James Whale (radio presenter)
James Whale | |
---|---|
Born | Michael James Whale 13 May 1951 |
Years active | 1970–present |
Spouses | Melinda Maxted
(m. 1970; died 2018)Nadine Lamont-Brown (m. 2021) |
Children | 2 |
Website | www |
Michael James Whale MBE (born 13 May 1951) is a British radio personality, television presenter, podcast host and author. He gained initial prominence in the 1980s as the host of The James Whale Radio Show on Radio Aire in Leeds, which was simulcast on national television. From 1995 to 2008, Whale hosted a night time radio show on talkSPORT (Talk Radio 1995–2000), followed by stints on LBC 97.3 and various BBC radio stations.
Whale is the current host of his podcast The James Whale Show and a night time radio show on talkRADIO and TalkTV.
Early life
Whale was born on 13 May 1951 in
From fourteen to sixteen, Whale took up archery and became a Surrey junior champion.
Career
1970–1995: Early career and ITV television show
Whale began his broadcasting career in 1970 following a visit to a
In 1982, Whale joined Radio Aire in Leeds to host the late night talk show; by 1986 he moved to the Breakfast Show, before returning to the late show in early 1987. He released two singles in 1987: "The Whaley Rap" / "I Hear James (On the Radio)"[12] and "Wrap it Up for Xmas".
In the late 1980s, Whale became influenced by American radio hosts, including "
In January 1993, Whale began a new ITV series, Whale On
1995–2008: Talk Radio/talkSPORT
In May 2008, Whale was sacked because he twice called on listeners to vote for Boris Johnson before the London mayoral election in 2008.[17]
2008–2013: LBC
On 7 May 2008 Whale said he would join
After standing in for Clive Bull on LBC 97.3 for six days in August 2008, Whale covered for Nick Abbot for two weeks from 29 September 2008 on LBC. In November the same year, he began presenting the drivetime show on LBC between 4 pm and 7 pm every weekday.[20][21]
2013–2016: Various projects
After leaving
In September 2013, Whale launched his weekly podcast, The James Whale Radio Show,[22] which is produced by Rob Oldfield. The podcast has since run for over 300 original episodes.[22]
On 13 December 2013, Whale announced that he would be the new permanent presenter of the BBC Essex breakfast programme. He presented his last show on the station on 23 September 2016.[23]
On 28 July 2016, Whale entered the
2016–present: talkRADIO & TalkTV
Whale began covering shows on talkRADIO in October 2016 and he started presenting the Monday to Thursday evening show between 7 pm and 10 pm from 7 November 2016.[25]
In August 2018, Whale was suspended by talkRADIO, pending a full investigation, after an interview with author and journalist Nichi Hodgson, who had been sexually assaulted. talkRADIO subsequently described the interview as having been "conducted in a manner that did not reflect the values of the station and completely lacked sensitivity".[26] In a video clip from the interview, Whale was seen laughing when the interviewee described what had happened to her.[27][28] Whale returned to the air on 13 August.[29] James currently presents James Whale Unleashed on TalkTV and TalkRadio from 07:00pm.
Personal life
In 1970, Whale married Melinda Maxted. They have two sons, James and Peter.[30] In 1997, Whale's 18-month affair with a listener of his radio show was made public.[31] In February 2018, Whale announced that Maxted had been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. She died on 12 May 2018.[32] On 13 May 2021, his 70th birthday, Whale announced his engagement on Twitter, but did not reveal his fiancée's identity. In October, Whale married Nadine Lamont-Brown at a ceremony in Tenterden.[33]
In February 2000, Whale was diagnosed with kidney cancer. He had not experienced any symptoms until he noticed blood in his urine, caused by a large tumour on his left kidney. He underwent an operation from which he had a 50% chance of survival, and chose not to have chemotherapy afterwards.[34] In 2006, he launched the James Whale Fund for Kidney Cancer to fund research and raise awareness of the disease.[7] The fund became Kidney Cancer UK in 2016. In August 2020, Whale revealed that his cancer had spread to his spine, brain and lungs.[35]
Whale has often spoken of his dyslexia[36] and is a patron of the National Literacy Association.[37]
Whale was appointed
Bibliography
- Whale, James (1997). Bald on Top. ISBN 978-0-86051-991-1.
