Ashley Byrne
Encyclopedia
Ashley A Byrne is a radio
and television
presenter, newsreader and producer. He was born on the 13th November 1972 in Doncaster, England. His father is the British artist, Tony Byrne.
Currently the presenter of the BBC
's only regular gay
current affairs programme 'Citizen Manchester LGBT' on BBC Radio
Manchester
Byrne has also presented the news on BBC and commercial radio stations across the North of England
including Smooth Radio, Century, Lincs FM, TFM, BBC Radio Manchester, BBC North West (radio), Imagine FM, Signal Cheshire and The Pulse of West Yorkshire. He has also presented on BBC Radio 3 and narrated his company's documentary 'From Bomb to Boom' for ITV1.
Byrne is Creative Director of the successful radio production company, Made in Manchester which he set up with business partner James Hickman
, the five-times World Butterfly
Swimming
Champion in May 2005.
Programmes either produced or executive produced by Byrne for Made in Manchester include:
2006 Another Fine Mess: 80 Years of Laurel and Hardy (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Sir Norman Wisdom)
2006 Cartoon Kings (ITV1 - presenter Sir David Jason)
2006 From Bomb to Boom (ITV1 - presenter Ashley Byrne)
2006 Citizen Manchester strand(BBC Radio Manchester - presenters various)
2007 Jah Wobble's Mystical Musical Tour (BBC World Service - presenter Jah Wobble)
2007 Laughter and Tears: The Les Dawson Story (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Jo Brand)
2007 I Got Up Out of My Seat (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Sir David Frost)
2008 Salt N Pepa: Push It (BBC 1Xtra - presenter Mista Jam)
2008 Brass Britain (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Stephen Tompkinson)
2008 Giving Way to a New Era (BBC Radio 4 - presenter John Sergeant)
2008 In Search of Forgiveness (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Julie Nicholson)
2008 How Aids Changed America (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Paul Michael Glaser)
2008 Pacific Ocean Blues: The Life and Death of Dennis Wilson (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Roger Daltry)
2008 Ali Abbas:In His Own Words (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Hugh Sykes)
2009 Gay Life After Saddam (BBC Radio 5Live - presenter Aasmah Mir)
2009 In Search of Sid (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Jah Wobble)
2009 Walking with Whitman (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Stuart Maconie)
2009 In Search of the Wantley Dragon (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Ian McMillan)
2009 Dick Emery: The Comedy of Errors? (BBC Radio 2 - presenter David Walliams)
2009 Benny Hill: The Untold Story (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Ben Miller)
2009 Leadbelly: A Secret History of Rock and Roll (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Eric Burdon)
In December 2007, Byrne managed to get Archbishop Desmond Tutu to apologise on behalf of the Anglican Church for the way in which some clergy had treated the world's LGBT community.
In April 2009, Made in Manchester came runner up in the Best Production Company in the North 'How Do' Awards
In May 2009, Byrne's 'Giving Way to a New Era' was nominated for a prestigious Sony Award.
In July 2009, Byrne's 'Gay Life After Saddam' for 5Live (which also featured actors Samuel Barnett and Paul Kendrick) was described by the press as 'The BBC at its Best' after it uncovered a catalogue of murder and torture being carried out against gay and trans Iraqis since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.
In October 2009, Byrne's company Made in Manchester embarked on a pioneering experiment to promote and premiere new audio drama via The UK's Independent newspaper. Turing's Test (starring History Boys' actor Sam Barnett) rose as high as number 7 in its category on the i-tunes downloads chart. Subsequent dramas have included Death in Genoa starring Simon Callow as Oscar Wilde and Suzie Pugh and a Monster Too (a children's drama starring Coronation Street actress Vicky Binns). It's thought more dramas may be on the cards and Byrne has expressed his ambition to create 'a new high profile platform' for drama and comedy on the web.
Byrne is also a Director of RIG, the Radio Independents Trade Body and has been leading a campaign to persuade the BBC to commission more radio programming from outside London.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
presenter, newsreader and producer. He was born on the 13th November 1972 in Doncaster, England. His father is the British artist, Tony Byrne.
