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Paul Matthew Gambaccini (born April 2, 1949, New York; nicknamed 'The Professor of Pop') is a radio and television presenter in the United Kingdom. He has dual United States and British nationality, having become a British citizen in 2005.

Gambaccini studied at Dartmouth College, where he obtained a degree in history and at University College, Oxford, where he obtained a degree in politics, philosophy and economics. Having left Oxford, Gambaccini was considering further study in law at Harvard or Yale but had the opportunity of writing for Rolling Stone magazine as British correspondent. He attributes his broadcasting career to this post and especially an interview in 1973 with Elton John which brought him to the attention of BBC Radio producer John Walters who arranged for him to present on BBC Radio 1. He has since returned to Oxford as the News International Visiting Professor of Broadcast Media, where he delivered a series of lectures in January and February 2009. In February 2010 he was invited by the Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University Andrew Hamilton to deliver the inaugural LGBT lecture Out on Monday to the university's LGBT staff, students and faculty

Broadcasting career[link]

Gambaccini's broadcasting career commenced at WDCR-AM, a former student-operated Top 40 station in Hanover, New Hampshire, owned by Dartmouth College, which was one of the most influential college stations on the air in America during that era. His talent for broadcasting was clearly in evidence in those days since he served as WDCR's music director. Gambaccini may have first achieved wider prominence when his tips for playlisted songs likely to see greater chart action were published in the May 11, 1968 issue of the international trade publication Billboard (magazine), alongside similar tips from radio programming talent at major commercial stations across the U.S.

"The Great Gambo", as he was later known, then started broadcasting in the UK on BBC Radio 1 in 1973, as a music reporter. He is known as a presenter of various US chart shows and presented the first of these in 1975. He was the only presenter of the Billboard US Top 30 singles chart in the UK every Saturday afternoon in the mid to late 1970s on Radio 1. The show continued until 1986 when he moved to independent radio. In 1990 he returned to Radio 1 but was sacrificed by controller Matthew Bannister in 1993. In 1992, Gambaccini became a founding presenter on the UK's classical music station Classic FM, where he presented the weekly Classical CD Chart. He left for BBC Radio 3 in 1995, where he presented an hour-long morning programme, in a slot formerly used for Composer of the Week. Gambaccini increased the audience, but came under attack as an example of the reforms that the controller was trying to introduce, but which did not go down well with the existing audience. Some listeners welcomed his presence, according to Radio 3 controller Nicholas Kenyon, as their musical tastes had developed from Radio 1's content. He returned to Classic FM in 1997.

Alongside his work in music radio, he contributed regularly to BBC Radio 4's long running arts programme Kaleidoscope until it ended in 1998, and had worked in this role on TV-am. In 1998, he joined BBC Radio 2, where he created his weekly America's Greatest Hits show. At the same time, in 2002, he quit Classic FM, to present a weekly chart show on London's Jazz FM until 2004. He was also a contributor to the London station LBC when it was taken over by Chrysalis.

Paul is the only person to have heard the original, unremixed verion of the R Kelly hit Ignition.

He has worked widely in British radio and television, mainly related to music, film, and the arts. He narrated the BBC Radio adaptation of Espedair Street, the Iain Banks novel. He co-edited the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles from 1977 to 1996. He has presented the annual Ivor Novello Awards since 1990, the Music Industry Trust's Man of the Year Dinner since 1999 and the Sony Radio Academy Awards since 2000.

From 24 March 2008, he took over as chairman of the Radio 4 music quiz Counterpoint from Edward Seckerson and in August 2008, he returned to Classic FM, to present 'Paul Gambaccini's Hall of Heroes' series, on Sunday evenings between 9 and 10.

Gambaccini currently presents his weekly America's Greatest Hits show on BBC Radio 2 on Saturday from 8pm to 10pm and contributes to various publications. He lives in the Southbank area of London.

Gambaccini also briefly appeared on "L", the 1978 Godley and Creme album, during the first track, "The Sporting Life", as the "Bad Samaritan" voices.

Charity work[link]

He came out as homosexual during the 1980s and has been a supporter of gay-related charities. In 1995, he was named 'Philanthropist of the Year' by the National Charity Fundraisers for his work on behalf of the Terrence Higgins Trust. He is patron of the London Gay Symphony Orchestra. In 2010, he won an episode of celebrity Mastermind, with his chosen beneficiary charity being Stonewall.

Awards[link]

Gambaccini received the Outstanding Contribution to Music Radio award from the Radio Academy in 1996. He was nominated as Music Broadcaster of the Year in the Sony Radio Academy Awards in 2000, 2002 and 2003, winning in 2003.

Bibliography[link]

• Television's Greatest Hits, with Rod Taylor, 1993, Network Books, ISBN 0-563-36247-2
• Love Letters, 1996, Michael O'Mara Books, ISBN 1-85479-644-5
• The McCartney Interviews: After the Break-up, 1996, Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-5494-1
• Close Encounters, 1998, Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-6841-1
• The Eurovision Companion (revised edition), 1999, Pavilion Books, ISBN 1-86205-243-3
• Complete Book of the British Charts, with Tony Brown (editor), and Tim Rice, 2000, Omnibus Press, ISBN 0-7119-7670-8

References[link]

• Times Interview
• Independent interview
• Radio Rewind biography
• Billboard, May 11, 1968, see Programming Aids, page 20 [1]

External links[link]

• Paul Gambaccini at BBC Programmes
• Paul Gambaccini personal page