Gary Williams with the late David Jacobs, pictured at The Pheasantry, London in December 2010
Star of the West End’s Rat Pack, Gary Williams will be performing with the BBC Concert Orchestra this week at London’s BBC Radio Theatre for David Jacobs: A Celebration alongside Michael Ball and Marti Webb. Other contributors include Radio 2 DJs Chris Evans, Desmond Carrington and Ken Bruce, and BBC Director-General Tony Hall.
It is almost 18 years to the day that Williams first met Jacobs at the old BBC Pebble Mill studios. The two became firm friends, often performing together. The renowned broadcaster, famed for Jukebox Jury and Housewives’ Choice, passed away last year.
Since this was a last minute engagement, Williams (who is also the author of Cabaret Secrets – How to Create Your Own Show, Travel the World and Get Paid to Do What You Love) wasn’t even supposed to be in the UK. As he explains: “I am already booked to perform on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. I’ll be flying back from there for this concert, then flying straight back to the Caribbean again for two days, and then back to London! That’s 15,000 miles in five days. I plan to spend my wages on flight socks and sleeping pills!”
Introduced by his friend and fellow Radio 2 presenter Ken Bruce, David Jacobs: A Celebration will have contributions from some of the people Jacobs worked with, and several of the musicians he loved. The BBC Concert Orchestra is conducted by Mike Dixon.
* David Jacobs: A Celebration is broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on Sunday 9 February from 11pm–12 midnight, following another chance to hear the tribute programme David Jacobs: On the Record (9–11pm).
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