When it comes to radio, Robin Galloway certainly knows a thing or two about riding the airwaves.
Having spent almost four decades behind the booth, his latest radio venture sees him returning to his hometown.
Robin is the breakfast show host at Pure Radio, which has now expanded on DAB radio into the north-east.
The station aims to offer “an alternative listen” with fewer adverts and more entertainment its core focus.
Robin’s familiar wind-up sketches remain a prominent feature on the show, which he says has “reawakened his passion for radio again”.
For the born and bred Aberdonian, home fosters many fond memories.
“I really enjoyed being a kid in Aberdeen,” says Robin.
“The only care in the world was to make sure you were home before the lampposts came on.
“I can remember the changes from before the oil to after the oil and the incredible difference that made to everyone.”
Inspiration
With his mum an avid fan of The Beatles, music became ingrained in Robin’s life from an early age.
But it was a certain Radio 1 broadcaster that first sparked his curiosity for the airwaves.
“I can remember being really taken by a presenter called Kenny Everett who was always on Radio 1,” says Robin.
“He was almost doing TikTok sketches back then before social media even existed – I certainly wanted to do the stuff that he was doing.
“But it was a bit of a culture shock when I did eventually get into radio and being told, ‘you’re not Kenny Everett, so don’t try and be him’, you know?
“It was a long time before I could establish my own act and be given the space to do it.”
Robin is live from his home city of Aberdeen to celebrate the launch of Pure Radio in the North East 👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/qiXyRfvHR3
— Pure Radio (@PureRadioScot) August 6, 2021
Laughs
After achieving his first slot covering for Steve Aggasild on Northsound in the early ’80s, the station’s radio bosses caught a glimpse of Robin’s potential and he remained at the station for several more years.
From then on, Robin’s career has taken him far and wide across Scotland both on radio and TV.
Throughout the years, there certainly hasn’t been a shortage of laughs.
“I guess most people talk about the prank calls that I’m known for,” he says.
“Especially the Hector Brocklebank character who was dreamt up from the north-east.
“You can’t take radio too seriously, otherwise it starts to become a bit formulaic and dull.”
Radio vanilla
Dull is not a word you’d associate with Robin’s presenting style.
But he feels that many presenters and stations broadcasting around the country today are lacking in character and personality.
“My honest opinion is that over the last few years, or probably the last few decades, radio has become very vanilla,” says Robin.
“If you look at what people are now doing with podcasts, they’re much fresher and more exciting than the vast majority of radio, which is governed by bosses that won’t allow their presenters to take risks.
“Radio will become irrelevant if it doesn’t start to change and take note of things like podcasts which people like to consume these days.
“I get sent a lot of demos from people who want to get into the industry and the vast majority of them, sadly, just don’t have it.
“If you want to carve out a successful career in radio, you’ve got to be different.”
Robin may have carved out his own successful radio career by being different, but it has also not come without its challenges.
His time with national radio station Heart in particular was something that he “did not enjoy being a part of” and left him questioning the future of his career.
Reawakened
However, now at the helm of Pure Radio’s breakfast show, Robin is still getting used to waking up in the early hours but is also relishing radio once more.
“We just have fun and I think it’s quite an infectious listen,” says Robin.
“We’re probably not going to be to everyone’s taste, but I’ve always been a bit of a love or hate person in terms of my breakfast shows.
“A lot of listeners have said that they’d fallen out of love with radio, but what we’re doing again is drawing them to it again, which is great.
Great effort guys – thanks also to super snapper @jeffhopmes24 📽 🙌 https://t.co/4QJoVoHMfo
— Robin Galloway (@djrobingalloway) August 10, 2021
Having had such a fruitful career in the industry, will the time ever come for Robin to think about hanging the headphones up for good?
“It’s the big 60 at the end of this year, so as long as the listeners want me to continue, I’m happy to continue,” he says.
“At the end of the day, they’re the ones that tell you it’s time to go.
“I don’t think your boss tells you it’s time to hang the headphones up, the listeners tell you.
“It’s the greatest job in the world to do something every day that you enjoy doing.”
The Breakfast Show with Robin Galloway is broadcast on weekdays from 6am to 10am on Pure Radio.