LATEST NEWS

NICK MAY GO BACK TO LATE NIGHT VIRGIN SHOW

Nearly three weeks has gone since Black Thursday back on the 12th of this month and since then all the news reported on Nick has been bad. From his firing at Talk Radio, to the dismissals that followed of Carol McGiffen and Wendy Lloyd, to Russ from his old team being released from Talk Radio, to no longer hearing Kev. Perhaps then after hearing all that, you'd be interested in hearing this...

It has been said to me through a radio insider that Nick may for whatever reason be in-line for a return to his previous late night slot on Virgin. Although this does not guarantee anything by a long shot, it could just be the first step to the greatest ever radio show and the greatest ever radio presenter returning to our airwaves in the format we love him best. Details on what Nick would be doing are far from being finalised and it is by no means a certainty that anything will come of it, but the management off of their own backs have looked at Nick and thought it worth considering - that alone speaks for itself.

A contact at told me, "It looks like there is now a real possibiltiy of Virgin putting him back on late nights. Some gentle encouragement from fans in the form of letter writing would be a very good idea. Though I would stress the importance of being polite and pointing out facts (like his ability to increase the audience at peak TV viewing time etc) rather than slagging off Talk Radio management."

As a result of this potentially fantastic news, Operation Virgin launches today on this site giving detials on how you can get Nick back on late nights at Virgin Radio where he belongs. It is so very important that we all do our bit to help pursuade Virgin Radio bosses that getting Nick back on late nights would be a great thing - for THEM as well as for us. Please visit this section now and do your bit to help bring back Nick.

I'll be giving out more details on this story as the week goes on so make sure you keep checking back to the site - alternatively you'll hear about it first if you subscribe to my Nick Abbot Newsletter - any news will be posted as and when I hear of it regardless of the time of day or night.

You may also like to discuss the latest Nick news in the Nick Abbot Forum - a new feature to the site that allows you to post and reply to people's previous messages over the web.

GREAT NICK NEWS AND OPERATION VIRGIN LAUNCH

Operation Virgin launches on this site on Monday as the campaign begins to get Nick back on the phones - you'll be able to do your bit to see the great man return to his natural home as well as hearing some great Nick news hot off the press. So make sure you don't miss Monday's update... it may just make you smile!

CAROL MCGIFFEN FIRED ALONG WITH LLOYD AND MILLS

Carol McGiffen has been fired from Talk Radio along with fellow weekend presenters Wendy Lloyd and Adrian Mills. Kelvin MacKenzie's new management team dismissed all three presenters on Wednesday without warning. Carol was fired from her weekend breakfast show that she hosted with Paul Ross after being moved from weekday breakfast some time before. She has been replaced by former GMTV weather girl Sally Meen who will now co-host the show with Paul Ross who keeps his job.

Wendy Lloyd's Saturday morning show has been removed from the schedule being replaced by a temporary late breakfast show which goes on until Danny Baker and Danny Kelly at 11:30. Adrian Mills also loses his once a week slot - he has been replaced with Mike Dicken who returns to his former early Monday morning show after having it removed from him under the Paul Robinson regime.

Mike Allen also loses out - his Sunday show has gone and his Friday night slot has been cut to just two hours from midnight. Meanwhile James Whale gets an extra Friday show from a week Friday running from 9pm to midnight.

New presenters include Derek Draper, David Banks, Nick Ferrari and Peter Hitchins all of whom get Sunday shows - Draper with Hitchins in the morning and Banks with Ferrari in the afternoon. For a full look at the new schedules click here.

EXCLUSIVE JAMES MERRITT INTERVIEW NOW ON-LINE

You can now read what Virgin Radio presenter James Merritt thinks of Nick, his sacking and the Talk Radio takeover in an interview carried out exclusively for this site. Click on James Merritt from the menu to read the article.

VIRGIN INSIDER SAYS NICK MAY GET PHONES BACK

An insider from Virgin Radio has said they believe Nick will return to the phones at Virgin Radio - but possibly only after rallying from his huge following of fans. The individual who contacted me via this website gave their opinions using the on-line forms provided and said that, "nothing will happen if nothing is is said."

They also said that Nick was very happy right now after being able to "regain his life" following his Talk Radio sacking. Apparently Nick was expecting to lose his job anyway, but not until the following Monday, which explained the lack of any proper goodbye on the Monday previous.

Speaking on Kelvin MacKenzie's take over of Talk Radio they said that Kelvin had no idea what he was doing, and that Nick was not necessarily fired based on Kelvin's opinion of him, but on the opinion of one of his advisors.

Also, Nick's relationship with his Virgin employees is very good and not in any way weak following his 'temporary resigning' earlier in the year.

As a result of this news I'll be giving out details on Monday of how EVERYONE can help pursuade Virgin Radio to give Nick back the late night phone-in - make sure you check back for the appropiate addresses to write to you.

Operation Virgin - on the Nick Abbot Site from Monday.

NICK SOUNDING BETTER THAN EVER ON VIRGIN RADIO

Nick's latest shows on Virgin certainly seem to be sounding a lot more lively of late. His links between songs tend to be a bit longer and his overall on-air attitude comes across as being a lot more friendly and happy. Although he isn't quite doing the 'fessional talking up to the lyrics of tracks yet, he came out of the 3 o'clock news on Monday's show to George Michael's Fast Love with some crack about that hour's news. It's like having 10% of the Nick we had on Talk Radio back already!

