Tributes have flooded in following the death of Jenny Collins, a founding member of BBC Radio Merseyside. Collins was part of the team that launched the station at 12:30pm on November 22, 1967, dedicating many years to its success.
Collins began her career as a young assistant at what was one of three regional stations set up by the BBC at the time, following a campaign by veteran war reporter Frank Gillard. As the first programme aired, Collins took excited phone calls from listeners, including 21-year-old Eva Tunnicliffe, who requested a Cliff Richard track.
She went on to present and produce a programme for younger listeners called Junior Spin, which featured a teenage Janice Long, who later joined the team as an assistant. Playwright Alan Bleasdale got his first writing break on the station, along with other aspiring poets and authors featured in the Write Now programme, which Collins produced for two decades.
While producing the station’s Jazz Panorama programme, Collins met and married its presenter, Steve Voce, a well-respected jazz critic and broadcaster who died in 2023. BBC producer Estelle Condliffe paid tribute, calling Collins a “lovely, elegant, super professional lady.” Former broadcaster Linda McDermott described her as a “calm, efficient, charming presence” who gave aspiring writers a chance on Write Now.
