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			{{Short description\|British DJ and radio presenter}}
	'''Bruno Brookes''' (born Trevor Neil Brookes in ], ], ]) is a British radio presenter who shot to fame in the ].
			{{EngvarB\|date=August 2014}}
			{{Use dmy dates\|date=March 2022}}
			{{Infobox person
			\| name = Bruno Brookes
			\| image =
			\| caption =
			\| image_size =
			\| birth_name = Trevor Neil Brookes
			\| birth_date = {{Birth date and age\|df=yes\|1959\|4\|24}}
			\| birth_place = ], ], England
			\| nationality = British
			\| education = ] Secondary School, ]
			\| occupation = ]
			\| known_for = ]'s ]<br>(1986–1990, 1992-95)<br>Immedia chief executive<br>(2000–2020)
			\| years_active = 1984-Present
			\| spouse = {{marriage\|Debbie Brooker<br />\|1994\|2002\|end=divorced}}
			}}

			'''Trevor Neil "Bruno" Brookes''' (born 1959 in ], Staffordshire)<ref name=stoke>{{cite news\|url=https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/news/stoke-on-trent-news/14-most-famous-people-stoke-3711176\|title=14 of the most famous people from Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire\|work=Stoke Sentinel\|date=12 January 2020\|last=Elliott\|first=Louise}}</ref> is an English former radio presenter who became prominent on British radio in the 1980s. He was CEO of in-store radio company Immedia from 2000 to 2020.

	==Early life and career==		==Early life and career==

	Brookes attended Bradwell and ] ~~High~~ ~~Schools.~~ ~~He got into~~ ]~~ing~~ through ] discos in his home town before he sent a successful tape to his local station, ]. He ~~spent~~ ~~three~~ ~~years~~ ~~there~~ ~~before~~ ~~being recruited by ], the national pop network, where he worked as a stand-in~~ ~~presenter~~ for ] ~~before~~ ~~taking~~ ~~over~~ ~~the~~ ~~teatime show from ]~~.		Brookes attended Bradwell and ] secondary schools in ].<ref name=stoke/> He became a disc jockey through ] discos in his home town before he sent a successful audition tape created for him by George Wood (Judder) to his local station, ]. He used to wash cars to raise money for buying equipment. He spent three years there.

	==Radio One==		==Radio One==
			He was recruited by ], the national pop network, where he worked as a stand-in presenter before taking over the teatime show from ] in September 1984.<ref>{{cite web\|url = http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/fc914595a45e41999960e84198884eed\|title = BBC Genome Project\|accessdate = 2 March 2018\|work = Bruno Brookes\| date=10 September 1984 }}</ref>
	This programme proved popular with younger listeners, as Brookes immediately began a career-long association with the UK ] singles chart. In the mid-1980s, the chart was still announced on Tuesday lunchtimes by ] but kids unable to get to a radio while at school got the chance to hear a re-run of the new countdown with Brookes in the early evening. In ], Brookes took over the Sunday afternoon Top 40 show, which at the time was still counting down a chart which had been announced five days earlier and had been used for Top of the Pops the previous Thursday evening. From 4th October 1987 onwards, the Top 40 was revealed for the first time by Brookes in its now traditional Sunday afternoon slot, as new technology meant the chart took just hours instead of days to compile. Brookes briefly lost the chart to ] in ], but then regained it in ], though there was never an element of tension or competition between the two DJs, and both were equally proficient at the programme.

			In addition to this show, Brookes presented a rundown of the UK ] singles chart on Sunday evenings between March 1986 and September 1990, and again between March 1992 and April 1995.
	In ], Brookes moved to the weekend breakfast show, co-hosting with ], and also regularly deputised for ] on the weekday breakfast show. Three years later he moved to the early breakfast slot, where he remained until he was sacked in ] as controller ] continued his cull of elder presenters. Brookes was referred to by Trevor Dann, Bannister's head of music as 'bestriding the earth like a behemoth, the biggest dinosaur of them all', despite the fact that he was only thirty-six years old (other culled DJs had been in their forties or fifties).

