Desmond Carrington - A Career Tribute

At Desmond's funeral, Head of Radio 2 Lewis Carnie paid tribute to a truly great broadcaster.

Warm inviting charm, knowledge and passion about music, and a voice that just always seemed to be there. A comfort, a friend, a reassurance to us all that the world was still alright. That is what Desmond Carrington brought to a career in broadcasting that lasted over 70 years.

70 years – a remarkable feat for anyone to be part of the lives of so many of us. And a nation devoted to his dulcet tones on the airwaves from his earliest days on the wireless to the multi-platform that we now live in. In fact, on the night he retired from broadcasting, he was trending on Twitter. Truly a relevant voice across decades of change.

He started, of course, as an actor. His stage debut was in Nottingham in 1942 appearing as Cockney schoolboy Roberts in ‘Goodbye Mr Chips’. The following year he was conscripted into the Queen’s own Royal West Kent Regiment and it was in Burma in 1945 when his broadcast career started with BFBS. He first read the news in the Army Psychological Warfare Unit before transferring to Radio SEAC in Ceylon. It was during this time he met another conscript who was also to become a radio legend and lifelong friend – David Jacobs.

Returning to the UK he worked as a radio producer and was first heard on the BBC in 1946 as part of the BBC Drama Rep Company. The acting bug bit and continued on television when he found national fame as Dr Anderson in the hugely popular Emergency Ward 10. As a child I still remember that being a household favourite, with my family gathering around a flickering black and white screen to watch weekly the dramas created in a hospital ward.

But it was radio that was always his true passion and in October 1981 he started his long and fruitful association with Radio 2 – a relationship that continued for 35 years until his retirement in October last year.

With ‘All Time Greats’ and ‘The Music Goes Round’, Desmond became a firm fixture deeply embodied in the Radio 2 family. Eclectic, informative, far ranging across the musical landscape and delivered with great humour. Desmond delved into his record collection weekly – first on Sundays and then on Tuesdays and finally Friday evenings. Always entertaining and expertly produced by Dave Aylott form his home in Perthshire, Desmond weaved his memories, thoughts and love of music around a theme that maximised his ability to bring his unique personality to each and every broadcast.

Over the years, Desmond had asked many times to broadcast his Sunday show live from his home in Perthshire – a request that was always refused by the then BBC Management. However, the tragic death of Princess Diana on 31st August 1997 meant that there was really no option but to go live. Desmond felt that his pre-recorded show on that day was not suitable for the audience and so, with hardly any notice, he took to the air with a box of records and reflected the nation’s mood perfectly. After that his Sunday show was always live from ‘At Home in Scotland’.

To Desmond, his audience was accolade enough. But to the industry in which he worked, he was honoured beyond that. He received a Gold Badge of Merit by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors, and was British Radio Personality of the Year in 1991.

He struggled latterly with ill health – but it was never apparent to his listeners. No-one would have known from his weekly outing on the air. His last show was on October 28th last year. He opened it with the same song he started his first Radio 2 show with in 1981 - ‘Up Up And Away’ by the Johnny Mann singers. The show closed with Mel Torme’s ‘That’s All’. And so it was to be for his legions of fans on the airwaves.

His colleagues from across the world of broadcasting adored and respected him. Mark Radcliffe described him as a ‘legend and gentleman’; Jarvis Cocker paid tribute to him on his 6 Music show when he retired last year. Ken Bruce, in his trademark understated style, said ‘When you’ve been at this game that long, you’ve got to be quite good.’ He was good – he was very good.

Few broadcasters transcend decades with such ease and grace. Desmond did. He was a joy and a pleasure to work with – a truly great broadcaster. He is sadly missed by us all.