Tony Blewitt

Tony Blewitt is a renowned and accomplished television personality and a radio presenter. Born and bred in England, Blewitt has a wealth of broadcast experience under his belt. The first time he was heard on radio was on Luxembourg Radio 208 in England, before moving to South Africa to join Capital Radio where he presented the station’s prime time spot.

He has worked with some of the country’s best media establishments including 5FM, 94.7 Highveld Stereo, Consumer News, Business Channel and Summit TV.

Blewitt recently joined the OFM team in Bloemfontein and will present the Weekend Wired programme on Saturday afternoons from 16:00 to 19:00 and will also take over the Gold Retold show on Sundays between 09:00 and 13:00.

Out of all the radio stations you could have worked for, why did you choose OFM?
Actually, I was very flattered to be approached by Nick Efstathiou at OFM. He asked if I would be interested in working for the Station and I jumped at the chance.
I love radio and Nick is a “Radio Man”. I think that he is passionate about making OFM an even bigger success, I will be helping fulfil that goal in every way I can on my shows.

You were born in the UK; what attracted you to South Africa?
I was offered a chance to join Capital 604, a Durban Station, back in 1988. I had never seen South Africa and my wife had lived here as a child for about eight years.
You just said ‘my wife’; so you are clearly married. Do you have children? Tell us more about your life outside radio.
I am married to Kristin from Iceland; we met when I was working for Radio Luxembourg living in Luxembourg. 208 Radio Luxembourg was a legendary station broadcasting all across the UK and Europe, in fact around the world on Short Wave as well.

My wife and I have three sons. The eldest, Thordur, lives in Iceland but was raised in South Africa. The middle son Richard is in the British Army and is studying for his degree. The youngest Bjorn, who is 11, is still at school.

Tell us about your new shows on OFM?
I want to engage the audience with music, trivia, laughter and all the elements that radio can put together. When you listen to radio, the pictures and memories it can trigger are the best ones; they are yours and only yours.

How do you plan to add value to the station?
Working alongside other professionals that want to “Make it Happen” my belief is that my experience gathered from various stations with different target markets, has enabled me to broadcast to people.
Many stations have forgotten why they exist. They exist because of people from all walks of life; all age groups and backgrounds, listen to radio to escape; be informed and be entertained. I think OFM is a station that genuinely wants to be that kind of station. Listeners come first for OFM.

What is your view about the state of South African Radio?
Radio in South Africa has become too predictable and in some cases very boring. It went through a cycle of “non-radio people” being given the opportunity to turn it into a sausage factory, in some cases very profitable, sausage factories.
But that is where some of them lost sight of their audience. There is an opportunity for radio in SA to get back to where it was. OFM is doing that already. More than just sausage on the menu!

Besides radio, what else do you do?
I have always been a person to look for gaps in business outside of radio. I have tried other avenues and have realised that Radio is my strength.

What kind of music do you listen to?
I honestly enjoy all types of music. Okay, well there is a couple that I enjoy less than others.

Who is your role model and why?
People who care about what they do. People who honestly want to make a difference. People who go out of their way to bring fun and laughter to those who can’t do it alone.

What is your favourite song at the moment?
One of them is Ellie Goulding’s Anything can happen. It is true, but you have to take your turn at steering sometimes.

Between radio and TV, what is your first preference?
I love them both; I grew exposed to some fantastic TV shows. I love comedy the most and then documentaries. The news is necessary, but too often sad.

When I was small I was on the television and my mother said, “Get off now, you are going to scratch it”.