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Change.org - New Petition, “Keep Swing and Big Band Music on Radio 2!”.

Saturday, November 28, 2020

On 15 November Clare Teal announced that her Swing and Big Band Show would finish on January 3 2021. Sibyl Ruth has started a petition asking, Helen Thomas, the Radio 2 Head of Station, to reconsider.

Sibyl Ruth writes;

I am a swing dance fan who has been listening to more and more jazz on the radio since lockdown - Clare Teal’s show in particular. I was so devastated on hearing the show is being axed early next year, that I started a petition, using FB, Twitter etc. It is rolling along in a quiet way, but I am keen to publicise it more widely among music lovers. Here’s the link.


http://chng.it/Y7CmgDsc


From the Change.org website;


Sybil Ruth started this petition to Helen Thomas;


Dear Helen


On 15 November Clare Teal announced that her Swing and Big Band Show would finish on January 3 2021.


This would be terrible news at any time. But it’s a hammer blow during a period when it’s impossible to go to dances and to hear bands. For many listeners Clare’s show, which regularly features live recordings, is a lifeline.


2020 has seen the birth of the Black Lives Matter movement. So it’s deeply sad that Radio 2 has chosen this year to kill off a show which showcases many black musicians - and to silence a broadcaster who is a great communicator about the history of jazz.


Radio 2 would like to ‘shape the next era of pop’. This can’t be done by simply axing programmes which look at music of an earlier vintage. Musicians of the future always draw inspiration from the past.


The BBC will lose listeners - and influence - if it seeks to mirror the output of mainstream commercial stations.


So I’m asking you as the Head of Station to make a fresh commitment to programming Big Band and Swing music on Radio 2.