Pete Murray (DJ) - Career

Career

He first joined the English service of Radio Luxembourg in 1949 or 1950 as one of its resident announcers in the Grand Duchy, and remained there until 1956. Back in London, and now calling himself "Pete" rather than "Peter", he continued to be heard frequently on Radio Luxembourg for many years, introducing pre-recorded sponsored programmes. He also presented popular music on the BBC Light Programme, notably in Pete Murray's Party from 1958 to 1961, and hosted one of BBC Television's earliest pop music programmes, the skiffle-based Six-Five Special (1957–1958). Other regular presenters were Jo Douglas and Freddie Mills. He was a regular panellist on the same channel's Juke Box Jury (1959–1967). He was the "guest DJ" on several editions of ABC-TV's Thank Your Lucky Stars (1961–1966) and he later hosted Come Dancing. He was among the first regular presenters of Top of the Pops when it began in January 1964.

During the early 1960s he co-hosted (with Jimmy Savile) New Musical Express Poll Winners' Concert, annually held at Empire Pool, Wembley, with acts such as The Beatles, Cliff Richard And The Shadows, Joe Brown And the Bruvvers, The Who, and many others. These were shown on television. In September 1968, he stood in for Alan Freeman on Pick of the Pops, while Freeman was in New York. Murray linked up with him, for a look at the US pop scene during the 2 shows, that he did.

He hosted the UK heat of the Eurovision Song Contest in 1959 and provided the UK commentary for the contest itself both on radio an television in 1959 until 1961 and in 1968 and again in 1972 until 1973 for radio, and television commentary for the 1975 and 1977 Contest. He was an occasional compère of variety shows at the London Palladium.

Murray was one of the original BBC Radio 1 disc-jockeys when that station started in 1967. By 1969 he was one of the mainstays of BBC Radio 2, where for over ten years he anchored the two-hour magazine show Open House five days a week, heard by 5.5 million listeners. One April Fools' Day he pretended that the show was being televised. In 1973 and 1976, he was voted 'BBC Radio Personality of the Year'.

In 1980, Radio 2 moved Pete Murray from weekday to weekend programming. In 1981 he began a move into more serious, speech-only radio with a stint as presenter of Midweek on BBC Radio 4.

In 1984 he started afresh as a presenter for LBC, a local talk radio station in London. He later won the Variety Club of Great Britain award for this show. He introduced his last programme there on 22 December 2002, and has not broadcast regularly since. In August 2008, however, he returned as a presenter on an internet-only station, UK Light Radio.

Murray, a long-time Wimbledon resident, was invited to host the re-opening of the Wimbledon Dons speedway team on 18 March 1987. This he did with great enthusiasm, and gave the Dons some much-needed publicity on his LBC programme in the following weeks.

Pete Murray was also an actor. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and is a RADA Gold Medallist. On the London stage he starred in the musical Scapa! (1962). In 1968 he appeared in a short-lived British sitcom, Mum's Boys, opposite Bernard Bresslaw and Irene Handl. He had roles in several films, sometimes as himself. He also appeared in pantomime, and guested on innumerable radio and TV panel games. In 1984 and 1985 he was a team captain on the ITV panel game Vintage Quiz.