GBH - The Garry Bushell Hour

Shortly after the NME announced that punk was dead, The Ruts came along and proved that it wasn’t. Their driving, reggae-infused punk embodied the whole late 70s Rock Against Racism ideal. And their amazing anthems, such as Babylon’s Burning, Staring At the Rude Boys and Something That I Said carried them into the charts and into the hearts of a generation…before tragedy struck. The Ruts story is told at length in Love In Vain - a massive tome written by Roland Link with a foreword by Henry Rollins of Black Flag and Sons Of Anarchy fame. I’ve dubbed the band “inspired, brilliant, tragic and thrilling in equal measure” so I’m genuinely delighted to welcome the surviving Ruts – Segsy and Dave Ruffy on to the show tonight! Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

Hugh Cornwell was one of the major figures in early British punk rock. He was the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter in The Stranglers, the hugely influential band who scaled the charts with hits like No More Heroes, Peaches, and Always The Sun, and always marched to the beat of their own drum. Hugh smuggled Leon Trotsky into the charts and more covertly heroin – the real subject of their 1981 hit single Golden Brown. But he left the band 25 years ago to concentrate on his own recordings – earlier this month he released The Fall And Rise Of Hugh Cornwell, the first anthology of his post-Stranglers career, and he’s just begun a major acoustic tour of the UK. Here Hugh talks about his formative years in Kentish Town, North London, the band he formed with schoolmate Richard Thompson (later of Fairport Convention fame), and why he decided to go solo. Along the way he discusses the drug bust that saw him do time in Pentonville prison, biochemistry, his novels and his journey from entertaining gobbing yobs at those dangerously thrilling early punk gigs to literary snobs at the more refined Hay-on-Wye literary festival. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

To mark National Poetry Day, Garry’s guest tonight is one of the brightest and most brilliant of British poets – Salena Godden. Funny, poignant, outrageous and guileless, Salena is every inch a successful 21st century poet. Includes selections from her anthology Fishing In The Aftermath featuring the immortal My Tits Are More Feminist Than Your Tits ( the world premiere exclusive to GBH!), A Letter To An Air Stewardess Found In The Back Of Seat 67 as well as Salena reading from her autobiography, Springfield Road. Salena is a regular renaissance woman – savour! Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

Strong female artists have been a part of pop and rock since the beginning: incredible singers from Etta James and Janice Joplin to Adele and Paramore’s Hayley Williams have wowed the world with their talent. But for many it’s been an uphill battle, fighting exploitation and ingrained attitudes. Joining Garry tonight to discuss this fraught subject are three very different performers – Dominique Olliver, Danie Cox and Kristina Oberzan. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

Mancunian Steve Diggle is the guitarist and singer songwriter with the Buzzcocks… the seminal punk band who infiltrated the charts with brilliant, infectious songs such as ‘Ever Fallen In Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t)’, ‘Promises’ and ‘Harmony In My Head’ – back at a time when punk really did want to subvert mainstream music. Tonight’s show is a tour-de-force of punks on tour. The Buzzcocks opened for the Sex Pistols at Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall, performed at the 100 Club punk festival in 1976 and toured with more recent household names Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Now clean, former Mod Steve speaks with devastating honesty about his experiences with hard drugs. As the Buzzcocks approach their 40th year, this complex and creative musician continues to perform both with them and as a solo artist. Why? It’s still a buzz, cock. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

Garry’s guest tonight Patti Boulaye shot to fame on ITV’s talent show New Faces. But hers is not a normal showbiz story. Nigerian-born Patti lived through one of the worst genocides of the 20th century, growing up during the horrific Biafran civil war where one million people died either in fighting or from famine. Patti emigrated to London at 16, where she became an actress by accident… and a star through her pure talent. On tonight’s GBH, you’ll have an intimate encounter with a huge star… whose an heart is even bigger. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

How are you going to vote in the forthcoming Euro-referendum? Conventional wisdom says that if you’re on the political right wing, you’ll probably vote against staying in the EU, and if you’re to the left, you’ll probably vote in favour of staying. Well, Garry’s guest tonight, Brian Denny of the RMT Union, has got some mind-opening surprises in store for you. “The EU means fascism at home”, says Brian, “and war abroad.” So he’s in Nigel Farage’s camp, then? By no means. UKIP comes across as psychotic, he says – and in reality, UKIP agrees with many of the EU’s positions on nationalisation and labour. Seems like there’s a lot of smoke and mirrors involved in this whole EU debate. As always, Litopia concentrates on bringing you the raw, unvarnished voices of those who don’t normally get a fair crack of the whip from mainstream media. Tonight’s show will make you think long and hard about such things as corporatism and fascism; the Enlightenment and post-rationalism; and what may happen to the concept of democracy if the ideology of globalisation triumphs... Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes The Garry Bushell Hour: A Talk Show The Way It Should Be Done: Raw, Honest And Very, Very Funny!

