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Bruno Brookes (born Trevor Neil Brookes in Stoke-on-Trent,^[1] 24 April 1959) is a British radio presenter who became famous in the 1980s.

Contents 1 Early life and career 2 Radio One 2.1 "Killing in the Name" controversy 3 Television work 4 After the BBC 5 Personal life 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Early life and career

Brookes attended Bradwell and Seabridge High Schools. He got into DJing through youth club discos in his home town before he sent a successful tape to his local station, BBC Radio Stoke. He used to wash cars in order to raise money for buying equipment. He spent three years there before being recruited by BBC Radio 1, the national pop network, where he worked as a stand-in presenter for Steve Wright before taking over the teatime show from Peter Powell.

[edit] Radio One

This programme proved popular with younger listeners, as Brookes immediately began a career-long association with the UK Top 40 singles chart. In the mid-1980s, the chart was still announced on Tuesday lunchtimes by Gary Davies but kids unable to get to a radio while at school got the chance to hear a re-run of the new countdown with Brookes in the early evening. In 1986, Brookes took over the Sunday afternoon Top 40 show, which at the time was still counting down a chart which had been announced five days earlier and had been used for Top of the Pops the previous Thursday evening. From 4 October 1987 onwards, the Top 40 was revealed for the first time by Brookes in its now traditional Sunday afternoon slot, as new technology meant the chart took just hours instead of days to compile. Brookes briefly lost the chart to Mark Goodier in 1990, but then regained it in 1992, though there was never an element of tension or competition between the two DJs, and both were equally proficient at the programme.

[edit] "Killing in the Name" controversy

The Top 40, under Brookes' helm, was known for its slick production and tight timing. However, it wasn't without its moment of controversy, as it was on this show that Brookes infamously played the full uncensored version of "Killing in the Name" by Rage Against the Machine in 1993.^[2] The song contains 16 instances of extreme expletives.^[3] Brookes, not a known rock and metal fan, was not made aware of the language in the track and, as a new entry, included it in the broadcast. Unfortunately, Brookes also was working on the rest of the show and his studio monitoring headphone volume lowered and wasn't paying full attention; it was only when his producer brought what was being broadcast that Brookes quickly brought the track to a fade and continued. By this point, however, it was too late and the station immediately received numerous complaints. This incident has been and still is referred to by numerous rock media, such as Kerrang!.

In 1989, Brookes moved to the weekend breakfast show, co-hosting with Liz Kershaw, and also regularly deputised for Simon Mayo on the weekday breakfast show. Three years later he moved to the early breakfast slot, where he remained until he was sacked in 1995 as controller Matthew Bannister continued his cull of older presenters. Brookes was referred to by Trevor Dann, Bannister's head of music as 'bestriding the earth like a behemoth, the biggest dinosaur of them all', despite the fact that he was only thirty-six years old (other culled DJs had been in their forties or fifties).

It was announced by BBC Radio 1 in September 2007 that Bruno, along with former chart show colleague Mark Goodier, would return to the station for a one-off Top 40 countdown show on Sunday 30 September 2007, co-hosting the chart with the then-current presenters JK and Joel. This special show formed part of the station's celebrations of the 40th birthday of BBC Radio 1.

[edit] Television work

During his Radio 1 heyday, Brookes was on the Top Of The Pops host roster and also presented Beat The Teacher on BBC television, a popular teenagers' quiz where pupils would take on teachers in a general knowledge game based on noughts and crosses. He was the last of three presenters this show had, following Howard Stableford and ex-Manfred Mann singer Paul Jones. He also hosted the dating show Love At First Sight and the angling show Tight Lines on Sky.

[edit] After the BBC

After Radio 1, Brookes worked for numerous radio stations, presenting a networked show called Bruno At The Millhouse, while hosting a daily mid-morning slot for Leeds station Radio Aire. He ran a DJ school in Newbury, and was Chris Moyles' manager for a while.

He was also involved in a public spat with ex-Radio 1 colleague Bob Harris, whom Brookes had lent money for a flat. When Harris lost his job and couldn't pay it back, Brookes laid an unsuccessful claim to his extensive and valuable record collection.

In recent years, Brookes has kept a low public profile but has made a fortune with his company Storm, which was the UK's first 24 hour internet radio station, launching in April 2000. Storm Radio was renamed Immedia in 2002, and the company floated in December 2003. Brookes' stake was valued at flotation at over £2 million. Immedia supplies instore radio for Lloyds pharmacies, and 2,300 other shops and newsagents. There are also initial services at HSBC, IKEA and other leading retailers.

Brookes returned to public broadcasting with a guest appearance on BBC Radio Berkshire on Sunday 18 May 2008 and a further appearance on that station on Saturday 5 July 2008 and another appearance on Sunday 30 November 2008.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Personal life

Brookes appeared on the quiz show Through the Keyhole in the late 1990s as one of the celebrities whose homes were visited by Loyd Grossman. An unpleasant incident occurred when Brookes was interviewed by David Frost, who brought up a quote from some years back in which Brookes had boasted about charging his friends money to hear his records. Brookes deflected Frost's verbal jab by claiming it was just a flippant remark but he did not specifically deny doing it.

Brookes is known as a supporter of the Conservative Party and is an admirer of Margaret Thatcher.

In 2007 Brookes revealed in an interview with Nuts magazine that he had a tattoo of a pirate on his left thigh. He acquired it during the 1985 Radio 1 Roadshow tour as part of a bet with his producer, who in return drank a pint of vinegar.

Brookes was romantically involved for many years with TV presenter Anthea Turner but in a twist of irony, she left him for Peter Powell, the man whose radio show had been taken by Brookes when he got his break. A few years later, Brookes and Turner were both scheduled to present Top Of The Pops together for the first time, on 21 December 1989. However, despite their past history, the show went ahead without any problems, although they never presented the show together again.

Brookes married model Debbie Brooker in 1994.

In May 2006, Brookes suffered a heart attack and was treated at St. Thomas' Hospital, London where he was interviewed by Nadia Sawalha as a patient on BBC One's City Hospital. In the interview he said he would try to give up smoking which he acknowledged as the main reason for his illness.^[4]

Media offices
Preceded by Richard Skinner	BBC Radio One chart show presenter 1986 - 1990	Succeeded by Mark Goodier
Preceded by Mark Goodier	BBC Radio One chart show presenter 1992 - 1995	Succeeded by Mark Goodier

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Biography at Radio Rewind