Barcelona

Barcelona (English /bɑrsɨˈloʊnə/, Catalan: [bərsəˈɫonə], Spanish: [barθeˈlona]) is the capital city of the autonomous community of Catalonia in Spain, and its 2nd largest city, with a population of 1.6 million within its administrative limits. Its urban area extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of around 4.5 million people, being the sixth-most populous urban area in the European Union after Paris, London, the Ruhr, Madrid and Milan. About five million people live in the Barcelona metropolitan area. It is the largest metropolis on the Mediterranean Sea, located on the coast between the mouths of the rivers Llobregat and Besòs, and bounded to the west by the Serra de Collserola mountain range, the tallest peak of which is 512 metres (1,680 ft) high.

Links With Peel
The Peel show first visited Barcelona for the Sonar Festival in 2001, returning each year until 2004. Peel regularly drove from his home in Peel Acres to Barcelona each year due to his fear of being on aeroplanes. On 19 June 2001, Peel explained how he was tired coming back from Barcelona and how a bunch of French school girls made him and his wife Sheila miserable on the ferry from Caen to Portsmouth:


 * I have to admit that I'm a very tired lad, cos I've driven up from Barcelona in two days, spurred on all the way of course by the thought of tonight's Belle and Sebastian session, their first in heaven only knows how long. We've been waiting for this for a couple of years or more. The first tune will be coming up in about three or four minutes time, I think. As I say, we've driven up from Barcelona in a couple of days. This morning we were up at quarter to five to catch the ferry from Caen to Portsmouth. Had to endure the traditional ordeal by French schoolchildren on the ferry, about a hundred of them - as hateful a group of people as I've ever encountered in all of my life! The Pig and I demonstrated the immovability that you'd associate with the Glorious Glosters of the Imjin River. We thought, we're not going to be driven out of here by these people, so we just sat there and they gave us hell, let me tell you. Anyway, Barcelona? Bright lights, big city? No question.

The 21 June 2001 show broadcasted Peel's first Sonar Festival and his travelogue experience visiting record shops and interviewing Dave Tarrida, owner of the Tresor label and Carl Cox, a house music DJ. Peel also performed a DJ set while he was there. On 26 June 2001, Peel mentioned  517 CDs had reportedly been delivered to the show's office during the 10 days that the production team were in Barcelona. Amongst these was the new EP ('Editor's Recommendation') from show favourites Half Man Half Biscuit, which got its first play of the summer.

On 13 June 2002 Peel was live on air in Barcelona not on his own show, but on the OneWorld programme following his show on BBC Radio One. The following year, BBC Radio One allowed Peel to have a four hour show under the Sonar / One World Special, where Peel played some of the artist performances from Barcelona on 12 June 2003. A year later, the summer of the European Football Championships started and Peel seemed to be concentrating on the England v Portugal quarter finals rather than presenting his show on 24 June 2004.

Featured Shows

 * 21 June 2001: John Peel's live set at Sonar
 * 02 July 2002: DJ Rupture Live at Sonar
 * 19 June 2003: Live Set from Appliance and T. Raumschmiere at Sonar.
 * 17 June 2004: Live Set from Fibla, Rec Overflow, Bullitt, Sesam-O, Sofus Forberg, Manuvers, V8, Streis and Soarse Spoke at Sonar.