76: Lesley Douglas - BBC Radio 2 controller

Radio Moments - Conversations

From stumbling into the BBC simply with a wish to ‘be in London’, she rose to head its biggest network.

In this hour of #radiomoments ‘Conversations’, Lesley Douglas opens up about her puzzled early days in radio; her learnings at the elbow of the greats; and her rise alongside Jim Moir to steer BBC Radio 2 to dizzy heights. She talks of her happiest times, and of the significant challenges she faced.

“What I would like to have been, and I may have failed in this sometimes, is somebody who allowed and protected people to do their best work.”

In her own words, this is the Lesley Douglas story.

The full Conversations series may be heard here. Theme music thanks toLarry Bryant.