If you can remember the nineteen eighties... you probably weren’t there. Barry Cain was – and he’s got 27 incredible issues of Flexipop magazine to prove it! It was a publishing phenomenon. Launched in 1980 by Barry and Tim Lott, every issue came with a flexible music disc. Flexipop was an overnight success rapidly reaching sales of more than 100,000... but it only lasted for 27 issues before it folded in 1983. Why? Get out your flares and big hair extensions... tonight, we’re gonna party like it’s 1980! Follow Flexipop on Facebook Buy 77 Sulphate Strip from Amazon Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

There is only one Steven Berkoff. Perhaps there’s only room for one. What happens when an enfant terrible of the British theatre grows up? They become Steven Berkoff, that’s what. Prepare yourself for an encounter like no other. Bad boy Berkoff is every bit as bad as you’ve heard, and then some. But in this searingly honest encounter with Garry, he bares the soul of a great actor. “Great actors are stupid” he spits out, contemptuously. Typical Berkoff. Uncensored, unrestrained, unleashed. The sort of radio you only get right here, on Litopia. Pass it on. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

From The Two Ronnies to Blackadder…from Benny Hill to Marty Feldman… the golden years of British television comedy produced some of the funniest shows and larger-than-life characters the world has ever seen. Garry’s guest tonight COLIN EDMONDS has dominated British television comedy writing for four decades – and he knew them all… the stars, the monsters, the legends and the lunatics! Click to buy from Amazon If names such as Les Dawson, Lilly Savage, Paul Daniels, Julian Clary, Barbara Windsor and – of course – Bob Monkhouse – evoke fond memories… then you’re going to love tonight’s show! Of course, the tradition of bawdy British comedy goes right back to the world of the music hall… from which Colin draws his inspiration for his new novel, Steam, Smoke & Mirrors: with insights and extracts from the secret journals of Professor Artemus More PhD (Cantab) FRS. Set in a Steampunk vision of Victorian Britain Steam, Smoke & Mirrors is “Victorian science fiction”, says Colin: “It’s so sexy! Men in top hats and women in thigh-length boots! Steampunk is on a roll!” >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

Garry is joined in the studio by the award-winning stand-up comedian John Moloney (twice won Best Live Performer at the London Comedy Festival) whose four-part Radio 4 series The John Moloney Show kicks off on Tuesday 12th May. Influenced by Les Dawson, Dave Allen, The Jam and West Ham United, John’s stand-up comedy is a finely crafted blend of wordplay, one-liners and cat molesting. His radio producer says that observing him at work is “like watching a masterclass unfold. He’s like a conductor and the audience is his orchestra.” Born in on the fringes of East London in Ilford, a part of Essex where he says “a man feels over-dressed if he has two ears”, ex-teacher Moloney is now the driving force behind the acclaimed Balham Comedy Festival which returns in July. He has strong and perhaps unexpected views on class, comedy and stadium comedians, and a background in traditional Irish music. The Balham Comedy Festival runs from the 10th to the 18th of July this year... click here for full programme and booking! >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

Garry’s guest tonight is Terry Alderton, one of Britain’s most exciting comedians and a man Frank Skinner dubbed “a flipping genius”… only he didn’t say flipping. Famous for his roles in TV hits such as EastEnders and London’s Burning, Terry’s first love was Southend United Football Club – he played in goal for their youth team – but the stage was where he really scored. Terry’s gift for mimicry made him a rising star in what we used to call old school mainstream comedy. But his originality and risk-taking appealed to young club audiences too and in 1999 he was nominated for a Perrier Award. Prime time Saturday night entertainment shows like Red Alert and The Joy of Text beckoned…he was only weeks away from Masonry and a round of golf with Lynchy and Tarby. But that wasn’t where Alderton wanted his career to go. In 2005 he experienced an epiphany that made his act far from mainstream – he started having conversations on stage with the voices in his head. The new act proved a hit with audiences the world over. Here Terry opens up about comedy, soap opera, his highs and the horrible low that was the worst gig of his life… Info on Terry's latest gigs here >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