Currently the presenter of the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
's only regular gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
current affairs programme 'Citizen Manchester LGBT' on BBC Radio
BBC Radio
BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company...
Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
Byrne has also presented the news on BBC and commercial radio stations across the North of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
including Smooth Radio, Century, Lincs FM, TFM, BBC Radio Manchester, BBC North West (radio), Imagine FM, Signal Cheshire and The Pulse of West Yorkshire. He has also presented on BBC Radio 3 and narrated his company's documentary 'From Bomb to Boom' for ITV1.
Byrne is Creative Director of the successful radio production company, Made in Manchester which he set up with business partner James Hickman
James Hickman
James Hickman is a former swimmer from Great Britain, who became a world champion five times on the 200 m butterfly in short course , twice world record holder, Commonwealth Champion and four times European Champion. He announced his retirement from the sport in 2004...
, the five-times World Butterfly
Butterfly stroke
The butterfly is a swimming stroke swum on the breast, with both arms moving simultaneously. The butterfly kick was developed separately, and is also known as the "dolphin kick"...
Swimming
Swimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
Champion in May 2005.
Programmes either produced or executive produced by Byrne for Made in Manchester include:
2006 Another Fine Mess: 80 Years of Laurel and Hardy (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Sir Norman Wisdom)
2006 Cartoon Kings (ITV1 - presenter Sir David Jason)
2006 From Bomb to Boom (ITV1 - presenter Ashley Byrne)
2006 Citizen Manchester strand(BBC Radio Manchester - presenters various)
2007 Jah Wobble's Mystical Musical Tour (BBC World Service - presenter Jah Wobble)
2007 Laughter and Tears: The Les Dawson Story (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Jo Brand)
2007 I Got Up Out of My Seat (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Sir David Frost)
2008 Salt N Pepa: Push It (BBC 1Xtra - presenter Mista Jam)
2008 Brass Britain (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Stephen Tompkinson)
2008 Giving Way to a New Era (BBC Radio 4 - presenter John Sergeant)
2008 In Search of Forgiveness (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Julie Nicholson)
2008 How Aids Changed America (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Paul Michael Glaser)
2008 Pacific Ocean Blues: The Life and Death of Dennis Wilson (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Roger Daltry)
2008 Ali Abbas:In His Own Words (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Hugh Sykes)
2009 Gay Life After Saddam (BBC Radio 5Live - presenter Aasmah Mir)
2009 In Search of Sid (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Jah Wobble)
2009 Walking with Whitman (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Stuart Maconie)
2009 In Search of the Wantley Dragon (BBC Radio 4 - presenter Ian McMillan)
2009 Dick Emery: The Comedy of Errors? (BBC Radio 2 - presenter David Walliams)
2009 Benny Hill: The Untold Story (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Ben Miller)
2009 Leadbelly: A Secret History of Rock and Roll (BBC Radio 2 - presenter Eric Burdon)
In December 2007, Byrne managed to get Archbishop Desmond Tutu to apologise on behalf of the Anglican Church for the way in which some clergy had treated the world's LGBT community.
In April 2009, Made in Manchester came runner up in the Best Production Company in the North 'How Do' Awards
In May 2009, Byrne's 'Giving Way to a New Era' was nominated for a prestigious Sony Award.
In July 2009, Byrne's 'Gay Life After Saddam' for 5Live (which also featured actors Samuel Barnett and Paul Kendrick) was described by the press as 'The BBC at its Best' after it uncovered a catalogue of murder and torture being carried out against gay and trans Iraqis since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003.
In October 2009, Byrne's company Made in Manchester embarked on a pioneering experiment to promote and premiere new audio drama via The UK's Independent newspaper. Turing's Test (starring History Boys' actor Sam Barnett) rose as high as number 7 in its category on the i-tunes downloads chart. Subsequent dramas have included Death in Genoa starring Simon Callow as Oscar Wilde and Suzie Pugh and a Monster Too (a children's drama starring Coronation Street actress Vicky Binns). It's thought more dramas may be on the cards and Byrne has expressed his ambition to create 'a new high profile platform' for drama and comedy on the web.
Byrne is also a Director of RIG, the Radio Independents Trade Body and has been leading a campaign to persuade the BBC to commission more radio programming from outside London.