One of my guilty pleasures has been BBC Radio 7. Between 10.00pm and 12.00pm they used to have the Comedy Club comprised of four recycled radio shows. I would listen before going to sleep, the idea of going to sleep with a smile was poetic. The radio alarm would kick-in early morning with CBeebies as part of Radio 7 – I would have never normally tuned into such a station, but programming for small children always struck me as a good way to start the day.
And then on Saturday 2 April it all ended. The BBC decided to close down Radio 7 although much of its output has migrated to the new BBC 4 Extra. On Saturday I tuned into Radio 7 and for a moment it was still on the DAB screen, but it quickly faded and it was gone forever. A place of pleasure, a place of merriment. The place of my final broadcasts before my sleep was now itself sleeping. Perhaps when they find all the money that the naughty bankers lost, Radio 7 with the same excitement as the noisy children on CBeebies will return – I can but dream.
