The duo of Pete and Geoff were DJs Pete Mitchell and

Geoff Lloyd Geoff Barron Lloyd (born 20 April 1973) is an English radio presenter, television host, podcast host and writer, best known for his talk radio and music shows. He is married to comedian Sara Barron and hosts thFirecrotch & Normcorepodcast wit ...

, who from January 2003 to December 2005 hosted the breakfast show on

Virgin Radio Virgin Radio is a branding of radio stations broadcast in Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Italy, Romania, Turkey, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and Oman. As of April 2024, there were over 40 stations globally. The stations ...

. In the early 1980s, Mitchell was an aspiring musician who moved into management and production. In 1988 he joined

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Piccadilly Radio Greatest Hits Radio Manchester & The North West is an Independent Local Radio station based in Manchester, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester and North West En ...

and went on to be an enthusiastic champion of indie bands of the "

Madchester Madchester was a musical and cultural scene that emerged in the English city of Manchester during the late 1980s, closely associated with the indie dance movement. Indie dance (also referred to as indie rave) blended indie rock with elements o ...

" scene in the early nineties. Around this time, Craig Cash introduced him to Geoff Lloyd.The Independent: Geoff Lloyd on Craig Cash
Lloyd was an aspiring comedy writer and performer, and a fellow radio presenter. In 1996 they were asked by

Key 103 Hits Radio Manchester, formerly Key 103, is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Greater Manchester. As of September 2024, the station has a weekly ...

to co-present its afternoon show. The duo rapidly established a cult following with their witty and slightly risque banter, and in 1998 won a Sony Radio Academy Award for their show. They were subsequently recruited by Virgin Radio and again rapidly built up a significant audience for its Drivetime Show. By 2003 they were the most popular DJs on the station, and were moved to the Breakfast Show in order to increase the audience. This they did very successfully, sticking to their well-established formula of slightly risque banter about contemporary news and culture, with Mitchell tending to play the "straight man" to the more outrageous Lloyd. Lloyd occasionally courted

controversy Controversy (, ) is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin '' controversia'', as a composite of ''controversus'' – "turned in an op ...

with some of his remarks, most notoriously when he expressed willingness to eat the limbs of a dead baby to ease poverty. A complaint against the station was upheld, and Lloyd was reprimanded for his comments. Nevertheless, the audience for the show remained strong, despite (or possibly because of) Lloyd's willingness to stray to the edge of acceptability with his remarks. On 28 November 2005 the duo announced that they were splitting up and leaving the Breakfast Show on Virgin Radio. Their final show together took place on 16 December. Geoff Lloyd remained at Virgin Radio, hosting the Late Show, whilst Pete Mitchell left the station to pursue other projects. Christian O'Connell, from the Breakfast Show on Xfm London, replaced the pair as host of the Breakfast Show. Pete Mitchell died on 12 March 2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pete and Geoff Virgin Radio (UK) British radio personalities British radio DJs