Current track

Title

Artist

Current show

Community Connections

12:00 pm 2:00 pm

Current show

Community Connections

12:00 pm 2:00 pm

Background

Geoff Peters


Geoff Peters shows

If it seems like veteran radio presenter Geoff Peters has been around forever, it is probably because he has!

Geoff first appeared on the local scene in 1965 with his first band THE BROTHERS BLUE and soon secured a monthly residency at the old Pomme D.Or Club in Southsea which ran for 2 years. In 1967 the band broke up, and, by that time, DJs and disco had arrived.  Always wanting to be a D.J./radio presenter, Geoff tuned to the turntables, securing residencies at The Vernon Club at H.M.S.Vernon (now Gunwharf Quays) and The Casbah in the Tricorn as well as running Roulette Mobile Disco. At the same time, Geoff was offered a job on the pirate station Radio London, only for the station to be shut down by the Marine Offences Bill just one week after receiving the offer.

Having run the D.J. ambition to the limit, Geoff returned to playing live music in 1974, with BAD KIND followed by SYLVESTA in 1977. The start of the 1980s saw Geoff go on the road with the six- piece GATT BAND and, for the next four years, toured the length and breadth of the UK, as well as Europe. When the band broke up in 1984, Geoff “called it a day, only to return in 1989, when Colin Pearce, former bass player with Geoff’s last band CHECKERS, invited Geoff to partner him for some gigs in Manchester. Playing for the John Denver fan club, which they also repeated again in 1990. So off he went again.

The start of the 90s saw Geoff working solo, together with playing keyboards with ORION on some of their gigs. This ran for three years until 1994 when ORION broke up, Geoff had had enough of working alone, and so the band CHECKERS was formed, and ran until 2018 when Geoff finally retired from playing live music after 53 years on the road. In 1996, Geoff got the break into radio he had always wanted, with Radio Victory (Mk II ), and soon took over the breakfast show, which he fronted for the next four years. It was here that he first met up with Gary Burnett.

Following a change of ownership of the station in 2000, Geoff moved to Palm FM in Torquay, where he hosted the afternoon show, and over the ensuing years has worked with Isle of Wight Radio, Angel Radio, along with internet stations Radio Samantha and Quality Beats Radio, not to mention Hospital Radio; “a chance to hopefully give some pleasure to those less fortunate than myself”, Geoff says. It was here that Geoff met up with Gary for the second time, Gary being a patient and Geoff on Hospital Radio trying to make him feel worse!

In 2006, Geoff finally returned to the Portsmouth airwaves with Express FM, hosting “Down Memory Lane” with co-presenter Gary Burnett on Sunday evenings 8pm -10pm, a show he took over just after joining the station. Initially presenting the show solo, Geoff brought Gary in as co – presenter one year later. With Gary bringing his technical expertise on board, that is really when the show took off.

Finally in 2020, Geoff was asked to join Victory Online presenting  “Across the Decades” and “The Fabulous 50s” thereby coming full circle to where his radio career began 25 years ago. Sometimes likened to his icon, the late, lamented Alan “Fluff” Freeman, Geoff says, “if that is so, and if I can give as much pleasure as he did, then that will do for me”, and that final statement from someone who has NO intentions of retiring any time soon.

FAVOURITE SONG: Cloudbusting by Kate Bush, probably because I bunked off work one afternoon to see a film about Genesis at the old ABC Cinema in Portsmouth, and they opened the show with the video of that song.

FAVOURITE GIG: Undoubtedly as part of country band SYLVESTA playing support to Johnny Cash at the C/W Festival at the old Pompey airport site (now Anchorage Park) in 1980.

FAVOURITE FILM: The Yangste Incident (the story of HMS Amethyst ). A brilliant film, it premiered at the Gaumont, Bradford Junction in Pompey (now The Jami Mosque ), complete with the white ensign and union jack flags together with a corps of Royal Marine Buglers. Other favourites? Titanic, Sink the Bismark, and The Battle of the River Plate.

FAVOURITE PLACE IN POMPEY: It has to be Fratton Park. I have followed them since 1962 through good times and bad, but it remains my favourite because you never know what you are going to get. A bit like Down Memory Lane really!!