the more distinctive ones are produced by independent companies.

Lawrence said:

I never understood how Lisa Jenkinson could produce DID for some years, yet she now produces Any Questions. I’d have thought that a programme such as DID would have required a producer with a unique expertise in that particular area.

Perhaps that’s why there have been so many lacklustre interviews on DID over the last few years.

Lawrence said:

I keep wondering what ever happened to Kate Murphy, since she produced POTW for quite some time.

Yes, she seemed to do quite a good job, too, with interesting items which I might, otherwise, have missed being chosen.

Lawrence said:

Tanya Data is another whose work I rate highly.

I hadn’t really thought about this, particularly but, now I do, I recall her name being mentioned at the end of a number of programmes which I have enjoyed, so I would agree with you, there.