Difference between revisions of "The Early Bit"

Revision as of 13:21, 28 September 2012

Chris’s first show on Radio One was The Early Bit, which went out Monday - Friday from 4-7am.

Joined at first by producer Simon Barnett and broadcast assistant Jude Adam, Chris soon developed a friendship with fellow overnight host Clive Warren, who made regular appearances on the show. As too did Dave Vitty, at the time a technical operative, working as the London based button puncher on the Mark and Lard Breakfast Show.

Soon Dave, christened “Comedy Dave” because he er, wasn’t very funny, joined the show alongside new producer, Ben Cooper.

The show added 200,000 listeners before the end of 1997, boosting Chris’s listenership to over a million. He was handed the additional 6-9am Saturday Breakfast Show as a result.

This is the show on which Moyles first worked with Simon Hollis (aka Melinda), who’d later go on to work on the afternoon show.

A promotion to Saturday mid mornings occurred in April 1998, plus by then Chris was also the regular stand in for Kevin Greening and Zoë Ball on The Radio One Breakfast Show.

He had originally been considered as a candidate to take over the show full time, but was held back because of lack of experience. He lost half an hour of his show as a result, as a decision was made to start the Breakfast Show at 6:30.

Shows from this period make fascinating listening, as Chris is often thought to be at his peak, and some of them (including covering stints on the breakfast show) are archived here.

Early Bit features included The Six O’Clock Moment, Small Traffic and What’s The Word Or Words. Chris’s catchphrase at the time was ”Come On!!!!” and he also used to regularly sing songs about Mark and Lard.

"They need me to come and kick the station up the arse, that's what they hired me to do. What do I bring to the station? Me and my little world, everything that goes with it including big breasted women, crap competitions, the word crap - been missing for far too long - dwarves, dwarf tossings off bridges... my world. I'm the saviour of broadcasting."'

Moyles on Radio One, Deluxe Magazine Interview - May 1998

On May 8th 1998, after only nine months at Radio One, Chris won the Silver Sony Radio Award for ”DJ Of The Year”. He was only beaten to the prize by Jo Whiley, who said at the time he looked like one of the fat slags from Viz.

Chris actually offended a whole host of his colleagues in his first year at the station, including Mark and Lard, Mary Anne Hobbs, Simon Mayo, Mark Goodier and (notoriously) Nicky Campbell.

John Peel also took against Chris and accused him of being a "DLT-in-waiting". Moyles retorted that Peel was a "Kenny Everett-in-waiting, because Kenny Everett’s dead and it’s only a matter of time before John pops his clogs". Later the pair made up and became friends (see later).

Perhaps Chris’s most high profile falling out though was in July 1998 with Never Mind The Buzzcocks host Mark Lamarr, following his poor showing on the BBC2 quiz. Chris admitted he was crap on the air the following week, but then received a phone call from Lamarr at home. Lamarr accused Chris of slagging off the programme and being the reason that future guest Natalie Appleton had pulled out of appearing on the show. Chris retaliated by saying that Lamarr was “about as popular at Hitler” when he was on Radio One.

The pair traded insults on their respective shows for months, and were once nearly involved in a punch up in a BBC corridor. After Lamarr threatened to kill Chris at the 1999 Brits, a decision was made to stop mentioning him on the air.

A successful stint for Moyles on the Radio One Summer Roadshow tour wowing crowds of screaming fans was followed by the main compere slot at V98 (Leeds) in August.

In an ill advised move, Chris also appeared semi-naked for Sky Magazine’s summer edition, photos of which can be found in the chrismoyles.net picture gallery here (if you dare look!).

He also presented from Ibiza as part of Radio One’s Ibiza 98 coverage, but wasn’t invited back until 2003. (This incidently, he blames on Comedy Dave getting jiggy with a competition winner whilst there).

1998 also saw Chris’s first upheld complaint on Radio One, when a woman caller faked an orgasm on the air. Moyles called it ”girl power” and said the complaint was probably from some bloke who’d never heard one before.

Other memorable moments included naked callers on True or False and Chris’s first song parodies, including his take on Barbie Girl by Aqua, the amazing Ballad Of Tescos - and a special tribute to ex Spice Geri Halliwell.

Chris’s final ever Early Bit show was broadcast on Friday 2nd October 1998, and featured regular show contributor David The Photographer (aka David Flint), who is sometimes mentioned on the show to this day - clip here.

The final minute of the Early Bit is archived here in the Sound Vault.