View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

  1. News
June 11, 2010

Reasons For Saving Radio 6, No.158: Shaun Keaveny on Adrian Chiles & GMTV

By Peter Kirwan

The reasons for saving Radio 6 keep piling up.

This morning, I found myself listening to the station’s presenter Shaun Keaveny playing Velvet Underground and The Gang Of Four. . . before the 9am watershed.

As if that wasn’t good enough, Keaveny does media analysis, too.

This morning, the laconic Northerner picked apart ITV’s announcement that it would be replacing GMTV with a new show fronted by Adrian Chiles and a ‘glamorous female co-presenter”. (You can listen to this yourself, on iPlayer, here: the segment in question begins after 1hr 25 mins. . .)

‘Do they have to be glamorous?’asked Keaveny. ‘Are they going to looking at her journalistic CV or is it just onscreen chemistry they’ll be looking at? Which translates to: can we disseminate rumours that they’re sleeping together?”

Next, Keaveny pinpoints ITV’s odd suggestion that the new show will contain more ‘male-friendly features”. Keaveny suggests that ‘Arm-Wrestling For Pints’might be among them.

New studios are being built for the £1.5m launch, he points out. At this point, surrealism takes over entirely (so it’s best to simply quote verbatim):

Content from our partners
MHP Group's 30 To Watch awards for young journalists open for entries
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it

‘It’s going to be presented by Adrian Chiles, who they’ve spent do much money on, they’re making the most of it.

‘It’s going to be presented from the White Cliffs of Dover, which will be sculpted Rushmore-style into the shape of Adrian Chiles’s face. Apparently.

‘And the studio will be situated in his mouth, which I can’t wait to see. It’s going to be spectacular.”

Where to start with Keaveny’s critique? It’s a sharply-turned satire on celebrity egotism, tabloid collusion, and broadcast sexism. Want to criticise the BBC for paying ridiculous amounts to Jonathan Ross? Ah, but perhaps we should also be looking at how much ITV pays Adrian Chiles. . .

No doubt ITV’s new morning show will be great.  Me? I reckon I’ll be sticking with Shaun Keaveny on BBC Radio 6. . .

Topics in this article :

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network