LONDON — Former BBC Radio DJ Andy Kershaw, 66, is now unable to walk after receiving a cancer diagnosis affecting his spine last August.
A Broadcast Legend Faces a New Battle
The beloved radio personality is undergoing treatment and remains optimistic, even with a wry outlook on outliving some controversial figures.
- Kershaw is receiving chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and physiotherapy.
- Despite his health challenges, he plans to return to podcasting.
- The broadcaster previously faced public struggles with infidelity and legal issues.
- Kershaw’s career spans decades, from Radio 1 to Live Aid coverage.
Kershaw’s friend and podcast producer, Peter Everett, shared the news on Facebook this week, detailing the presenter’s treatment which includes chemotherapy, radiotherapy, physiotherapy, and “a lot of scans and painkillers.” Despite the difficult prognosis, Kershaw remains in good spirits.
What is Andy Kershaw’s current condition? Kershaw has been diagnosed with cancer affecting his spine, which has left him unable to walk, and is currently undergoing extensive treatment.
“I am in good spirits, feeling very positive and planning another podcast,” Kershaw said in a message relayed by Everett. He added with characteristic humor, “I am determined not to die before Benjamin Netanyahu, Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump and Ant’n’Dec. That should keep me going for a while.”
Everett noted that Kershaw deeply appreciates the outpouring of support and well wishes he has received.
Born in Rochdale, Kershaw, brother to fellow broadcaster Liz Kershaw, developed a passion for music early on, citing artists like Bob Dylan as influences. He initially pursued journalism at university before finding his calling in radio.
Kershaw’s broadcasting career took off in 1984 after moving to London, where he worked as a roadie and driver for singer-songwriter Billy Bragg. This led to a presenting role on BBC 2’s Whistle Test, and subsequently, his own show on Radio 1 in 1985, a platform he maintained for 15 years.
His career path wasn’t without turbulence. He was dismissed from Radio 1, as his website states, “to be replaced by another dance music programme.” He continued at Radio 3 and also created travel documentaries for Channel 4.
Kershaw’s personal life became public fodder in 2008 following the end of his 17-year marriage due to infidelity, a matter he openly acknowledged. The subsequent legal battles, including court orders and multiple imprisonments for violating those orders, and a period of homelessness, were particularly challenging. “Nobody, not even my allies within the serious media, bothered to look at what was really going on,” he reflected. “All I wanted to do was see my children, so why was I in jail? Why was I on the run? It was ridiculous, insane.”
He documented his experiences in his 2012 autobiography, No Off Switch, detailing his rise in the media landscape and his work as a war correspondent.
“It’s an insatiable curiosity, basically, a nosiness,” Kershaw explained of his approach to both music and life. “I think initially Radio 1 wanted another [John] Peel, but I got quickly bored of those awful, insipid demo tapes I was receiving from Liverpudlian indie acts, especially as I was beginning to discover properly fantastic, amazing music from Malawi, the Congo, South Africa. The way I saw it, this was music that would have an appeal way beyond the circle of African music aficionados. And the letters I received from enthusiastic listeners suggested I was right.”
