Derek Webster (radio presenter)

Webster presented as a volunteer at Whiston Hospital Radio from 1977, learning presentation and production skills.^[3] Along with friends David Howard and Paul Loney he wrote and produced the children's radio serial Captain Flash which was broadcast on the popular Billy Butler morning show on BBC Radio Merseyside in 1978.

Webster's first professional radio job was as a presenter at Red Rose Radio in Lancashire from 1982 until 1990; he presented late nights and then the Early Show, before moving to mid mornings on Red Rose Gold 999AM in 1990. Also presenting live daily travel reports from an aeroplane flying out of Blackpool Airport.^[4]

He was then a presenter at Radio City Gold, which was a sister station to Radio City in Liverpool, where he presented the breakfast show in 1993.^[5]

In 1994 Webster joined the launch team at North West regional station Jazz FM as Head Of Music and presenting a daily show.

Webster returned to Lancashire's Red Rose Gold 999AM in 1995 as Head Of Presentation and presenter of the mid morning show from 1995 to 1997, when he joined 96.9 The Bay in Lancaster, presenting mid mornings.

He presented the mid morning show and was Head Of Music at North West of England regional station Century 105 from its launch^[6] in 1998. He said that at the station's launch working with John Myers, "[i]t felt like I was in ‘Pirates Of The Caribbean’ at the start of another big adventure."^[6] In 1999, he was still presenting at the station.^[7]

In 2000 Webster joined the launch team at East Lancashire radio station 2BR where he presented the breakfast show.

In 2004, Webster joined 100.4 Smooth Radio, now known as Smooth Radio North West,;^[8][3] His show on 100.4 Smooth Radio started at 6pm.^[8]

He presented a weekday overnight show nationally on Smooth Radio, finishing in 2013.

From 2013 until 2014, Webster presented a Sunday evening programme on BBC Radio Cumbria.^[9] He has sat in for other presenters on BBC Local Radio including BBC Radio Lancashire and BBC Radio York.

Webster co-produced with Ashley Byrne a BBC Radio 2 documentary series, The Story of the Light, about the BBC's Light Programme, which was broadcast in 2017.^[10]

In 2020, he was teaching students how to make radio content at Burnley College.^[11] where he ran the student radio station. Also in 2020, he began presenting travel news bulletins for the company Radio Travel News.^[12]

In 2021 Webster joined the team at Boom Radio ,^[1] a radio station which is music-based and aimed at the Baby Boom generation,^[13] He currently presents on four weekday mornings per week from midnight until 2am. Also on Boom Radio's sister station Boom Light weekdays from 9am until midday, where he manages the day to day running of the station.^[1] Boom Radio is receivable in most places in the United Kingdom on DAB+.^[14] In 2022, Webster was featured in Great British Life magazine as a famous person residing in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire.^[15]

Webster's role in radio has included interviewing many famous people at Southport Theatre, and in 2017 a special programme was broadcast on Sandgrounder Radio, at which Webster was working at the time, which looked at Webster's interviews at the theatre.^[16]

As of 2022, Webster had lived in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire for a decade.^[15]