Hey Hi Hello: Five Decades of Pop Culture from Britain's First Female DJ

by Annie Nightingale

Hey Hi Hello is a greeting we have all become familiar with, as Annie Nightingale cues up another show on Radio One. Always in tune with the nation's taste, yet effortlessly one step ahead for more than five decades, in this book Annie digs deep into her crate of memories, experiences and encounters to deliver an account of a life lived on the frontiers of pop cultural innovation.

As a dj and broadcaster on radio, tv and the live music scene, Annie has been an invigorating and necessarily disruptive force, working within the establishment but never playing by the rules. She walked in the door at Radio One as a rebel, its first female broadcaster, in 1970. Fifty years later she became the station's first CBE in the New Year's Honours List; still a vital force in British music, a dj and tastemaker who commands the respect of artists, listeners and peers across the world.

Hey Hi Hello tells the story of those early, intimidating days at Radio One, the Ground Zero moment of punk and the epiphanies that arrived in the late 80s with the arrival of acid house and the Second Summer of Love. It includes faithfully reproduced and never before seen encounters with Bob Marley, Marc Bolan, The Beatles and bang-up-to-date interviews with Little Simz and Billie Eilish.

Funny, warm and candid to a fault, Annie Nightingale's memoir is driven by the righteous energy of discovery and passion for music. It is a portrait of an artist without whom the past fifty years of British culture would have looked very different indeed.

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Memoir

400 pages, Hardcover

Published March 23, 2021

About the author

Veteran British DJ, with a focus on electronic music.

Reviews

[Jo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Such lazy writing! A lot of the book was made up of transcripts of interviews she'd done on the radio or pieces lifted from columns she'd written in the press. Annie comes across as arrogant, hammering home how great she is at discovering new music and/or finding the next biggest thing. I was most disappointed that the chapters devoted to talented and much-loved artists and DJs like David Bowie or John Peel consisted of just a couple of pages and a brief mention of what she'd written about them following their deaths. There was nothing insightful or pleasurable to read here. I struggled to finish the book.

[Michael Legge · Rating 2 out of 5]

Shame he dies in the end.

[Sophie Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

A pretty important book for anyone interested in radio and Pop culture in Britain, documented by Britain’s first female DJ and covering everything from The Beatles in the 60s/70s, to the Acid House revolution of the 90s, to Billie Eilish and Pop today. Annie offers a unique perspective on the industry and loads of funny anecdotes from her 50+ years within it - £15 well-spent for the hardback because this is now my Bible for radio-presenting advice and cool music facts

[Colin Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annie Nightingale is the longest serving DJ on Radio 1. She started in 1970 just 3 years after it opened and has survived countless changes and seen many others come and go. As she relates in the book she fought against the sexism that wouldn't allow a woman to broadcast on the network for its first 3 years (and even after she started broadcasting it was another 14 years before another female DJ joined Radio 1) Now amazingly at 80 years old she still broadcasts a weekly show on a radio station whose target audience is 15-29 (its been many years after I left Radio 1 behind, as I'm not the target audience by a long way) she manages this by not living in the past but embracing new music and styles. The music she plays has changed through the years. She now plays dance music, electronic and breakbeats. Her longevity is down to her passion for music of many different genres throughout the years and also the fact she has ways chosen to broadcast after hours when she isn't controlled by the daytime play-lists

This book is a memoir of her 50 plus years as a broadcaster and music journalist. Its a mixture of her memories of the people she met from the Beatles, Bob Marley, though to Primal Scream and Karl Hyde of Underworld along with many others in between.

People of a certain age will remember with fondness her request show that run on Sunday evenings in the 80s and early 90s to which she devotes a couple of chapters to, It was required listening. Her style evolved and the advent of Acid House had a major impact on her along with the aforementioned Primal Scream.

The chapters are a bit of a mixture, they aren't in chronological order but each one will take a subject, band or person some of them are simply verbatim interviews with the people in question, others are her experiences.

Annie has always been a great broadcaster and while her Radio 1 show no longer is to my taste her passion for the music she plays and has been involved in through the years shines through.

A great read for music lovers particularly and anyone who has fond memories of listening to any of Annie's shows from any time in the last 50 years.