In the early 80s, Britain’s pubs and clubs were full of angry, funny, working class poets inspired by punk, reggae and protest. This brave new wave of radical wordsmiths made folk heroes of Seething Wells, Garry Johnson, Ginger John, Attila The Stockbroker, Porky the Poet and one of Garry’s guests today Tim Wells – all of whom will be celebrated next month at the British Library’s Taking Liberties event, ‘Ranting poets, 'zines & Angry Kids of the ’80s’. Tim is also the founding editor of poetry zine Rising and a mean Ska DJ. Who were these funny, chippy backstreet upstarts, what did they want then - and what do poets want today? Joining Garry and Tim in the studio is young, spiky Swindon poet Emily Harrison - Bang Said The Gun’s Poet in Residence and one of eight poets to have their work on the theme of London showcased at Boxpark, Shoreditch. She is currently working on her next collection, confronting a search for love against the stark, yet humanising backdrop of the psychiatric institution. And completing the line-up is Salford’s own JB Barrington, an Amnesty International Poetry Slam winner whose critically rated blue collar protests have won him awards and support slots with Sleaford Mods. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

What does it mean to be a conservative in 2015? Garry’s guest tonight is Professor Roger Scruton, one of England’s leading philosophers and the author of How To Be A Conservative, along with many other provocative and intelligent books which question the dominant left-liberalism of modern Western thought. The son of a working class Mancunian Labour Party supporter, Roger’s contrary views were shaped by the 1968 Paris uprising when he realised that he was on the other side: the side that wanted to preserve rather than destroy. Scruton went on to champion dissidents in Eastern Europe before the fall of Communism, and was banned from Czechoslovakia for his pains. One of the many subjects that concerns the professor more recently is the fate of England. He criticised English voters being excluded from the debate about Scottish independence last year, and has said that given the opportunity he would vote for English independence. His book England an Elegy was a stout defence of English values and virtues. In a free-flowing chat, Garry asks him about intolerance of dissent on university campuses, free speech, the Labour Party, the culture of spin, modern art and the Church of England. And he asks why Scruton has written that the belief in human progress is unreal. Literacy is widespread, we have beaten many diseases, our people are relatively prosperous. Isn’t that progress? Is Roger Scruton really just as pessimist? >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

Without doubt, Jimmy Jones is the biggest British comedy star never to have had his own television series. For five decades, Jimmy has been Britain’s most successful live comedian – performing around 275 sell-out live shows every year. Jimmy’s life in comedy is the subject of Garry’s show tonight – and what a life it has been. Summoned by Michael Jackson to his suite at the Dorchester... swapping gags with Prince Philip... pouring brandy for Princess Margaret out of a teapot... performing for some of Britain's most notorious gangsters... Jimmy is very much in the vulgar but popular tradition of Max Miller... which isn’t surprising, since it was a youthful encounter with Max that inspired him to go into show business! The Beatles. Dudley Moore. Tom Selleck. The Rolling Stones. Iron Maiden. Pink Floyd, Benny Hill. They’re all fans, most have been friends, and Jimmy has hilarious tales to tell. An unforgettable, uncensored show about a true comedy legend – and a little piece of British social history. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

Rhoda Dakar is one of the UK Ska scene’s feistiest characters, making her mark originally with the Bodysnatchers and then with Jerry Dammers in the Special AKA. Rhoda’s talent, intelligence, and heartfelt socialist ideals made her stand out from the pack. Like Dammers, she wanted 2-Tone to mean more than a good time…cue songs like The Boiler and Free Nelson Mandela that added real politics to the movement's in-built message of racial tolerance. Rhoda was a teenage glam rocker caught up in the rush of punk. She was working in a South London unemployment exchange when bassist Nicky Summers saw her skanking to The Selecter and asked her to join her band on the spot. The Bodysnatchers, 2-Tone's first all-woman combo, were signed up quickly and burnt out fast, notching up just one Top 30 hit, Let's Do Rocksteady. Their split was not amicable and a reunion will never be on the cards, but Rhoda recently released an album of Bodysnatchers songs funded by her fans via Pledge Music. Here Garry (who was the first to write about the band in Sounds 35 years ago) talks about old times... good times... Rhoda's future plans and her vision of how to improve Britain's Labour Party. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

