''Family Favourites'' (remembered by its later name ''Two-Way Family Favourites'') was the successor to the wartime radio show ''Forces Favourites'', broadcast at Sunday lunchtimes on the

BBC Light Programme The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the ...

, later

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

from 1945 until 1980. From 1967 to 1972 it was also carried on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

. It was a request programme designed to link families at home in the UK with British Forces serving in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

or elsewhere overseas. The programme was a big success with listeners. It had the memorable signature tune " With a Song in My Heart" (original played by

Andre Kostelanetz Andre Kostelanetz (; December 22, 1901 – January 13, 1980) was a Russian-American popular orchestral music conductor and arranger who was one of the major exponents of popular orchestra music. Biography Abram Naumovich Kostelyanetz was born ...

and his Orchestra) and was presented by a variety of well-known radio personalities, including

Cliff Michelmore Arthur Clifford Michelmore (11 December 1919 – 16 March 2016) was an English television presenter and producer. He is best known for the BBC Television programme ''Tonight'', which he presented from 1957 to 1965. He also hosted the BBC's tel ...

and Jean Metcalfe who met while presenting the show and later married on 4 March 1950, Bill Crozier (in Cologne only),

Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television presenter and newsreader. He hosted programmes such as '' Crackerjack!'', '' Ask Aspel'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', '' This Is Your Life'', '' Strange ...

Judith Chalmers Judith Rosemary Locke Chalmers (born 10 October 1935) is an English retired television presenter who is best known for presenting the travel programme '' Wish You Were Here...?'' from 1974 to 2003. Early life Chalmers was born in Gatley, Cheshi ...

Sarah Kennedy Sarah Mary Kennedy MBE (born 8 July 1950) is a British retired TV and radio broadcaster. She presented her daily early morning radio show, ''The Dawn Patrol'', on BBC Radio 2 from 1993 to 2010. She is also a relative of John F. Kennedy In t ...

, and the final UK presenter Jean Challis. Both Pete Murray and

Ed Stewart Edward Stewart Mainwaring (23 April 1941 – 9 January 2016), known as Ed "Stewpot" Stewart, was an English radio broadcaster and TV presenter. He was principally known for his work as a DJ on BBC Radio 1 (particularly the Saturday morning ' ...

continued to use the title for segments only of their shows, often linking up with places such as Australia and New Zealand for another couple of years during the 1980s; during this time, the song "Hurry Home" by

Wavelength In physics and mathematics, wavelength or spatial period of a wave or periodic function is the distance over which the wave's shape repeats. In other words, it is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same ''phase (waves ...

became popular with the families of troops returning from the

Falklands War The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...

.BBC Radio 2 documentary about the series, broadcast 30 August 1993 Aspel returned to host a one-off special edition of the show for

's 40th Birthday celebrations, on 30 September 2007.

Internationally

When the programme expanded, it encompassed far-flung corners of the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

with, amongst others, Bill Paull being the link man in Canada, June Armstrong-Wright in Hong Kong,

Ross Symonds Ross Symonds (born 8 January 1942) is an Australian former media personality, news presenter and reporter, radio and television personality and spokesman, best known for his association with the ABC starting in the early 1960s and subsequently ...

in Australia, Don Durbridge in Gibraltar and Marama Martin in New Zealand.

References

BBC Radio 2 programmes BBC Light Programme programmes British music radio programmes {{UK-radio-show-stub