			In April 1989, Brookes moved to the weekend breakfast show, co-hosting with ], taking over from ].<ref>{{Cite web
	Brookes also infamously played the uncensored version of ] by ], which contains 16 instances of "Fuck you I won't do what you tell me" culminating in "motherfucker".
			\|url= https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=U4VDAAAAIBAJ&sjid=26YMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2658,288538
			\|title=Radio 1 is right on song
			\|work=Glasgow Evening Times
			\|accessdate=31 January 2011
			\|date=2 March 1989
			}}</ref> and also regularly deputised for ] on the weekday breakfast show. Three years later he moved to the weekday early breakfast slot, where he remained until he was dismissed in 1995 by ], who said "...why is Bruno on? you know, he seems to have a charmed life, because if the view was 'we must get rid of the dinosaurs', you know we've got this behemoth striding the airwaves of dawn" in the BBC TV documentary ''Blood on the Carpet: Walking with Disc Jockeys'' in 2001.<ref>Garfield, Simon. '''' (1998)</ref>

			Brookes, along with another former chart show presenter ], returned to the station for a one-off Top 40 countdown show on Sunday 30 September 2007, providing new pre-recorded inserts into the show, which was hosted by the then-current (but outgoing) presenters ]. This special show formed part of the station's celebrations of the 40th birthday of BBC Radio 1.<ref>{{cite web\|url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b007zxf9\|title = BBC Radio 1 schedule\|accessdate = 2 March 2018\|work = Chart Show}}</ref>
	Brookes appeared on the quiz show 'Through the keyhole' in the late 90's as one of the celebrities whose home is visited by Lloyd Grossman. An unpleasant incident occurred when Brookes was interviewed by David Frost and Frost brought up a quote from Bruno from some years back in which he had boasted about charging his friends money to hear his records. Brookes deflected Frost's verbal jab by claiming it was just a flippant remark but he didn't specifically deny doing it.

			===Acid house===
	Brookes is a famous fan of Margaret Thatcher.

			Brookes was also an early supporter of the fledgling ] scene by championing ], a November 1988 hit for ] (AKA ]). In a 2013 interview with '']'', Brookes said that he was given a white label of the record and immediately fell under its spell. "It just got to me. I remember listening to it and thinking it was one step ahead of everything techno that was coming out. It wasn't copying anything else; it was just fabulous." As a result, he played the record twice in one show – a very unusual step for a prime-time radio DJ.<ref name="Stuart Aitken">{{cite news \|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/nov/11/stakker-humanoid-25th-anniversary-acid-house \|title=Stakker Humanoid: how the Future Sound of London won hearts and minds \|date=11 November 2013\|author=Stuart Aitken\|work=The Guardian}}</ref>

			==="Killing in the Name" controversy===
			While presenting the Top 40, Brookes accidentally played the full uncensored version of "]" by ] on 21 February 1993.<ref name="musicfanclubs1">{{cite web\|url=http://www.musicfanclubs.org/rage/articles/trivialized.htm \|title=rage: Articles/Interviews \|publisher=Musicfanclubs.org \|date= \|accessdate=29 January 2011}}</ref> The song contains 15 instances of the word "]".<ref name="musicfanclubs1"/> Brookes was not made aware of the language in the track and, as a new entry, included it in the broadcast. Brookes and his producer Simon Sadler were preparing a trail for the following week's show whilst the song played, so were unaware of what was going out on air. The station immediately received 138 phone calls of complaint.

	==Television work==		==Television work==
	During his Radio 1 ~~heyday~~, Brookes was on the ''Top Of ~~The~~ Pops'' host roster and also presented ''Beat ~~The~~ Teacher'' on BBC television, a ~~popular ]~~s' quiz where pupils ~~would take~~ on teachers in a ] game based on ]. He was the last of ~~three presenters this~~ show ~~had~~, following ] and ex-] singer ]. He also hosted the dating show ''Love At First Sight'' and the angling show ''Tight Lines'' on ].		During his period at Radio 1, Brookes was on the '']'' host roster and also presented '']'' on BBC television, a children's quiz where pupils took on teachers in a ] game based on ]. He was the last of the show's three presenters, following ] and ex-] singer ]. He also hosted the dating show ''Love at First Sight'' and the angling show ''Tight Lines'' on ].

