Stuart Henry (DJ)

Stuart Henry (24 February 1942 – 24 November 1995) was a Scottish disc jockey on pirate radio station Radio Scotland from January 1966 to September 1967. He then worked at BBC Radio 1 from its start in 1967. Between 1967 and 1969 he was one of the regular presenters of BBC's ''Top of the Pops''. He left the BBC in 1974 to join Radio Luxembourg.

Biography

Early life and acting career

Born in Edinburgh Henry attended Stewart's Melville College in the city after which he trained at Glasgow College of Dramatic Art. His early acting career included appearances in ''Dr. Finlay's Casebook'' and ''Z-Cars'', and in films such as the 1970 musical '' Toomorrow'' in which he played the part of the compere.

Pirate DJ work, Radio 1 and Radio Luxembourg

On 1 January, 1966 he started in radio and became a pirate DJ with Radio Scotland although suffered from seasickness on the ship, named ''The Comet'', and so was delighted to accept a new job, just over a year later, with the new BBC station Radio 1. On his shows, whilst working on Radio 1, he enabled the broadcaster to find missing young people and called it ''She's Leaving Home'' using the tune recorded by The Beatles called She's Leaving Home, a track from their 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. He would encourage young people to contact the station by telephone enabling their parents to be aware that they were safe and well. He also presented a programme on the station called ''Midday Spin'' and a Saturday morning show called ''Noise at Nine''.
The opening theme music to his Radio 1 shows was Soul Finger a 1967 track recorded by the Bar Kays. At the peak of his career with the station, in the early seventies, his show attracted audiences regularly in excess of 11 million.

Henry was a regular presenter on Top of the Pops. He presented a total of nineteen episodes between 1967 and 1969. The show was a victim to wiping, and as a result, only two episodes he presented (27 February 1969 and 20 March 1969) have been archived, but, three additional episodes hosted by Henry are known to exist in audio format.

In later years with Radio 1 he began to slur his speech, caused by the early signs of the condition, multiple sclerosis, and he was eventually sacked in 1974 after which he went to work with Radio Luxembourg the following year. His speech deteriorated further until his wife, Ollie, began to assist with his presentations and newsreading. His show became known as ''The Stu and Ollie Show''. He remained at Radio Luxembourg for 12 years until 1987.

Personal life and death

Henry married Ollie (1943–2020), a former model, in 1976. He suffered for many years with multiple sclerosis, the illness accounting for his later distinctive rather halting speech delivery. Ollie dedicated the remaining years of their married life to care for him. She died on 12 August 2020, aged 77,

Henry died on 24 November 1995. On 2 December 2004 he was posthumously inducted into the Radio Academy Hall of Fame, honouring his outstanding contribution to UK radio.

Filmography

References

External links

Radio Academy biography of Stuart Henry

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henry, Stuart
1942 births
1995 deaths
Entertainers from Edinburgh
British radio DJs
Pirate radio personalities
Offshore radio broadcasters
People educated at Stewart's Melville College
Radio Luxembourg (English) presenters
20th-century British musicians
BBC Radio 1 presenters