39 Facts About Tommy Vance

Richard Anthony Crispian Francis Prew Hope-Weston, known professionally as Tommy Vance, was an English radio broadcaster.

Tommy Vance was an important factor in the rise of the new wave of British heavy metal, along with London-based disc jockey Neal Kay, in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Tommy Vance used a personal tag-line of "TV on the radio".

Tommy Vance's voice was heard by millions around the world announcing the Wembley Stadium acts at Live Aid in 1985.

Tommy Vance joined the merchant navy in 1956, aged 16, as a cabin boy.

Tommy Vance had been brought up on the British broadcasting of the 1950s and, like a number of his contemporaries, fell in love with the brash sound of American commercial radio.

When Tommy Vance returned to the UK, he worked as a mechanic for a jukebox company so that he could hear music for free.

Tommy Vance joined the Ulster Bridge Repertory Company, run by the actor James Ellis, as a stage manager.

Tommy Vance got into a pay dispute with KOL and quit and went on to voice his displeasure on rival KJR where he co-hosted for a few days with KJR's prime time jock Pat O'Day.

However, America was then involved in a war in Vietnam and when Tommy Vance got his draft papers for the US Army, he decided it was time to head back to the UK.

Tommy Vance returned to the UK in 1965 just before Christmas with British musician Ian Whitcomb who lent him the fare.

On 3 January 1966, Tommy Vance presented his first show on Caroline South; his slogan was "TV on radio" and used Jack Costanzo's version of the "Naked City Theme" as his signature tune.

Tommy Vance's wife was not pleased with the idea that her husband was going to be with Caroline South, on a ship two weeks out of three, where she would be living in an unfamiliar city on her own.

Tommy Vance heard a rumour that Philip Birch, boss of Wonderful Radio London, was negotiating to move his station to France and Tommy Vance wanted to be a part of it.

Every week Tommy Vance would read listeners' letters and played requests with one being chosen as the "letter of the week".

Tommy Vance was becoming frustrated with his lack of progress and joined Radio Monte Carlo International with Dave Cash and Kenny Everett.

In 1975, Tommy Vance made a brief film appearance as disc jockey Ricky Storm, in Richard Loncraine's Slade in Flame, a vehicle for the group Slade.

Tommy Vance was frequently heard on independent radio voicing advertisements.

Tommy Vance presented Capital's Hitline Top 30 on Sunday evenings, based on listener votes, starting from the top of the chart.

Tommy Vance was to become associated with heavy metal and rock music; his deep, resonant, booming voice and catch-phrase 'classic cuts' have been much imitated.

Tommy Vance had a two-year stint hosting the Sunday-afternoon Top 40, where he showed knowledge of and enthusiasm for a wide range of music and displayed a similar keenness when he hosted Top of the Pops around the same time.

Tommy Vance deputised on the Top 40 for Richard Skinner, Bruno Brookes and Mark Goodier.

Tommy Vance was a daily presenter on BFBS from 1976 to 1987 and so he became known in Germany, where BFBS was popular among a civilian audience despite being aimed officially at British military personnel.

Tommy Vance presented a weekly chart show for BFBS as well as other programmes such as Soul Bowl.

From 1984 to 1985, Tommy Vance hosted a Thursday night AOR programme on Radio 1, "Into the Music".

Tommy Vance became the continuity announcer for BBC2 in the early 1970s as well as Sky One in the late 1980s and interviewed for the BBC World Service.

Tommy Vance was a frequent choice as master of ceremonies at award shows, concerts and festivals; such as Monsters of Rock at Donington Park.

Tommy Vance departed Radio 1 in March 1993, however he never left the BBC entirely.

Tommy Vance continued to host Rock Salad for the World Service for many years.

Tommy Vance was a key player in the launch of Virgin Radio in March 1993, presenting the Drivetime show, a move he later regretted as the station dropped its adventurous format in favour of an ad-driven playlist.

Tommy Vance co-founded the internet radio station Rock Radio Network with his former Radio 1 producer Tony Wilson, music promoter Andy King and journalist Malcolm Dome in 1997, rebranding as TotalRock in 2000.

Tommy Vance developed business interests with the Silk Sound studios in Soho, later joined by The Bridge.

Tommy Vance was presenter and voiceover for the Channel 5 series Dumber and Dumber and had a much quoted appearance on Brass Eye.

Tommy Vance decided to leave the show after escaping a scalding from boiling fat and foulmouthed abuse from the celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay.

Tommy Vance's agent stated that he felt the environment was "dangerous" and that he was a risk to himself and the other contestants due to his age.

When Tommy Vance moved to Spain, it was with the intention of a gentle semi-retirement.

Tommy Vance came back to Britain and threw himself into work again, doing commercials, appearing on television and returning to Virgin to present a weekly show on their DAB and internet offshoot, Virgin Classic Rock.

Tommy Vance died at Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford, Kent in the early hours of 6 March 2005, three days after suffering a stroke at his home and was cremated at Golders Green Crematorium where his ashes were interred.

On 11 March 2005, five days after Vance's death, TotalRock ran Rock On, Tommy Day, a 15-hour live broadcast celebrating his life and work, including much music, numerous testimonials from artists and colleagues, and from people who wrote down their thoughts on Tommy at a special Forum, In Memoriam: Tommy Vance, put up at the TotalRock website.