			He also appeared in the '']'' series, in which he read an appeal against the fictitious drug "cake".<ref>{{cite news\|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/attempt-to-get-to-the-heart-of-the-brass-necked-enigmatic-dark-prince-of-comedy-1.660759\|title=Attempt to get to the heart of the brass-necked, enigmatic 'Dark Prince of Comedy'\|work=Irish Times\|first=Stephen\|last=Dixon\|date=4 May 2010}}</ref>
	==After the BBC==
	After Radio 1, Brookes worked for numerous radio stations, presenting a networked show called ''Bruno At The Millhouse'', while hosting a daily mid-morning slot for ] station ]. He ran a DJ school in Newbury, and was ] manager for a while.

			==Immedia==
	He was also involved in a public spat with ex-Radio 1 colleague ], whom Brookes had lent money for a flat. When Harris lost his job and couldn't pay it back, Brookes laid an unsuccessful claim to his extensive and valuable record collection.
			Brookes founded the corporate communications company ] in 2000, a provider of in-store radio stations including to HSBC, Ikea, and Topshop.<ref>{{cite news\|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/want-know-who-s-blame-all-those-shop-radio-stations-try-bruno-brookes-6285556.html?amp\|title=Want to know who's to blame for all those shop radio stations? Try Bruno Brookes\|first=Tom\|last=Peck\|work=The Independent\|date=6 January 2012}}</ref> The company was founded as Storm Radio, initially providing ] services, and was floated on the ] in 2003.<ref name=growth>{{cite news\|url=https://www.growthbusiness.co.uk/playing-it-right-immedia-147/\|title=Playing it right: Immedia\|date=1 October 2004\|work=GrowthBusiness\|last=Nair\|first=Praseeda}}</ref> After May 2001, the stations removed human DJs and were automated<ref>{{cite news\|url=https://amp.theguardian.com/media/2001/may/21/newmedia1\|title=Bruno Brookes station unveils second launch\|first=Amy\|last=Vickers\|date=21 May 2001\|work=The Guardian}}</ref> and they closed in 2002 in favour of in-store stations.<ref name=growth/> He resigned as CEO in May 2020.<ref>{{cite news\|url=https://www.insidermedia.com/news/south-east/bruno-brookes-to-step-down-as-immedia-chief-exec\|title=Bruno Brookes to step down as Immedia Chief Exec\|date=1 May 2020 \|first=Storm\|last=Rannard\|work=Insider Media}}</ref>


	In recent years, Brookes has kept a low public profile but has made a fortune with his company Storm, which was the UK's first 24 hour ] radio station, launching in April 2000. Storm Radio was renamed Immedia in 2002, and the company floated in December 2003. Brookes' stake was valued at flotation at over £2 million. Immedia supplies instore radio for Lloyds pharmacies, Dixons electricals and 2,300 other shops and newsagents. There are also initial services at HSBC, IKEA and other leading retailers.
			In January 2023, Bruno returned to the airwaves to host on 45 radio.

	==Personal life==		==Personal life==
	Brookes was involved for many years with TV presenter ] but in a twist of irony, she left him for Peter Powell, the man whose gig had been taken by Brookes when he got his break. He later married ] Debbie Brooker.

			Brookes was in a relationship for eight years with TV presenter ] until the early 1990s, when she left him for fellow DJ Peter Powell. She later said he was abusive, which he said was an exaggeration.<ref>{{Cite news
	In May 2006, Brookes suffered a heart attack and was treated at ], London where he was interviewed by ] as a patient on ]'s ]. In the interview he said he would try to give up smoking which he acknowledged as the main reason for his illness.
			\|url= https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1371664/Ex-lover-denies-that-he-beat-up-Anthea-Turner.html
			\|title=Ex-lover denies that he beat up Anthea Turner
			\|first=Hugh
			\|last=Davies
			\|work=The Telegraph
			\|accessdate=30 January 2011
			\|location=London
			\|date=25 October 2000
			}}</ref><ref>{{cite news\|url=https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2000/oct/24/gender.uk\|title='I felt it was my fault'\|first= Scarlett\|last=MccGwire\|date=24 October 2000\|work=The Guardian}}</ref> He married model Debbie Brooker in 1994, they resided in ], but they separated in January 2002 and were divorced.<ref>{{cite news\|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/1748803.stm\|title=Bruno Brookes splits with wife\|work=BBC News\|date=8 January 2002}}</ref>

