Sarah Kennedy
Encyclopedia
Sarah Mary Kennedy MBE
(born 8 July 1950 in East Grinstead
, West Sussex
) is a British
TV and radio broadcaster
. She presented her own daily early morning radio show, The Dawn Patrol, on BBC Radio 2
from 1993, before announcing her decision to leave the show on 3 September, 2010.
Kennedy was honoured in the Queen's Birthday Honours
in 2005, when she was awarded the MBE for services to broadcasting.
. Her father was a stockbroker and her mother a nurse. She grew up in East Grinstead. She studied for two years at drama school, becoming a drama teacher. She was a Matron at Copthorne Prep School
.
In her twenties she married a member of the armed forces. She has a partner, Eton-educated Adrian McGlynn, a director of horseracing's administrators, Weatherbys
, whom she refers to as her "much beloved". He became a popular character in the show. He is sixteen years younger than Kennedy. They met at the wedding of Desmond Morris
's son, where McGlynn was best man. They reside in Bedfordshire
although Kennedy has an apartment in a converted school building in London.
in Singapore
, before moving to BBC Radio 2 in 1976, where she presented Family Favourites
and did the final closedown before the station moved to 24-hour broadcasting in January 1979. She is also president of the hospital radio station known as "Radio Horton", based in the Horton Hospital, Oxfordshire.
Kennedy's first on-screen job was reading the news on Southern Television
's Day by Day. She came to prominence in TV as one of the hosts of the ITV
light entertainment show Game for a Laugh
from 1981 to 1984. She was also one of the team involved with the short-lived BBC
current affairs programme 60 Minutes, which ran from 1983 to 1984, and was the main presenter of the ITV game show Busman's Holiday for several series in the 1980s. She also co-hosted The Animals Roadshow and Animal Country with zoologist Desmond Morris
in the late 1980s and 1991 respectively.
In 1992, Kennedy returned to Radio 2, to present the weekday early morning show, called The Dawn Patrol. It was originally broadcast from 5 am to 7 am each day, but moved to the time-slot of 6 am to 7.30 am in the mid-1990s. In 1995, Kennedy received a prestigious Sony Gold Radio Award
. She had a regular audience of around 4.5 million listeners on Radio 2. Due to Terry Wogan
's retirement from his breakfast show in December 2009, the morning radio schedule was changed, and Kennedy returned to her former slot between 5am - 7am. It was announced on Friday 3 September 2010 that she was to leave her Radio 2 show. She had been absent for several weeks beforehand and would not return to the show before a shake-up of the schedules in October. Her programme was presented during this time by Lynn Parsons
.
Kennedy has also published a novel, Charlotte's Friends, as well as two collections of listeners' tales, called Terrible Twos (two editions) and Terrible Pets.
), "Sainsbugs" (Sainsbury's), "Colleag-wees" (colleagues), "supermercado" (supermarkets as in Spain), "breasticles"/"chesticles" (breasts), Chancellor of the Exchequingtons etc. She frequently read out the expression "SW's to you" from listeners who wrote in. "SWs" was shorthand for "Love the show" (as in the oft-quoted phrase by Steve Wright on his programmes, hence the use of his initials). Many listeners wrote in to ask what "SWs" actually meant, but she rarely explained it. Kennedy was also said to have been the first person to use the term 'white van man
' in 1997.
, Aled Jones
and Richard Allinson
. It was later reported that Kennedy was recovering from pneumonia. She returned to work on 10 September 2007.
She also attracted concern after a bizarre performance while standing in for Terry Wogan
in May 1999. This included calling Ken Bruce
an "old fool" and referring to the presenter of the day's Pause For Thought slot as "an old prune". She blamed the incident on a lack of sleep the previous night and apologised to listeners. She had been due to stand in for Wogan the following week, but took time off instead.
In October 2007 she was reprimanded after joking (in a segment about the importance of wearing visible clothing in winter road conditions) that she had almost run over a black pedestrian because she couldn't see him in the dark. The BBC later apologised for the comment. She has previously opined that black men dominate athletics because they are accustomed to being pursued by lions.
She was also "spoken to" by BBC bosses after she praised Enoch Powell
during a show in July 2009, describing Powell as "the best Prime Minister this country never had".
In August 2010, she took three weeks off work. Lynn Parsons
took over the show in her absence. During this time, rumours began to circulate that she wouldn't return. On 3 September, it was announced that she was to leave the station. Sarah Kennedy, in a Daily Telegraph interview published later in the month, claimed she had been forced out by an "enemy" at the BBC and denied having a drink problem.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born 8 July 1950 in East Grinstead
East Grinstead
East Grinstead is a town and civil parish in the northeastern corner of Mid Sussex, West Sussex in England near the East Sussex, Surrey, and Kent borders. It lies south of London, north northeast of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester...
, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
) is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
TV and radio broadcaster
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
. She presented her own daily early morning radio show, The Dawn Patrol, on BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
from 1993, before announcing her decision to leave the show on 3 September, 2010.
Kennedy was honoured in the Queen's Birthday Honours
Queen's Birthday Honours
The Queen's Birthday Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the celebration of the Queen's Official Birthday in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen...
in 2005, when she was awarded the MBE for services to broadcasting.
Personal life
Sarah Kennedy was born in West SussexWest Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
. Her father was a stockbroker and her mother a nurse. She grew up in East Grinstead. She studied for two years at drama school, becoming a drama teacher. She was a Matron at Copthorne Prep School
Copthorne Prep School
Copthorne Preparatory School is situated near Crawley in West Sussex, for pupils aged between 2 and 13. It consists of a nursery for infants from 2½. A junior department is for children under the age of eight . Older pupils work in the two prep school buildings, the 'New Block' which is the main...
.
In her twenties she married a member of the armed forces. She has a partner, Eton-educated Adrian McGlynn, a director of horseracing's administrators, Weatherbys
Weatherbys
Weatherbys provides British Horseracing with its central administration, acts as its bank and maintains the founding Thoroughbred breed register...
, whom she refers to as her "much beloved". He became a popular character in the show. He is sixteen years younger than Kennedy. They met at the wedding of Desmond Morris
Desmond Morris
Desmond John Morris, born 24 January 1928 in Purton, north Wiltshire, is a British zoologist and ethologist, as well as a popular anthropologist. He is also known as a painter, television presenter and popular author.-Life:...
's son, where McGlynn was best man. They reside in Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
although Kennedy has an apartment in a converted school building in London.
Career history
Kennedy began her career with the British Forces Broadcasting ServiceBritish Forces Broadcasting Service
The British Forces Broadcasting Service provides radio and television programmes for HM Forces, and their dependents, in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Brunei, Canada, Cyprus, the Falkland Islands, Germany, Gibraltar, Kosovo, the Middle East, Northern Ireland and Tristan da Cunha as well as a live satellite...
in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, before moving to BBC Radio 2 in 1976, where she presented Family Favourites
Family Favourites
Successor to the wartime show Forces Favourites, Family Favourites was broadcast at Sunday lunchtimes on the BBC Light Programme, BBC Radio 2 and the British Forces Broadcasting Service until 1980...
and did the final closedown before the station moved to 24-hour broadcasting in January 1979. She is also president of the hospital radio station known as "Radio Horton", based in the Horton Hospital, Oxfordshire.
Kennedy's first on-screen job was reading the news on Southern Television
Southern Television
Southern Television was the first ITV broadcasting licence holder for the south and south-east of England from 30 August 1958 until the night of 31 December 1981. The company was launched as Southern Television Limited and the title Southern Television was consistently used on-air throughout its life...
's Day by Day. She came to prominence in TV as one of the hosts of the ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
light entertainment show Game for a Laugh
Game for a Laugh
Game For A Laugh was a popular British TV light entertainment show which ran for 56 editions and 4 specials between 26 September 1981 and 23 November 1985, made by London Weekend Television for the ITV network.- Origins :...
from 1981 to 1984. She was also one of the team involved with the short-lived 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...
current affairs programme 60 Minutes, which ran from 1983 to 1984, and was the main presenter of the ITV game show Busman's Holiday for several series in the 1980s. She also co-hosted The Animals Roadshow and Animal Country with zoologist Desmond Morris
Desmond Morris
Desmond John Morris, born 24 January 1928 in Purton, north Wiltshire, is a British zoologist and ethologist, as well as a popular anthropologist. He is also known as a painter, television presenter and popular author.-Life:...
in the late 1980s and 1991 respectively.
In 1992, Kennedy returned to Radio 2, to present the weekday early morning show, called The Dawn Patrol. It was originally broadcast from 5 am to 7 am each day, but moved to the time-slot of 6 am to 7.30 am in the mid-1990s. In 1995, Kennedy received a prestigious Sony Gold Radio Award
Sony Radio Academy Awards
The Sony Radio Academy Awards , started in 1983, are some of the most prestigious awards in the British radio industry. They are run by ZAFER Associates in association with the Radio Academy...
. She had a regular audience of around 4.5 million listeners on Radio 2. Due to Terry Wogan
Terry Wogan
Sir Michael Terence Wogan, KBE, DL , or also known as Terry Wogan, is a veteran Irish radio and television broadcaster who holds dual Irish and British citizenship. Wogan has worked for the BBC in the United Kingdom for most of his career...
's retirement from his breakfast show in December 2009, the morning radio schedule was changed, and Kennedy returned to her former slot between 5am - 7am. It was announced on Friday 3 September 2010 that she was to leave her Radio 2 show. She had been absent for several weeks beforehand and would not return to the show before a shake-up of the schedules in October. Her programme was presented during this time by Lynn Parsons
Lynn Parsons
Lynn Margaret Parsons is a British disc jockey and currently presents Weekends 10am - 2pm on UK radio station Smooth Radio and various shows on for BBC Radio 2.-Career:...