From Axl Rose to Sharon Osbourne, legendary rock journalist Mick Wall knows them all. A world-class raconteur, Mick joins Garry tonight for an evening of absolute rock nirvana. Mick’s story is a real-life Almost Famous with balls on. And goats. And many, many other substances. What a long, strange journey it’s been! Stopping-off points include The Police, Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy, Dire Straits, Lou Reed, and many more. Currently, Mick has just concluded an investigation into the death of Jim Morrison, lead vocalist of the Doors. Love Becomes a Funeral Pyre: A Biography of The Doors carefully blows apart all the myths that have accumulated around one of the most popular and influential singer-songwriters in rock history. You will be riveted. Mick’s Kindle-only biography of Pink Floyd, The Endless Journey: 50 Years Of Pink Floyd has also just been published - timed to coincide with The Endless River, the first all-new Pink Floyd album for 20 years. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

He’s a threat to democracy, as dangerous as ISIS, and keeps bees. He’s a freaky dancer, a maestro of the maracas and a brewer of fine old, traditional ale. Oh yes - and the icon that is Bez from the legendary Mancunian band Happy Mondays also wants to be your MP. Garry’s guest tonight is Mark Berry, known universally as Bez. By the late 1980s, the Happy Mondays were a central part of the Manchester music scene and personified rave culture. Musically, the band fused indie pop with house music, funk and northern soul. In terms of style and dress, they crossed hippy fashion and ideals with 1970s glamour. Sartorially and musically, the band helped to encourage the psychedelic revival associated with acid house. Fast forward to now. Bez has won Celebrity Big Brother, twice been declared bankrupt, and is more interested in reality than in the drug-fuelled excesses of previous decades. Today, the parties he attends are more likely to be political than rave. What’s on Bez’s agenda? Fracking, for one thing. The Infrastructure Bill for another. Want to vote for Bez? Here’s the link. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

Football hooligans! The words are enough to strike terror into the hearts of the upstanding middle classes and have entire towns boarded up and quaking with fear. Garry’s guest has more than a casual acquaintance with the subject. Dougie Brimson, a former hooligan himself turned bestselling writer, is an expert. Join us tonight as we explore this controversial topic in depth. With over half a million books sold worldwide, Dougie’s first title was Everywhere We Go - first published in 1996, it remains a cult classic. His first novel, The Crew, held the #1 slot on the soccer charts of both Amazon and iTunes for over two years and was the most downloaded football related title of 2012 and 2013! In 2003 Dougie made the move into screenwriting with It's a Casual Life, a 15-minute film looking at the world of football violence from a Casuals perspective. His first full length feature, the Hollywood funded Green Street starring Elijah Wood, was released in September 2005 and has won numerous awards. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes

Rancid are one of the world's biggest ever punk bands. Formed in California in 1991, they have sold more than four million albums worldwide. Vocalist and guitarist Lars Frederiksen has been with them since 1993, and he also fronts his own streetpunk band The Old Firm Casuals. Son of a Danish mother and an Italian-American father, Lars has devoted his life to his vision of punk and the old ideals of uniting different youth tribes against the system. Tonight, he speaks frankly to Garry about his childhood experiences growing up with gang violence, and how UK rock weekly Sounds helped him survive the US equivalent of borstal. >>>>>> Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Her role as Louise Raymond in BBC's EastEnders brought her stardom and notoriety, but Carol Harrison's true life story has been as gripping as the plot of any television soap opera. Born in London’s East End to a single mum, Carol grew up in abject poverty. It has been said that there are four main routes out of the East End - crime, sport, acting and rock'n'roll. Carol’s life connects three of those (she was once married to the son of one of Britain's best-known gangsters). Garry’s guest tonight opens her heart about her screen love affair with Ross Kemp's character Grant Mitchell... her crazy fans... and the dubious lure of celebrity TV. Yes, it’s a treat for EastEnders aficionados... but there’s a lot more besides... Carol’s life-long love of Mod culture, and especially Steve Marriott the singer with The Small Faces, has prompted her to become a theatrical producer. The stage musical All Or Nothing (which Carol wrote) opens in Worthing on 13th September, and tells the story of this iconic singer who inspired the Brit Pop phenomenon. You can buy tickets to a special star-studded showcase performance of All Or Nothing The MOD Musical, plus live music from Kenney Jones, Chris Farlowe, Mollie Marriot and The Small Fakers on this link. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Iron Maiden are one of the world’s most successful heavy metal bands with more than 85 million albums sales to their name. Dennis Stratton was their guitarist right back in 1979. He played on and co-produced their self-titled debut album and their first three hit singles. Here he chats exclusively with Garry (who wrote Maiden’s authorized biography Running Free) about life on the road in those early days – the laughs and the tension, and his enduring friendship with the band which, like him, was forged in the East End of London. Den is honest about his fall-out with manager Rod Smallwood that lead to his sacking, and the perils of working with their fiery first vocalist Paul ‘The Beast’ Di’Anno. He also talks about his early days on the London rock circuit of the pre-punk seventies, his work with hugely respected rock and blues bands, including Remus Down Boulevard and Praying Mantis, and his unfortunate encounter with Jonathan King. Still a working musician, Dennis is one of the most genuine and talented guitarists in rock today. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

