John Peel

John Peel (1939-2004, real name John Ravenscroft) was a Radio One DJ best known for his evening radio show which specialised in alternative music, championing many bands of the punk and post-punk era.

Links to The Human League
Peel was one of the first radio DJs to promote The Human League and invited them to record a session for his programme in August 1978. He was also one of the first to play singles such as Being Boiled, Empire State Human and The Dignity of Labour EP, and regularly featured tracks from Reproduction, Travelogue and the Holiday '80 EP when they were issued. He still expressed interest in the group after the split and played both Boys and Girls and the B-side Tom Baker on his show when the single was issued in early 1981 as well as The Sound of the Crowd and Love Action (I Believe in Love). From the post-split Dare album he featured the more left-field tracks Get Carter and I Am the Law.

While standing in for Jackie Brambles on a Radio One lunchtime show in 1993 Peel played "Don't You Want Me" commenting " 'This was a number 1 in 1981 when I was about, ooh, about that high and as pretty as a picture."