			He received a 12-month driving ban in 1999 for drink driving.<ref>{{cite news\|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/dj-on-drink-charge-1118057.html?amp\|title=DJ on drink charge\|work=The Independent\|date=28 August 1999}}</ref> In May 2006, Brookes suffered a heart attack and was treated at ], London where he was interviewed by ] as a patient on ]'s ''City Hospital''. In the interview he said he would try to give up smoking which he acknowledged as the main reason for his illness.<ref>, BBC, 27 May 2006.</ref>
	{{start box}}

	{{succession box \|
			==References==
	before=]\|
			{{Reflist}}<!--added above External links/Sources by script-assisted edit-->
	title=]<br>chart show presenter\|
	years=] - ]\|
	after=]
	}}
	{{succession box \|
	before=]\|
	title=]<br>chart show presenter\|
	years=] - ]\|
	after=]
	}}
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	==External links==		==External links==
			* {{IMDb name\|id=0111788\|name=Bruno Brookes}}
	*
			*

			{{s-start}}
			{{s-media}}
			{{succession box
			\| before=]
			\| title=]<br>chart show presenter
			\| years=30 March 1986 – 23 September 1990
			\| after=]
			}}
			{{succession box
			\| before=]
			\| title=]<br>chart show presenter
			\| years=15 March 1992 – 16 April 1995
			\| after=]
			}}
			{{s-end}}

	]		{{DEFAULTSORT:Brookes, Bruno}}
	]		]
	]		]
	]		]
	]		]
	]		]
			]
			]
			]

Latest revision as of 11:57, 28 December 2024

British DJ and radio presenter

Bruno Brookes
Born	Trevor Neil Brookes (1959-04-24) 24 April 1959 (age 65) Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England
Nationality	British
Education	Seabridge Secondary School, Newcastle-under-Lyme
Occupation	Disc jockey
Years active	1984-Present
Known for	BBC Radio 1's UK Top 40 (1986–1990, 1992-95) Immedia chief executive (2000–2020)
Spouse	Debbie Brooker (m. 1994; div. 2002)

Trevor Neil "Bruno" Brookes (born 1959 in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire) is an English former radio presenter who became prominent on British radio in the 1980s. He was CEO of in-store radio company Immedia from 2000 to 2020.

Early life and career

Brookes attended Bradwell and Seabridge secondary schools in Newcastle-under-Lyme. He became a disc jockey through youth club discos in his home town before he sent a successful audition tape created for him by George Wood (Judder) to his local station, BBC Radio Stoke. He used to wash cars to raise money for buying equipment. He spent three years there.

Radio One

He was recruited by BBC Radio 1, the national pop network, where he worked as a stand-in presenter before taking over the teatime show from Peter Powell in September 1984.

In addition to this show, Brookes presented a rundown of the UK Top 40 singles chart on Sunday evenings between March 1986 and September 1990, and again between March 1992 and April 1995.

In April 1989, Brookes moved to the weekend breakfast show, co-hosting with Liz Kershaw, taking over from Mark Goodier. and also regularly deputised for Simon Mayo on the weekday breakfast show. Three years later he moved to the weekday early breakfast slot, where he remained until he was dismissed in 1995 by Trevor Dann, who said "...why is Bruno on? you know, he seems to have a charmed life, because if the view was 'we must get rid of the dinosaurs', you know we've got this behemoth striding the airwaves of dawn" in the BBC TV documentary Blood on the Carpet: Walking with Disc Jockeys in 2001.

Brookes, along with another former chart show presenter Mark Goodier, returned to the station for a one-off Top 40 countdown show on Sunday 30 September 2007, providing new pre-recorded inserts into the show, which was hosted by the then-current (but outgoing) presenters JK and Joel. This special show formed part of the station's celebrations of the 40th birthday of BBC Radio 1.