The Specials were one of the most important, vital and influential bands to come out of the post-punk explosion, the band who created the 2-Tone movement. The Coventry-based Ska combo had eight Top Ten hits including ‘A Message To You Rudy’, and the chart-toppers ‘Ghost Town’ and ‘Too Much Too Young.’ And right at the heart of them was Garry’s guest tonight Neville Staple, the roadie who became a star and then went on to have seven more hits with his next band The Fun Boy Three. Although badly hurt in a car crash a couple of years ago, the irrepressible Nev continues to work with his own Neville Staple Band. Tonight, he talks about his 2009 autobiography, Original Rude Boy, the Specials' reunion, the early days of 2-Tone and his dream of taking his brand of English Ska out to Jamaica... Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Tonight's guest on the Garry Bushell Talk Show is the legendary reggae star Roy Ellis, also known as Mr Symarip. Roy is one of the genuine icons of sixties reggae in the UK and his band Symarip were famously the first to target the emerging skinhead youth cult with their best-loved song, 1969’s Skinhead Moonstomp. The young skins were feared by the press and the establishment; but the Jamaican-born star found love and acceptance amongst all those cropped heads, braces and bovver boots. Roy grew up in Balham, south west London, where he boxed at welterweight before breaking into the music business. In this very special show, Roy frankly talks about his life in music, the giants of reggae, his home in Switzerland and the controversial working class cult who made him their very own. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

A few months after he joined the Sex Pistols, Sid Vicious hooked up with beautiful 16-year-old Norwegian Teddie Dahlin who was acting as translator on the band's 1977 Scandinavian mini-tour. Sid, 20, had split up with girlfriend Nancy Spungen at the time, and the smitten bass-player begged Teddie to come back to England with him. If her horrified mother hadn't confiscated her passport, Sid might not have got back with Nancy, and might not consequently have died in New York nineteen months later. The course of punk rock history might have changed... Teddie's book A Vicious Love Affair: Remembering The Real Sid Vicious recalls her fling with the doomed punk icon, born plain John Ritchie in Lewisham, South east London. She has also written Fast Living: Remembering The Real Gary Holton about the suspicious death of the Heavy Metal Kids front-man and TV star. Garry's other guests tonight are Cockney piano player Frankie Boy Flame, and Phil Templar from New York Oi band The Templars. A lively show full of terrific music and punchy discussions, featuring largely brand new tracks by Stiff Little Fingers, Bishops Green, Chris Pope, Rust, Nick Welsh, The Antagonizers, Laurel Aitkin, the Evil Turkeys, The Outfit, Superyob, The Warriors, Jonny Cola & The A Grades, Epic Problem, and Close Shave. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Jim Davidson gives his first major interview since winning Celebrity Big Brother! Cockney comic Jim Davidson was written off as a dinosaur by a younger breed of middle class stand-ups. Falsely suspected of all the "isms", Tory-backing, troops-loving, womanising Jim had been sacked by the BBC and snubbed by TV. And when he was arrested by Operation Yewtree in January 2012... well, it seemed that after four explosive and lucrative decades of fame, Davidson was finally finished. Media commentators queued up to dance on what they saw as the grave of his career. But then in rapid succession the charges were dropped - Jim entered the Celebrity Big Brother house and - against the odds - he won the series with the biggest vote in the show's history! The public rallied behind him and Jim Davidson was reinvented as a star for a new generation. So who is the real Jim Davidson? Is really the monster that the Ben Elton generation of comics tried to make out? On tonight’s Garry Bushell Show, you can meet this comedy legend and make up your own mind. Up close and personal, he opens his heart about the hurt and frustration of his nightmare year - revealing how the Conservative Party let him down... and naming the one politician who rallied behind him. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

