Les Ross
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Birmingham born Les Ross always wanted to become a DJ so at the age of 11, he wrote to the general manager of Radio Luxembourg.
At the age of 17, Les won a DJ competition, which was run by local paper, Birmingham Evening Mail, beating Johnnie Walker, who came third. Part of his prize was to appear at Radio Luxembourg for an audition, but this never happened. He was offered his first gig at the Mecca Ballroom in Birmingham, where he worked twice a week. Then moving onto the Birmingham Rollerskating Rink where he played five nights a week. His first 'proper' job was working for IBM Computers, then as an administrator at Witton Park Cemetery.
Les Ross attended King Edward VI Aston School in Birmingham.
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[edit] BBC Radio Birmingham
The break he was waiting for came in 1970, when he joined BBC Radio Birmingham now BBC WM, presenting a Saturday morning show with John Henry. “Ross and Henry” was a ground-breaking formula in radio; much admired in the industry. It was one of the first “zoo-radio” formats – involving a studio audience and interactive elements and phone-in requests presented by breathy blonde Fiona MacDonald. The most popular and listened to show on the station, Les was soon established as the most popular presenter on the station having taken over the breakfast show from Peter Powell who moved on to Radio 1 and then Radio Luxembourg. The breakfast show, entitled “On The Move”, was unusual because it started at 5 am. The BBC national networks did not start programming until 6 am making Les the only presenter on the air in the UK for one hour a day. The Radio Birmingham transmitter was the most powerful in the country at the time and so Les enjoyed an audience of shift workers from all over the country.
[edit] Radio Tees & BRMB
In 1974, Les applied to work at BRMB; but they rejected him. Instead they chose to hire his Saturday co-presenter John Henry – thus damaging Radio Birmingham’s most listened to music show. So, in the summer of 1975, Les joined Radio Tees in the North East of England, presenting their Breakfast show. He also presented a successful Saturday morning music show which used the talents of the station’s record librarian Wincey Willis as co-presenter. In March 1976, Les went back to Birmingham & joined BRMB, taking over the Breakfast show from Adrian Juste, who had left to join Radio 1.
Les won many awards, including, 'Independent Radio Personality of the Year Award 1985', 'Top Breakfast Show 1986, 1994, & 1990' and in 1997, Les received a Sony Award and an MBE for his services to broadcasting. He also had the honour of having Virgin Trains electric locomotive no. 86259 named after him. He has since preserved this engine following its retirement from passenger service.
[edit] Xtra AM & Back to BRMB
With the launch of sister station Xtra AM in 1989, Les moved on to present there for four years, leaving other presenters to carry out a near impossible task of replacing Les on FM breakfast. In August 1993, Les returned to BRMB Breakfast show, where he had female co-presenters by his side during this period, including Suzi Becker & Tammy Gooding. After 26 years, on Friday 27 September 2002, Les presented his final BRMB Breakfast show, live from Birmingham International Station. As 9 o'clock approached, he hopped on a train to symbolise the end.
[edit] Saga 105.7
On Monday 6 January 2003, Les took over from David Hamilton, on Birmingham's Saga 105.7 FM Breakfast show & in December 2004, he quit the station as he claimed the station management was guilty of sending "nannying" e-mails which were turning him into a "robo-jock". Les decided he'd suffered enough upon the final straw - or should that be, the final coffee, when he was banned from drinking coffee during his early Breakfast show.
He announced his departure, which was planned for Christmas Eve 2004, after he was only offered a one-year contract, below half-pay, despite doubling the show's ratings in recent audience research figures. Les actually stated "How much would I have had to put the ratings up by just to get the same deal as I was on before? If I had been happy and felt that I had support, I might have stayed for half the money. But I wasn't happy and I feel that if you pay peanuts, you get monkeys". Les's departure came before Christmas eve, as station bosses decided to take action as he talked to the local press about what had happened.
[edit] Back to the Beeb
Rumour mills went quickly into action about where Les would turn up next? BBC Radio WM, snapped him up to present a weekly show on Sunday mornings from 9am-Midday. So on Sunday 6 February 2005, Les presented his first weekly show on BBC WM. In addition to his Sunday morning show, on Saturday 23 July 2005, Les also took over the Saturday Breakfast show from 6-9am.
[edit] Back On Daily
It has now been reported that Les is going to be taking over the Monday to Friday 1-4pm slot from Danny Kelly on WM.
BBC WM's managing editor, Keith Beech, said: "Les Ross is one of the best-loved and most popular presenters there is. I'm excited about the prospect of hearing him every day here on BBC WM."
