Left to right : The Original Johnny & The Strollers - The Strollers as a Trio - The Netherlands (Dutch) Johnny & The Strollers

IT GIVES ME GREAT PLEASURE TO WRITE A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE BBC CAREER​ OF A TALENTED AND
VERY RESPECTED ARTIST WHOM I AM PROUD TO CALL MY FRIEND AS WELL AS ONE OF MY TOP RECORDING ARTISTS.
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JOHNNY HAS HAD A GLITTERING CAREER BOTH IN THE WORLD OF ENTERTAINMENT AND IN BUSINESS.

IN 1983 THE BBC OPENED UP A BRAND NEW STATE OF THE ART BROADCASTING STUDIO IN EXETER. THEY CONTACTED JOHNNY RAMONE AND INVITED HIM TO PRESENT THE VERY FIRST MUSICAL PROGRAMME TO BE BROADCAST FROM THAT STUDIO.

THE PROGRAMME WAS ''HITS AND HEADLINES'' AND FEATURED THE GREATEST HITS AND MUSICAL MEMORIES OF THE DECADES OF POPULAR MUSIC.

JOHNNY PROVED TO BE HUGELY POPULAR WITH THE LISTENERS WITH HIS EASY RELAXED STYLE AND AMAZING KNOWLEDGE OF POP MUSIC. HIS LISTENERS GREW OVER THE INITIAL SIX WEEK RUN OF THE SERIES TO SUCH AN EXTENT THAT IT WAS EXTENDED. IN FACT IT RAN FOR  OVER SEVEN AND A HALF YEARS WITH JOHNNY AT THE HELM. DURING THIS TIME HE PRODUCED, SCRIPTED, RESEARCHED AND DROVE HIS OWN STUDIO TWIN DECKS IN THE BBC EXETER STUDIOS.

HIS PROGRAMME INCLUDED A POPULAR QUESTIONS AND PHONE IN SESSION IN WHICH LISTENERS WERE INVITED TO ANSWER QUIZ QUESTIONS TO WIN PRIZES AND TO CHAT WITH JOHNNY. HIS MAIN SUPPORT AT BBC RADIO DEVON WAS GIVEN BY HIS LONG TIME FRIEND JOHN LILLEY.

DURING THE YEARS WITH THE BBC JOHNNY ALSO CAME UP TRUMPS WITH OTHER MASSIVELY SUCCESSFUL PROGRAMMES SUCH AS ''SOUNDS COUNTRY''. THE PROGRAMME  EMBRACED THE WORLD OF COUNTRY MUSIC, IN WHICH JOHNNY WAS STEEPED IN ACTUAL HISTORY AS HIS GREAT UNCLE HENRY (WHITTER) WAS THE WRITER AND PERFORMER OF ONE OF COUNTRY MUSIC'S FIRST ONE MILLION RECORD SELLERS - THE SONG BEING ''WRECK OF THE 'OL 97''. ANOTHER POPULAR SUCCESS WITH THOUSANDS OF WEST COUNTRY LISTENERS WAS ''A SUMMER SUNDAY WITH JOHNNY RAMONE''  

DURING HIS BBC YEARS A LEADING AMERICAN COUNTRY MUSIC RECORD PRODUCER IN NASHVILLE WHILST ON A VISIT TO THE UK HEARD JOHNNY'S ''SOUNDS COUNTRY'' BBC RADIO PROGRAMMES. HER NAME WAS PATTY PARKER, ONE OF NASHVILLE'S MOST RESPECTED AND SUCCESSFUL PRODUCERS OF COUNTRY MUSIC.

PATTY INVITED JOHNNY TO RECORD FOR THE COMSTOCK RECORD LABEL IN THE TOM T. HALL RECORDING STUDIOS IN NASHVILLE TENNESSEE. SO JOHNNY HAD HIS FIRST AMERICAN COUNTRY MUSIC RECORDING CONTRACT - LONG OVERDUE IN MY OPINION - BUT AT LAST HE WAS ON THE WAY TO WHERE HE RIGHTFULLY BELONGED, AS A SUCCESSFUL COUNTRY MUSIC PERFORMER.

THE TWO ORIGINAL SINGLES JOHNNY RECORDED WERE ''AS LONG AS YOU LOVE ME'' AND ''WHERE DID I GO RIGHT''. BOTH SONGS NOT ONLY WENT NATIONWIDE IN THE USA AND CANADA AIR PLAY CHARTS BUT IN ADDITION WERE SOON BEING PLAYED WORLDWIDE - INCLUDING ON BBC RADIO 2 IN THE UK. JOHNNY HAD 'ARRIVED' AS A COUNTRY MUSIC STAR AND SINCE THEN HE HAS NEVER LOOKED BACK. HE IS A CREDIT TO OUR COMPANY AND TO THE MEMORIES OF HIS PARENTS WHO HAD ALWAYS SUPPORTED HIS 'DREAM' OF RECORDING ON AN AMERICAN LABEL IN THE HOME OF COUNTRY MUSIC - NASHVILLE TENNESSEE.

SINCE THEN JOHNNY HAS HAD AN AMAZING RESURGENCE IN HIS MUSIC AND TO DATE HIS RECORDINGS ARE BEING PLAYED AND ENJOYED BY OVER  *** 65 MILLION FANS *** ON THE INTERNET.

JOHN HILEY-PAYNE
PERSONAL MANAGER OF JOHNNY RAMONE
HEAD OF ARTIST PROMOTION A.I.M. RECORDS 

*** Updated total since the late, and sadly missed, John Hiley-Payne's kind testimonial was written. *** 

Johnny Ramone had a hugely successful series of shows with BBC Radio Devon between 1983 and 1990. However that was not Johnny's only time spent with Radio Shows and the BBC.

In the 1950's whilst serving with the RAF in 2nd T.A.F. Germany, he was invited by Bill Crozier (who had served on the same RAF Station Bruggen Germany as Johnny ), and BFN Producer Alistair McDougall, to host his own Radio Show with the British Forces Network (BFN) out of Cologne (Koln) in Germany. This popular radio show was called MUSICAL COCKTAIL where he played songs requested by serving members of the B.A.O.R and R.A.F.
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Johnny being congratulated on the successes of his two premier Nashville Country Music recordings, As Long As You Love Me, and Where Did I Go Right, by Roger Whittaker. They both rose to top 5 positions in the American RADIO AIRPLAY charts.
Roger invited Johnny to his (Roger's) celebration of 30 years in the recording business.