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Radio review - Light programme

Published Monday 26 October 2009 at 10:45 by Nick Smurthwaite

In a week that saw the contemptible Nick Griffin given the oxygen of publicity by the BBC, it was somehow reasssuring to hear the actor, writer and comedian David Schneider striking a blow for Jewish culture and heritage in My Yiddisher Mother Tongue.

Schneider claimed to speak “the Queen’s Yiddish”, having studied it as part of his PhD at Oxford.

Still an active means of communication in many Jewish households across the globe, Yiddish has filtered through to the English language in the humour of Mel Brooks, Woody Allen, Jackie Mason et al. As Michael Grade pointed out to Schneider, no other language crams so many thoughts and sentiments into one word, quite often in the service of abuse.

Schneider went in search of a Yiddish theatre in Vienna, the Nestroyhof, where his grandfather wrote and performed plays before it was seized by the Nazis in the late thirties. Having gone through various incarnations, like our Wilton’s, Schneider discovered that the Nestroyhof is now being restored to its former glory as a centre for Jewish cultural expression.

The recent appearance of Andy Williams, now in his eighties, on Strictly Come Dancing, looking and sounding his age was not an uplifting sight. In a radio interview with Liza Tarbuck however he sounded full of beans, recalling his beginnings with the Williams Brothers in the forties. Their high point was providing the backing vocals for Bing Crosby’s hit, Swingin’ on a Star.

Williams began his long-running TV show in 1962 and went on to become the consummate people’s crooner, combining sharp professionalism with an ultra-relaxed TV persona. He also had a great sense of fun which made his show popular across the age spectrum.

These days he mostly confines his appearances to his own supper club, the Moon River Theatre and Restaurant in Branson, Missouri. After a lifetime in the biz he probably feels more at home on the stage than off.

Bob Harris paid tribute to the late Roger Scott, the DJ who succumbed to cancer 20 years ago aged 46. Scott made his name at Capital at the same time as Kenny Everett. Capital’s then head of programmes, Tim Blackmore, admired his economy with words and genuine passion for the music.

In an interview recorded shortly before he died, Scott revealed how his DJ tendencies emerged at an early age. As a teen, he was in the habit of playing records very loudly in his bedroom overlooking the street in Surbiton, and then furtively watching the reactions of passers-by as they heard the strains of the latest Everly Brothers or Cliff Richard hit.

Veteran music journalist and sometime Stage contributor Fred Dellar, a guest on SW1 Community Radio’s Storm In A Teacup show, must be one of the UK’s most prolific writers of album sleeve notes. He described how notes usually fell into one of two categories - the “this is Doris Day’s third album and it’s even more wonderful than the other two” kind, or the terribly informative, hang-on-to-your-encyclopaedia type of thing. Dates of sessions, who played the 15 different solos on a given record, and how Dizzy tilted his horn. “God it was wonderful,” swooned Fred.

Details:

My Yiddisher Mother Tongue, R4, Thursday, October 15

In the Lounge With Liza Tarbuck, R2, Friday, October 16

Bob Harris Show, R2 Saturday, October 24

Storm in a Teacup, SW1 Community Radio, Wednesday, October 21

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