[Tim Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Hey, Hi, Hello, Annie Nightingale delivers a pulsating and deeply personal memoir that mirrors the vibrant chaos of the music world she’s helped shape for over five decades. As BBC Radio 1’s first female DJ, Nightingale recounts her trailblazing journey with unfiltered honesty and wit, blending iconic anecdotes with reflections on perseverance in a male-dominated industry. From her early days in radio and journalism to her intimate encounters with everyone from David Bowie to The Chemical Brothers, Nightingale captures the electrifying evolution of music culture through her distinct, no-nonsense lens. Her voice is as rebellious on the page as it is on the airwaves—sharp, passionate, and full of rhythm.

What makes Hey, Hi, Hello stand out isn’t just its glittering cast of music legends or behind-the-scenes stories, but Nightingale’s unwavering spirit and relentless curiosity. Her memoir reads less like a nostalgic diary and more like a manifesto for anyone determined to defy convention and stay true to their passions. The book is a celebration of resilience, reinvention, and the ever-changing soundtrack of our lives. For readers who crave an authentic insider’s view of British pop culture—delivered with punk energy and a DJ’s tempo—this memoir is both a history lesson and a love letter to the power of sound.

[Jade Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was gifted to me as a music nerd and journalism graduate. I do wish I’d got around to reading it a little sooner, as Annie has now sadly passed away which added a tinge of sadness, but better later than never. I really admire her steely determination to break into a sexist industry and thrive in the position once she did become Radio 1’s first female DJ, always keeping an eye out for newer talent too - see chapters on current critical darlings Billie Eilish and Little Simz. Annie comes across brilliantly and I would’ve liked to have found out even more about her. Each chapter, often short, focuses on a different event or celebrity in her world. I wasn’t the biggest fan of this style in all honesty, especially when a whole chapter would be dedicated to a transcript, but there are still interesting anecdotes to be found and I’ve come away really admiring her, what a great loss to the broadcasting world.

[Harry Burnside · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really pleased when i found a signed copy of this book as I always liked Annie until she got herself into playing rave and techno music and such tuneless stuff (my age talking)
I always enjoyed the fact that she followed John Peel's path of playing the stuff she wanted to play rather than just playlist set down by someone else. The book was good for me while she was talking about the era of music between the 60's to the 90's.
I did find out that Bob Marley was an apprentice Welder before he took up music full time.
She talked a lot about the Beatles but not much about the Stones. Oh well.
She is now 80 but still going strong. Lang Mae her Lum Reek.

[Keith Astbury · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm. This was disappointing. I suppose I was expecting Annie's autobiography, but...well I'm not sure what this was. A bit of a mish mash of part biog (with Annie reminding us over and over again that she was the first female DJ at Radio One) with various recollections and interviews with Billie Eilish and members of Underworld and Primal Scream. Entertaining enough at times, but I expected better x

[Mark Farley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating insights from 50 plus years from this legend of the airwaves. From The Beatles to Billie Eilish, Nightingale has championed and cultivated new British to a point that is only rivaled by the great John Peel. A true pioneer in many fields of broadcasting, subcultures and genres. It really is a cracking read.

[Andy Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading this memoir by Annie Nightingale. She was the soundtrack to my 1980s youth with her Sunday evening show on Radio 1, playing some of the best music that decade had to offer. Her stints on The Old Grey Whistle Test were equally excellent and this book records her time in broadcasting with enthusiastic passion and great knowledge. She’ll be much missed.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

wonderful book full of musings about carreer in the dj and radio industry and many interviews with musicians such as karl hyde, the streets, little simz, billie ellish and others.. very interesting read

[Alfred Nobile · Rating 2 out of 5]

What started of as a interesting sadly degenerated into transcripts of interviews Annie has done. Would liked to have learned more about the woman herself.

[Neil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice selection of anecdotes from the veteran British DJ from across her career. Well worth a read.

[Dominic Roche · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cannot finish this. It’s all rather bitty and self-congratulatory.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

The interviews were the best part..insightful.
A pioneer old Annie

[Erin Bacon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Annie Nightingale the GOAT!