- Whale, James (2007). Almost a Celebrity: A Lifetime of Night-Time. Robson Books Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84317-261-1.
References
- ^ a b c Whale 2007, p. 17.
- ^ Whale 2007, p. 18.
- ^ a b c Wood, Chris. "Having a Whale of a time". Time & Leisure. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ Conversations 2017, 00:00:48–00:01:33.
- ^ Almost a Celebrity: A Lifetime of Night-Time Author: James Whale. Retrieved: 10 November 2011.
- ^ Conversations 2017, 00:02:43–00:04:01.
- ^ a b c d e f Merrill, Jamie (19 May 2008). "My Life in Media: James Whale". The Independent. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ Conversations 2017, 00:04:01–00:06:47.
- ^ Conversations 2017, 00:07:24–00:09:31.
- ^ Conversations 2017, 00:09:31–00:10:12.
- ^ Conversations 2017, 00:10:12–00:11:20.
- ^ Whaley Rap! (Media notes). James Whale and Co. 1987. AIRE 1.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Radio host James Whale is sacked". BBC News. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
- ^ "Sacked DJ Whale becomes TV host". BBC News. 7 May 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2008.
- ^ Plunkett, John (12 May 2008). "Whale to host web radio talkshow". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
- ^ "Whale takes over LBC Drivetime show". LBC. 9 November 2011. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 29 April 2012.
- ^ Plunkett, John. "James Whale back on the radio as drivetime host of LBC 97.3", The Guardian, 9 September 2008. Retrieved on 6 May 2009.
- ^ a b "The James Whale Radio Show". Player.fm. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ "Tweet". Twitter. 13 December 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
- ^ "Housemate profile". Channel5. 4 August 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
- ^ Martin, Roy (November 2016). "James Whale to host evenings on talkRADIO". Radio Today. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
- ^ Radio, Talk (4 August 2018). "TalkRadio's James Whale suspended over insensitive interview". TalkRadio. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
- ^ McKay, Jessica (3 August 2018). "TalkRadio's James Whale suspended over rape victim interview". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
- ^ "James Whale suspended over rape interview". BBC News. 4 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
- ^ Tobitt, Charlotte (21 August 2018). "Talkradio's James Whale back on air after suspension over interview with alleged sex assault victim that 'lacked sensitivity'". Press Gazette. Retrieved 11 September 2018.
- ^ "Bio at the James Whale Fund site". Archived from the original on 26 November 2006. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
- ^ Golden, Andrew (23 February 1997). "Whale of a time!; Motormouth James has 18-month affair with gran who rang his radio show for a chat". Sunday Mirror. Retrieved 27 March 2022 – via The Free Library.
- ^ "Radio host James Whale reveals wife Melinda has weeks to live". 13 February 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ Brazier, Tori (16 May 2021). "Celebrity Big Brother star James Whale reveals mystery engagement three years after his wife's death". Metro. Retrieved 27 March 2022.
- ^ Johnson, Sarah (19 March 2014). "James Whale: 'Cancer hasn't changed me, I'm still miserable and difficult'". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ "James Whale: Radio host reveals cancer in kidney, spine, brain and lungs". BBC News. 17 August 2020. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- ^ "DFS 110" (PDF). Bdadyslexia.org.uk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 December 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
- ^ "National Literacy Association - Our Patrons". Nla.org.uk. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
- ^ "No. 64269". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2023. p. N26.
Sources
- Whale, James (2007). Almost a Celebrity: A Lifetime of Night-Time [2011 Print]. Michael O'Mara Books. ISBN 978-1-843-17663-3.
- "Conversations. Episode 38: James Whale". RadioMoments. 22 January 2017. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
External links
- Official website at JamesWhale.co.uk
- Official radio show website at JamesWhaleRadio.co.uk
- James Whale at IMDb
- James Whale on Radio Aire Archive images and audio of James Whale between 1987 and 1989.