Brian Jacques had a prolific radio career as a broadcaster on BBC Radio Merseyside. Beginning in the 1970s and expanding into the 1980s with his principal show, Jakestown, Jacques was on the Liverpool air waves for many decades, and became a local celebrity early on.
As a local media outlet, BBC Radio Merseyside developed promotional materials and opportunities for its on-air DJ talent, and Brian Jacques was certainly a part of that.
BBC Merseyside offered posters and cards featuring their DJs, and we've found a few of Brian's from back in the day. While we're not 100% certain what time period the items you'll see in the image above came from, we believe that they are circa 1980s and 1990s.
"95.8 FM BBC Radio Merseyside Magazine" was a publication released seasonally by BBC Merseyside, and we're not sure if it's still in production. However, we have a copy because Redwall fan Christine sent us the Winter 2002 - 2003 edition to us a while back, and we're thankful for that.
This version of the official magazine featured a 2-page article on Brian Jacques, which contained the biography fans have come to be familiar with, as well as a list of Redwall books published up through 2001.
While not an official BBC Merseyside distribution, Pantosfinx '81 was a local Liverpool student comedy magazine that featured an introduction from Brian Jacques, crediting him as a BBC Radio Merseyside personality. As a well-known local celebrity and comedian of the era, Jacques' guest introduction was probably a big get for the students, and he cheered on their efforts in it.
It's not a marketing material per se, but It's Sound: A Celebration of Radio Merseyside is a 1997 paperback book that chronicles the history of BBC Merseyside. Brian Jacques appears with other presenters in a cartoon on the back cover (row 3), and is featured on pages 62-63 for the year 1986 - highlighted for the publication of Redwall.
That covers it for this edition of Redwall Collectors Community. We'll be back with more soon!
We'll close out with Brian Jacques' traditional opening to Jakestown.
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