Dave Lee Travis

Legendary Radio and TV Broadcaster

Dave Lee Travis was born on 25th May 1945 in Buxton, Derbyshire.

At the age of 11, he went to grammar school in Manchester where his main interest was art. But he also had a liking for dismantling and rebuilding radios, to such an extent that he frustrated his mother when he attempted to fit a radio into the headboard of his bed - drilling two holes for the knobs!

Dave consequently aimed at a career in his favourite subject on leaving school, and started out by designing interiors for stores. It was during this period that he started working as a DJ in the local clubs and ballrooms in the Manchester area under his stage name of Dave Lee Travis.. He met up with a man who would be the future controller of BBC Radio 2, Jeff Mullin.

A meeting with Herman's Hermits led to a tour of America with the group as their manager. During this time, Dave even presented some American radio shows, and gathered a huge audience in a comparatively short time.

On returning to the UK, Dave jumped aboard Radio Caroline South's ship the Mi Amigo, enjoying regular rations of one case of beer and a carton of cigarettes. In 1967, he jumped ship to the sister Radio Caroline North station aboard the Queen Frederica anchored off the Isle Of Man. He escaped after two and a half years at sea, just before the Marine Offences Act took a grip that year. On leaving the ships, he went home to Manchester.

By the September, the BBC had decided the Light Programme had to come to end to be replaced by new pop station called Radio 1. At the end of the year, Dave made his debut presenting the Pop North show from Manchester.

In 1973 he moved to BBC Radio 1 HQ in London presenting his own tea-time show It's DLT OK! at 4:30pm Monday to Thursday.

Dave's voice has become instantly recognisable around the world, partially due to 20 years presenting the BBC World Service programme 'A Jolly Good Show', a programme he continued to present beyond his BBC Radio 1 stint up 1998.

Also in 1978, an on-air parody of the US hit Convoy, Convoy GB led to a release of the song as a single along with fellow DJ Paul Burnett.

The song reached No.4 and so, to give it a further push, it was suggested Dave & Paul go on Top Of The Pops. Once seen dressed as a pair of chickens, it's alleged that the song never sold another copy! That very same year, in May, Dave took control of the flagship BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show.

Dave Lee Travis presented  Top Of The Pops during the 70s and early 80s.

Dave's other TV work apart from Top Of The Pops, included The Golden Oldie Picture Show which saw Dave introducing tracks that never really had a video made for them, but deserved a TV airing. Instead the BBC made a video to go with the song.

Dave is still very much interested in art - his other interests are archery and motor racing including drag racing - in 1974 he became the first DJ to win his class outright at a major international drag racing meeting. Dave was able to take a car from zero to 226mph in just six seconds.

He presented the weekday lunchtime show (early 70's), teatime show (mid 70's) breakfast show (late 70's) weekend mid-morning show (83-93) and invented the feature ''snooker on the radio'' on his later weekend show.

In 1987, he published his book A Bit Of A Star which he dedicated to his late father Joe. The book pictured celebrities in poses they'd hate to be in!

Dave was probably the presenter who revolted the most when, Radio 1 was changed by Matthew Bannister. Due to leave in a further ten weeks when his contract expired anyway, he famously resigned on air on the 8th August 1993.

Live on air, Dave told his loyal audience that changes were afoot that he could not tolerate - '....and I really want to put the record straight at this point and I thought you ought to know - changes are being made here which go against my principal and I just cannot agree with them.....' hence the end of Dave Lee Travis' BBC Radio 1 career.

At the same time, other DJs, deemed 'old relics/fossils/school' by Bannister were also shown the door, or left voluntarily, irrespective of length of service or merit.

The audience figures for the Saturday morning show formerly hosted by Dave plummeted from 15 million to 7 million within weeks of his departure. Dave disappeared off the radio for some considerable time, finally reappearing on Classic Gold.

Dave Lee Travis is still the second longest serving Radio 1 presenter ahead of Annie Nightingale & below John Peel.

In 2003 DLT returned to the BBC - ten years after leaving Radio 1 - to BBC Three Counties Radio.