Nick Bailey
Get to know the man behind Classic FM's Early Mornings show.
Biography
Nick Bailey started his career at the age of 19 as a news reader on Radio Caroline. He has worked in Australia, where he presented a late-night programme in Brisbane, and for the British Forces Broadcasting Service in Gibraltar and Germany. He also presented the flagship morning current affairs programme for Radio Television Hongkong, and was BBC Radio Five's Hongkong correspondent when he was invited to join Classic FM.
Nick's voice was the first to be heard when Classic FM started broadcasting on September 7th 1992 as the first National Commercial Radio Station in Britain and a year later he won the Sony Gold Award for best breakfast show. He also presented Classic Romance on Sunday mornings, which won a Silver Sony in 1995 and in 1996 was voted Radio Programme of the Year by the Television and Radio Industries Club. More recently in 2002 he won a finalist award from New York for his 80th birthday tribute to Sir Malcolm Arnold.
Nick loves to travel and in recent years has walked the Inca trail in Peru for Action Medical Research, the Great Wall of China to raise money for Classic FM's charity Music Makers and in 2005 went to Vietnam on behalf of World Vision. He was also asked by the Thai government to spend a week in Bangkok to train their broadcasters in how to present classical music!
Apart from Classic FM, Nick is a regular host on P&O's musical cruises and presents a weekly programme for British Forces worldwide.
Fact File
First Broadcast:
Radio Caroline 1966 as a newsreader
First experience of classical music :
Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto aged 15
Favourite piece of music:
Rolling Stones’ Sympathy For The Devil
Joined Classic FM:
First day – 7th September 1992
How do you relax:
Watching cricket and swimming in mixed pond on Hampstead Heath
Most memorable moment:
First voice on Classic FM
Favourite motto or words of wisdom:
If Music be the food of love, play on
Favourite moment at Classic FM:
Opening the station as the first voice in 1992
Biggest on-air mistake:
Announcing a piano concerto on the evening concert and after it finished realising there had been no piano. It was the wrong track, trouble was it lasted half an hour.
Ideal studio guest - dead or alive:
Percy Grainger - because I love his music and he was as mad as a hatter!
Favourite classical composer/musician:
Handel , particularly when sung by Andreas Scholl
Do you play a musical instrument:
No (except for the spoons)
If you could play an instrument what would it be and why:
Oboe, because I love Baroque music and I associate this instrument with Baroque.
Last good read:
Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Last film you saw:
Brokeback Mountain
What do you read on a morning:
Telegraph/Metro
Where did you go on your last holiday abroad:
West Indies
