Michael David Kenneth Read (born 1 March 1947) is an English radio disc jockey, writer, journalist and television presenter.
Michael David Kenneth Read was born 1 March 1947 in Bury, north of Manchester, the only child of a publican.
On 11 January 1984, Read suddenly interrupted broadcasting the Frankie Goes to Hollywood song "Relax", halfway through playing the single, denouncing the lyrics as 'obscene'.
[5] Read has said this account of his intervention is a myth; the interruption of the record was solely for timing reasons, as he only had access in the studio to the longer 12" version.
Read was heard on BBC Radio 2 in 1992 presenting special shows looking back at the career of Cliff Richard and playing his music.
Read was heard on Magic 1548 in the north of England, where he presented their weekend breakfast series, on Saturdays and Sundays from 7 am – 10 am, starting in April 2012.
Read left to join the new line-up of Nation Radio UK from 4 January 2021, and was replaced by Neil Fox in April.
[citation needed] Since 15 November 2020, Read has hosted The Heritage Chart on Sunday afternoons on the Nation Radio network in the UK.
One such example is Enjoy Radio, an online station based in Greater Manchester who started carrying The Heritage Chart Show in early 2022.
[11] From 1 August 2022, Read continued his breakfast show, but also with an audience from Sunshine Radio Online, with a dual broadcast-type arrangement.
[17] Read was among 10 former presenters who returned as guest co-presenters for the final edition of Top of the Pops, broadcast 30 July 2006 on BBC Two.
The programme is a pop music countdown of videos and live performances from veteran acts, such as Chesney Hawkes and Tight Fit, based on the chart broadcast on a number of community radio stations in the UK and abroad.
[22][23][24][25] In 1979, Read wrote and performed the pop-punk song "High Rise" (upon which his Radio 1 intro jingle was subsequently based) under the guise of The Trainspotters, following this in 1980 with "My Town", by his next studio group, The Ghosts.
Read then wrote lyrics to the theme (composed by Simon May) for the TRIC Award-winning Trainer; the resulting UK Top 30 single, "More to Life", was performed by Cliff Richard.
In 1991, Read also provided a guest rap on "Radio Wall of Sound", UK Top 30 hit for Slade.
[citation needed] On 19 October 2011, Read was presented with a BASCA Gold Badge Award in recognition of his contribution to music.
Read took one of the lead roles in the Cliff musical, touring with it and appearing for a three-month run in the West End at the Prince of Wales Theatre.
Actors appearing in his musicals and shows have included Nyree Dawn Porter, Brian Glover, Colin Baker, Anton Rogers, Jeremy Irons, Alvin Stardust and Bernard Cribbins.
Read wrote and recorded a song in support of the party, "UKIP Calypso", which was released in October 2014 as a single credited to The Independents.
[40][27] An online petition was filed by former Labour borough councillor Richard McKenzie in which he called Read's song 'racist and offensive'.
'[40] Debate over the single featured on Newsnight, with UKIP spokesman Winston McKenzie, himself of Caribbean origin, praising the song and likening it to adaptations of predominantly black musical styles by Elvis Presley and The Beatles, although the BBC Asian Network's Nihal was critical of it.
[citation needed] The organisation aimed to act alongside the work in London of English Heritage who stated that they were "restructuring" their plaque scheme.