Acid house

Brookes was also an early supporter of the fledgling acid house scene by championing Stakker Humanoid, a November 1988 hit for Humanoid (AKA Brian Dougans). In a 2013 interview with The Guardian, Brookes said that he was given a white label of the record and immediately fell under its spell. "It just got to me. I remember listening to it and thinking it was one step ahead of everything techno that was coming out. It wasn't copying anything else; it was just fabulous." As a result, he played the record twice in one show – a very unusual step for a prime-time radio DJ.

"Killing in the Name" controversy

While presenting the Top 40, Brookes accidentally played the full uncensored version of "Killing in the Name" by Rage Against the Machine on 21 February 1993. The song contains 15 instances of the word "Fuck". Brookes was not made aware of the language in the track and, as a new entry, included it in the broadcast. Brookes and his producer Simon Sadler were preparing a trail for the following week's show whilst the song played, so were unaware of what was going out on air. The station immediately received 138 phone calls of complaint.

Television work

During his period at Radio 1, Brookes was on the Top of the Pops host roster and also presented Beat the Teacher on BBC television, a children's quiz where pupils took on teachers in a general knowledge game based on noughts and crosses. He was the last of the show's three presenters, following Howard Stableford and ex-Manfred Mann singer Paul Jones. He also hosted the dating show Love at First Sight and the angling show Tight Lines on Sky.

He also appeared in the Brass Eye series, in which he read an appeal against the fictitious drug "cake".

Immedia

Brookes founded the corporate communications company Immedia in 2000, a provider of in-store radio stations including to HSBC, Ikea, and Topshop. The company was founded as Storm Radio, initially providing internet radio services, and was floated on the Alternative Investment Market in 2003. After May 2001, the stations removed human DJs and were automated and they closed in 2002 in favour of in-store stations. He resigned as CEO in May 2020.

In January 2023, Bruno returned to the airwaves to host on 45 radio.

Personal life

Brookes was in a relationship for eight years with TV presenter Anthea Turner until the early 1990s, when she left him for fellow DJ Peter Powell. She later said he was abusive, which he said was an exaggeration. He married model Debbie Brooker in 1994, they resided in Newbury, but they separated in January 2002 and were divorced.

He received a 12-month driving ban in 1999 for drink driving. In May 2006, Brookes suffered a heart attack and was treated at St Thomas' Hospital, London where he was interviewed by Nadia Sawalha as a patient on BBC One's City Hospital. In the interview he said he would try to give up smoking which he acknowledged as the main reason for his illness.

References

^ Elliott, Louise (12 January 2020). "14 of the most famous people from Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire". Stoke Sentinel.
"BBC Genome Project". Bruno Brookes. 10 September 1984. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
"Radio 1 is right on song". Glasgow Evening Times. 2 March 1989. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
Garfield, Simon. The Nation's Favourite (1998)
"BBC Radio 1 schedule". Chart Show. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
Stuart Aitken (11 November 2013). "Stakker Humanoid: how the Future Sound of London won hearts and minds". The Guardian.
^ "rage: Articles/Interviews". Musicfanclubs.org. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
Dixon, Stephen (4 May 2010). "Attempt to get to the heart of the brass-necked, enigmatic 'Dark Prince of Comedy'". Irish Times.
Peck, Tom (6 January 2012). "Want to know who's to blame for all those shop radio stations? Try Bruno Brookes". The Independent.
^ Nair, Praseeda (1 October 2004). "Playing it right: Immedia". GrowthBusiness.
Vickers, Amy (21 May 2001). "Bruno Brookes station unveils second launch". The Guardian.
Rannard, Storm (1 May 2020). "Bruno Brookes to step down as Immedia Chief Exec". Insider Media.
Davies, Hugh (25 October 2000). "Ex-lover denies that he beat up Anthea Turner". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 30 January 2011.
MccGwire, Scarlett (24 October 2000). "'I felt it was my fault'". The Guardian.
"Bruno Brookes splits with wife". BBC News. 8 January 2002.
"DJ on drink charge". The Independent. 28 August 1999.
"Ex-Radio 1 star has heart attack", BBC, 27 May 2006.

External links

Media offices
Preceded byRichard Skinner	BBC Radio 1 chart show presenter 30 March 1986 – 23 September 1990	Succeeded byMark Goodier
Preceded byTommy Vance	BBC Radio 1 chart show presenter 15 March 1992 – 16 April 1995	Succeeded byMark Goodier

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