.
Kennedy has also published a novel, Charlotte's Friends, as well as two collections of listeners' tales, called Terrible Twos (two editions) and Terrible Pets.
Characteristics and mannerisms
Her reworking of English words was a distinctive element of the show. She changed names as follows: "The Eaglingtons" (Eagles), "The Kinkingtons" (The KinksThe Kinks
The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, North London, by brothers Ray and Dave Davies in 1964. Categorised in the United States as a British Invasion band, The Kinks are recognised as one of the most important and influential rock acts of the era. Their music was influenced by a...
), "Sainsbugs" (Sainsbury's), "Colleag-wees" (colleagues), "supermercado" (supermarkets as in Spain), "breasticles"/"chesticles" (breasts), Chancellor of the Exchequingtons etc. She frequently read out the expression "SW's to you" from listeners who wrote in. "SWs" was shorthand for "Love the show" (as in the oft-quoted phrase by Steve Wright on his programmes, hence the use of his initials). Many listeners wrote in to ask what "SWs" actually meant, but she rarely explained it. Kennedy was also said to have been the first person to use the term 'white van man
White van man
"White van man" is a term popularised in the United Kingdom by the journalist Jonathan Leake, then transport editor at The Sunday Times, to describe drivers of light commercial vehicles such as the Ford Transit....
' in 1997.
Career incidents and controversies
Kennedy has sometimes suffered with her health, and has had to take time off work. Her slurred speech throughout her show on 13 August 2007 made the headlines, giving listeners cause for concern, but the presenter blamed a sore throat. She presented the following day's show as normal, before taking a month-long break, leaving the show to be presented by colleagues Pete Mitchell, Alex LesterAlex Lester
Alex Lester is a British broadcaster. He presents the weekday overnight/early-morning programme on BBC Radio 2...
, Aled Jones
Aled Jones
Aled Jones is a Welsh singer and television/radio personality, broadcaster and television presenter who first came to fame as a treble...
and Richard Allinson
Richard Allinson
Richard John McNeill Allinson is a British broadcaster. He started his broadcasting with a 3-year stint at Bailrigg FM, known at that time as University Radio Bailrigg ,whilst undertaking college courses at Lancaster University Management School. He was firstly Treasurer and then became President...
. It was later reported that Kennedy was recovering from pneumonia. She returned to work on 10 September 2007.
She also attracted concern after a bizarre performance while standing in for Terry Wogan
Terry Wogan
Sir Michael Terence Wogan, KBE, DL , or also known as Terry Wogan, is a veteran Irish radio and television broadcaster who holds dual Irish and British citizenship. Wogan has worked for the BBC in the United Kingdom for most of his career...
in May 1999. This included calling Ken Bruce
Ken Bruce
Kenneth Robertson Bruce is a British broadcaster known for his programme on BBC Radio 2, which is broadcast on weekdays from 9:30am until 12 noon.-Early life and career:...
an "old fool" and referring to the presenter of the day's Pause For Thought slot as "an old prune". She blamed the incident on a lack of sleep the previous night and apologised to listeners. She had been due to stand in for Wogan the following week, but took time off instead.
In October 2007 she was reprimanded after joking (in a segment about the importance of wearing visible clothing in winter road conditions) that she had almost run over a black pedestrian because she couldn't see him in the dark. The BBC later apologised for the comment. She has previously opined that black men dominate athletics because they are accustomed to being pursued by lions.
She was also "spoken to" by BBC bosses after she praised Enoch Powell
Enoch Powell
John Enoch Powell, MBE was a British politician, classical scholar, poet, writer, and soldier. He served as a Conservative Party MP and Minister of Health . He attained most prominence in 1968, when he made the controversial Rivers of Blood speech in opposition to mass immigration from...
during a show in July 2009, describing Powell as "the best Prime Minister this country never had".
Kennedy's Exit From Radio 2
Kennedy had presented The Dawn Patrol since 1993. Due to Terry Wogan's departure and a minor reshuffle in 2010, her show moved from 6.00-7.30am to 5.00-7.00am. Many listeners were already concerned that the 5.00am starts were starting to affect aspects of Kennedy's health and her absences became more frequent.In August 2010, she took three weeks off work. Lynn Parsons
Lynn Parsons
Lynn Margaret Parsons is a British disc jockey and currently presents Weekends 10am - 2pm on UK radio station Smooth Radio and various shows on for BBC Radio 2.-Career:...
took over the show in her absence. During this time, rumours began to circulate that she wouldn't return. On 3 September, it was announced that she was to leave the station. Sarah Kennedy, in a Daily Telegraph interview published later in the month, claimed she had been forced out by an "enemy" at the BBC and denied having a drink problem.