Soul music

When Radio 1 began in 1967, John Peel was an anomaly. There, among the egotistical DJs spinning chart hits and exchanging vapid banter, was a languid Liverpudlian promoting cutting-edge bands and shunning the celebrity circuit. Thirty-seven years on, Peel remained an anomaly on Radio 1, still championing challenging music by little-known new bands. In the interim, Home Truths, his Saturday programme on Radio 4, revealed to a wider audience a man full of charm, wit and self- deprecation. The BBC has lost a part of its soul and the world of music has lost a true champion and risk-taker.

When Radio 1 began in 1967, John Peel was an anomaly. There, among the egotistical DJs spinning chart hits and exchanging vapid banter, was a languid Liverpudlian promoting cutting-edge bands and shunning the celebrity circuit. Thirty-seven years on, Peel remained an anomaly on Radio 1, still championing challenging music by little-known new bands. In the interim, Home Truths, his Saturday programme on Radio 4, revealed to a wider audience a man full of charm, wit and self- deprecation. The BBC has lost a part of its soul and the world of music has lost a true champion and risk-taker.