This is the time, the time for action! Secret Affair were at the forefront of the 1979 British Mod Revival. Like the Specials, the young Essex band's sound was rooted in sixties music but whereas the Specials were firmly grounded in bluebeat, Secret Affair's took their musical cue from Tamla Motown and Stax. Their cynicism came from direct exposure to major labels. Singer Ian Page's vision of a new street-savvy teens called Glory Boys found a ready audience and their tunes did the rest. As the first wave of punk receded, the new Mod bands braved rock press put-downs to put dance back into the charts. Secret Affair's motto was "gogo, not pogo". Their debut single, 'Time For Action', sold 198,000 copies in the UK alone; 'My World' did just as well and their first three albums went Top Ten. As their latest sell-out UK tour comes to an end, Ian and guitarist Dave Cairns tell Garry about the highs - and the scary lows - of their glory years. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Garry’s guest tonight is Pauline Black - the charismatic leading lady of 2-Tone, the musical movement that combined the anger of punk with the joyous bounce of Jamaican Ska. Arriving after the first waves of punk were receding, the new blue-beat bands put dancing and tunes back into pop. Pauline’s combo The Selecter were one third of 2-Tone’s Holy Trinity along with The Specials and Madness. She was one of the very few women in the male-dominated movement; but as a mixed-race girl growing up in an all-white working class part of Romford, Essex, Pauline was used to being an outsider - and tough enough to confront the sexism as well as the racism of the early 1980s. Today, as a Eton-educated British Prime Minister David Cameron loftily proclaims that “multiculturalism has failed”, maybe we should hear from Pauline – the woman who got both skinheads and rude boys dancing together. Pauline for Prime Minister? Don’t rule it out. Pauline’s memoir Black By Design is available now. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Her voice sounds like an angel caught in a mantrap – or maybe, pulled backwards through a cheese grater. There’s a raw emotional honesty to Brit punk sensation Louise Distras that some might even find too intense... which would be a terrible shame - because on tonight’s GBS, Louise sings four superb live tracks for us from her forthcoming album Dreams From The Factory Floor that are nothing less than unmissable. Bold, brainy and ballsy, Louise Distras represents nothing less than the rebirth of British punk; reinvented for a new generation. Writing her own material, Louise is taking the UK – and soon America - by storm. For a world grown flatulent on the pabulum of Simon Cowell’s X Factor synth-pop, Louise might be far too incandescent, all too real. But you know what? She couldn’t care less. “The X Factor is not a talent show”, says Louise. “It’s a show where people go on a stage and others laugh at them. It celebrates a culture of bullying. And that culture of bullying filters down into everyday life.” You heard Louise here first, on Radio Litopia’s GBS. Pass it on. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Before reggae there was ska - originating in Jamaica in the late 1950s and still a major music genre. Garry’s guest tonight is Nick Welsh - one of the busiest and most prolific ska musicians of all time - it’s fair to say that much of the ska music that has been produced and performed in the UK over the last few decades has Nick’s fingerprints on it somewhere. He’s worked with and produced A-list artists such as Prince Buster, Laurel Aitken, Dave Barker, Rico Rodrigues, and Judge Dread as well as Lee 'Scratch' Perry with whom he worked on the Grammy Award winning album Jamaican ET. He has also been the bassist and songwriter in Bad Manners and The Selecter (helping to shepherd both band's post 2-Tone careers - he wrote Skaville UK). A great show full of fabulous music... and the kind of full-disclosure interview you won’t find on any other station! Links to music in this show: Old Firm Casuals Control Missing Andy The Goddamn Electric The Last Resort Judge Dread Nick Welsh The Straps Booze & Glory The Crunch Johnny Rioux Bad Manners The Gonads Friday Club Foreign Legion Jonny Cola & The A Grades Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

