GBH - The Garry Bushell Hour

Shortly after the NME announced that punk was dead, The Ruts came along and proved that it wasn’t. Their driving, reggae-infused punk embodied the whole late 70s Rock Against Racism ideal. And their amazing anthems, such as Babylon’s Burning, Staring At the Rude Boys and Something That I Said carried them into the charts and into the hearts of a generation…before tragedy struck.

Hugh Cornwell was one of the major figures in early British punk rock. He was the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter in The Stranglers, the hugely influential band who scaled the charts with hits like No More Heroes, Peaches, and Always The Sun, and always marched to the beat of their own drum.

To mark National Poetry Day, Garry’s guest tonight is one of the brightest and most brilliant of British poets – Salena Godden.

Strong female artists have been a part of pop and rock since the beginning: incredible singers from Etta James and Janice Joplin to Adele and Paramore’s Hayley Williams have wowed the world with their talent. But for many it’s been an uphill battle, fighting exploitation and ingrained attitudes.

Mancunian Steve Diggle is the guitarist and singer songwriter with the Buzzcocks… the seminal punk band who infiltrated the charts with brilliant, infectious songs such as ‘Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t)’, ‘Promises’ and ‘Harmony In My Head’ – back at a time when punk really did want to subvert mainstream music.

Garry’s guest tonight Patti Boulaye shot to fame on ITV’s talent show New Faces. But hers is not a normal showbiz story. Nigerian-born Patti lived through one of the worst genocides of the 20th century, growing up during the horrific Biafran civil war where one million people died either in fighting or from famine.

How are you going to vote in the forthcoming Euro-referendum? Conventional wisdom says that if you’re on the political right wing, you’ll probably vote against staying in the EU, and if you’re to the left, you’ll probably vote in favour of staying. Well, Garry’s guest tonight, Brian Denny of the RMT Union, has got some mind-opening surprises in store for you.

If you can remember the nineteen eighties... you probably weren’t there. Barry Cain was – and he’s got 27 incredible issues of Flexipop magazine to prove it!

There is only one Steven Berkoff. Perhaps there’s only room for one. What happens when an enfant terrible of the British theatre grows up? They become Steven Berkoff, that’s what.

From The Two Ronnies to Blackadder…from Benny Hill to Marty Feldman… the golden years of British television comedy produced some of the funniest shows and larger-than-life characters the world has ever seen.