Legendary radio presenter John Peel died suddenly of a heart attack last night whilst on holiday with his wife in Peru. He was 65.

Peel was Radio 1’s longest serving DJ after a career in radio which spanned 4 decades. His show, latterly broadcast from his home, Peel Acres, in Suffolk was hugely popular not only due to the wealth of new and obscure music he managed to find but also his likeable, friendly manner and tendency to make mistakes. In addition to this, he also presented magazine show Home Truths on Radio 4 as well as shows on the BBC World Service and on Radio Eins in Germany.

Radio 1 controller Andy Parfitt said, “John Peel was a broadcasting legend. I am deeply saddened by his death as are all who work at Radio 1. Hopeful bands all over the world sent their demo tapes to John knowing that he really cared. His commitment and passion for new music only grew stronger over the years. He will be hugely missed.”

John was born John Robert Parker Ravenscroft in 1939 in Heswall, near Chester. His first stint in radio came in 1962 at WRR in Dallas, Texas and for the next three years he moved around various radio stations in America. He returned to England in 1967 to work for the offshore pirate radio station Radio London where he first adopted the name John Peel. Radio London closed in August 1967 when new legislation made the offshore broadcasters illegal, and Peel joined the BBC’s new pop music station, Radio 1, as one of its original DJ’s.

At Radio 1 John established himself with the late night programme, Top Gear. He made his name by being the first DJ to give exposure to punk, reggae and hip hop and it was this ear for new and exciting music which gained him his popularity, prompting legions of musicians from around the world to record sessions (a hang up from the days when the Musicians Union restricted the amount of music the station could broadcast from records) for his Radio 1 show. Most were recorded at the BBC’s Maida Vale studios but some came from performances in the Peel Acres living room (notably a Belle & Sebastian session where, due to space constraints, keyboard player Chris Geddes had to set himself up in the bathroom!).

Peel has received many awards recognising his contribution to music and radio, including an OBE in 1998, the Sony Gold award, marking an outstanding contribution to radio over 35 years, in 2002 and a number of honorary degrees: MA (University of East Anglia) Doctorates (Polytechnic University of East Anglia and Sheffield Hallam University), Hon. Degrees (Liverpool University, Open University, Portsmouth University, Bradford University) and a Fellowship (John Moores University Liverpool).

He was the first ever British DJ to play a song twice in a row (his favourite single of all time, Teenage Kicks by The Undertones) and was unapologetic in his love of The Fall and Liverpool FC.

In April 2003 publishing company Transworld signed a deal worth £1.6 million for his autobiography. The book remains unpublished.

John is survived by his wife, Sheila, and their children, William, Alexandra, Thomas and Florence. Our thoughts are with them.

In celebration of the great man’s life, we urge you to find recordings of his shows and play The John Peel Sweet Eating Game.