Garry's live guest this evening is the co-founder the seminal anarchist punk band Crass, Steve Ignorant. Always uncompromising, highly influential, often copied but rarely bettered... Crass were simply one of the most important bands to emerge from Thatcher's Britain. And maybe even more relevant now than then. Join us for tales of Thatchergate, direct action, penis envy and situationism. Doesn't get better than that, does it? Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

He's spiky, no question. "I'm just a rude f$!%er, I suppose", sighs Garry's guest James Delingpole. "I've reached the point where I don't give a f$!% what I say any more, as long as I believe it to be true. Some of my editors find this terrifying." Bête noire of the Met Office, tilter at wind farms, and tormentor of the University of East Anglia... James is both more complicated and more surprising than you would ever have expected. From Glastonbury ("my rosebud") to Greenpeace ("no less cynical than Exxon") via Led Zeppelin, David Icke, Ecstasy and Viagra... this is the James Delingpole you never knew about - until Garry met Jimmy, that is. So what do you think? Have your views on JD changed? Let us know in the comments section, here. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

The Lurkers were one of the greatest and most seminal of English punk rock groups, and tonight, Garry's guest is Pete "Manic Esso" Haynes, their drummer and creator of the of the band's name. Constantly compared to The Ramones, The Lurkers were not always loved by the Punk Rock cognoscenti. No pretensions, no frills, no hype - just pure rock'n'roll. "We didn't really want to remain outsiders", says Pete. "We tried to be friendly, but we just weren't hip. Our songs were an outlet for repressed emotions - maybe we should have been playing Broadmoor [high-security psychiatric hospital] rather than the Roxy...!" Today, Pete writes plays & books, his most recent being MALAYAN SWING. And as you'll hear in this frequently hilarious programme, Pete's razor wit and searing powers of observation have only sharpened since his punk days. So how does Pete feel about comparisons to The Clash - cleverly marketed as "The Only Band That Matters" by CBS, their record label? "I don't really need anyone in a pop group telling me about how the world is run", Pete growls. "Rock'n'roll is not some fake 8-stone bloke talking about breaking the system down, with a manager and his birds all carrying attaché cases. And then they all go off and eat in a bloody organic French restaurant. To me, it's as fake as The Monkees!" So what's the difference between The Clash and The Monkees? Pete smiles. "The Monkees had better songs", he grins. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

On this Saint George's Day, Garry welcomes Robin Tilbrook, chairman of The English Democrats, and poses the question - what exactly does it mean to be English? And just how close is patriotism to nationalism - to racism? It's a minefield out there! As always, Garry dispenses with the niceties of Political Correctness in the pursuit of truth. And justice. And the English way. A great, thought-provoking show - pass the link on! And in the meantime, join in the discussion on the website. Download the show as mp3 file Subscribe in iTunes Be a wonderful human being and support us with a donation

John King will forever be recognized for his debut novel The Football Factory - an instant word-of-mouth success. Heralded as a ‘state of the nation’ novel by some reviewers, others criticized its aversion to political correctness. Football fans and the wider public made it a best-seller, with more than 250,000 copies sold in the UK to date. Filmed by director Nick Love, starring Danny Dyer and Dudley Sutton, the presence of a number of known Chelsea hooligans among the film's extras caused great excitement in the media. Join us for a fascinating conversation between Garry and John, whose interests are far and wide... football (obviously), music (of course) but also John's publishing company, London Books, which is dedicated to both today's emerging authors and the marginalized fiction of London’s forgotten working-class writing. And in the meantime, join in the discussion on the website.

He's Britain's most controversial politician, and he tells it like it is. David Cameron? On Botox! The BBC's chairman Chris Patten? An old toad who should be abolished! And please don't get him started on immigration. Wait a minute - this is The Garry Bushell Show! The place where political correctness goes to die! Yes - we can talk about immigration - and every other topic that mainstream media ignores today. Garry will go there. And he's got the scalps to prove it. Join us for this take-no-hostages one-one-one with Garry and Nigel Farage, the boss of UKIP. UKIP now has a crucial 16% of the national vote, and will almost certainly decide the outcome of Britain's next election. Love him or hate him, you've never met a politician like him. Join us every couple of weeks right here for free thinking and free speech. And in the meantime, join in the discussion on the website.