Peel with his glass of red wine at Brighton in 2004 with wife Sheila Ravenscroft and assistant radio producer Hermeet.
Hermeet Chadha (born 1978) is a Scottish radio producer, who has produced many shows on various radio stations including BBC Radio One, Radio Two, Radio Six Music, Channel Four Radio and Diesel U Music Radio. Apart from radio producing, he has also produced, edited and directed videos for BBC Radio Six Music and Diesel U Music Radio. Also Hermeet has been involved in the London Events Committee for the Radio Academy producing events for them. Currently Hermeet is a producer at BBC 1Xtra and Three Stree Media.
Links To Peel
Hermeet started working for the BBC as an assistant producer in September 2002 producing shows for John Peel, Annie Nightingale, Rob Da Bank, Zane Lowe, Steve Lamacq, Vernon Kaye, Fabio and Grooverider whilst at Radio 1. On Peel's show, Hermeet was instrumental in getting lots of new and diverse music played including Dubstep well before this genre was mainstream. The relationship between the two men involved Hermeet giving record presents to Peel on numerous occasions and sometimes Hermeet getting admonished for amongst items such as wolf whistling Mary Anne Hobbs on 13 January 2004 and farting in the studio before Peel's show went on air on 11 May 2004.
After Peel's death, Hermeet paid the following tribute on the BBC Keeping It Peel website: [1]
"It's an almost impossible task to sum up in a few words what John meant to me. It's also difficult to write something about John without sounding a little soft as it's not something I would have said to him in person for fear of making the man blush or take the piss out of me for being so wet.
To me John was a bit like a father, a bit like a best friend and a bit like John Peel off the radio. Before John died no one as close to me had actually died and it was exceptional to share the grief with half the country and beyond. However, in some strange way I felt lucky because I had the great fortune of being his assistant on his Radio 1 Show and John had invited me into his family home. Not one day passes without me recalling to myself John's infinite wisdom for life and music, his idiosyncratic behaviour, his grumpiness, his happiness and most of all his ability to set the standard and rules. I always looked up to John because he was the only person I knew who I genuinely believed was completely happy with his life. He had a great job which he loved, a magnificent family who not only adored him but who he in equal measure adored back AND (to top it all off) he had the most amazing record collection one could possibly imagine.
From the day I started working with John he was been my source of inspiration and guidance. He would constantly tell us things about music, politics and how to get on in life. Some of his advice I've heeded and some I've heeded a little too late! What's more amazing is that I'm still learning from the man, only today I came across The Sadistic Mika Band from an old John Peel tape and the first thing I did was go to HMV to buy a copy of their record! John made over 15,000 hours of programmes for Radio 1 and no two shows were the same. Radio 1 could easily repeat all of his shows seven days a week for the next 37 years and no one would be any the wiser as the music still sounds as fresh and as exciting as it did then.
I miss John, horribly so. He wasn't my Dad or anything; he was my work mate and my friend. He was also the coolest guy at Radio 1 so it was a bit like hanging about with the coolest guy at school. He was the person who looked out for you and he was also the person who made sure that you were always humble. For someone as famous as John, being humble is a rare trait but it was that what made the man. Keep on Keeping It Peel."