TALK RADIO WITH YET MORE SCHEDULE CHANGES

Talk Radio have made yet more changes to their already confusing weekday schedule. Ian Collins now runs from 1am to 6am Tuesday to Friday with Adrian Mills on from 1am to 6am Mondays. The Breakfast Show now kicks off at 6am with no early bit with Bill Overton. As of next week changes to the evening schedule are to be announced... these are unclear as yet but will probably see the introduction of a new Talk Radio late-night show. Meanwhile at Drive Time Peter Deeley continues to host just a single hour of his show - between 4pm and 5pm with the SportsZone starting immediately after.

It is thought that Talk Radio's finalised schedule should be in place within the next two to three weeks with sport playing a heavy role in the new format.

BLACK THURSDAY AFTERMATH MEANS SITE CHANGES

As you may have noticed I've slightly altered the site following the aftermath of Black Thursday. All the new sections are still on-line, as are the older ones, but there are no longer two separate sub-menus, instead one big menu covering all sections on the site. Some wording on some sections is yet to be updated following Nick's sacking, but that will change in good time.

LATEST RUMOURS AND GOSSIP ON NICK & TALK RADIO

Nick's latest on-air style which seemingly carries a lot more chat than previously could be Nick's way of pressing for a return to the phones. Virgin's drop in listening figures coupled with Nick's sucess at Talk could mean Chris Evans considering changing the 'music, little chat' format late at night. Also at Virgin, Bobby Hain's absence from Drive Time for three weeks is looking questionable... Harriet Scott has been standing in since Hain took paternity leave after the birth of his baby, and it is now thought that Hain may have lost the baby and has been granted 'extended leave' until he feels fit to return. Obviously Virgin would not want a depressed voice hostin their Drive Time show.

Rumours are rife that Carol McGiffen and Wendy Lloyd have been fired from Talk Radio although this has yet to be confirmed officially.

Peter Deeley is tipped to quit or be sacked after admitedly being unhappy with his show being cut to just one hour. Peter is on for only one hour all week to make way for extended SportsZones that run from 5pm.

Negotiations between Lorraine Kelly and Kelvin's new management are "rumoured" to be taking place - it is thought that Kelly will not feature in Talk Radio's new look line-up in a couple of weeks although she has a heavy contract to pay out should be be dismissed.

ADRIAN MILLS STAYS - SCOTT'S PRODUCER GOES

Talk Radio's new management team have continued their run of surprising dismissals by firing the producer of Scott Chisholm's mid-morning show after only a week of returning to a three hour time slot. Jo Phillips was dismissed without warning on Friday following Scott's 9am to midday show - she has yet to be replaced. Phillips was reported to be behind an improvement in listening figure for Scott's shows which had for a time dropped off.

Meanwhile Adrian Mills will be staying at Talk Radio for the foreseeable future despite being tipped by many as the next in line for the axe. Mills, formerly of the BBC's That's Life, hosts a four hour show between 1am and 5am on Monday mornings. Mills' profile and picture have now been added to the official Talk Radio website.

BIGGEST VOTE EVER SAY'S KELVIN'S A F***ING W***ER

The biggest response to any vote on any Nick Abbot site has produced an over whelmingly convincing decission - Kelvin MacKenzie is a "fucking wanker". Nearly 200 people cast their opinions in the poll which also saw a high level of support for Kelvin being called several other combinations of expletives and insults.

The full results to the poll are on the main page of the site as well as a brand new Quick Vote to particiapte in.

PICTURES OF KEV ON IAN COLLINS' PRODUCER'S SITE

Previously unknown pictures of Nick's former producer Kevin Job ("Kev") have been found on a website owned by a fellow Talk Radio employee. Mike Hanson, who produces Ian Collins' overnight show, has three pictures of Kev in a section dedicated to the guy known affectionately as "the great gonk" on his own personal homepage. To see the pictures and the page dedicated to Kev, click here.

NICK'S CARD ON WAY WITH 100 MESSAGES OF THANKS

Nick's Special Thanks card will be arriving at the doors of Virgin Radio some time this week, complete with the names and personal thank you messages of over 100 of his listeners. The card, promoted on this site following Nick's sacking on Black Thursday, has attracted comments from all sorts of people, from webmasters to mailing list contributors and from students to single mothers, all expressing their sorrow at Nick leaving.

I would like to thank everyone who made a contribution to the card - I'm sure Nick will appreciate your kind words when he gets the card later this week.

LISTEN TO NICK SAYING THANKS ON VIRGIN RADIO

If you were unable to hear Nick saying thanks to all the "net nerds" on his Virgin afternoon show the other day, then now you can heear it over the web in Real Audio or in wave format. Click here to download the 50 second clip in Real Audio, click here to listen to it in Real Audio streaming format across the web without downloading, or click here to download the wave file.

Many thanks to Timo for producing this sound file and uploading it to the web.

LAST CHANCE TO SIGN NICK'S SPECIAL THANKS CARD

Now is your final chance to sign Nick's Special Thanks Card as it will be in the post to the great man himself over the weekend. If you have a few words to say to Nick, a small thank you or a paragraph of best wishes, then please send them to me now by filling in the form on the Special Thanks section.

NEW NICK ABBOT NEWSLETTER LAUNCHED TODAY

Because many people who have visited this site over the last week have expressed an interest in keeping bang up to date with all the latest Nick Abbot news, I have decided to set up the Nick Abbot Newsletter which will deliver any major news on Nick straight to your mailbox as soon as I hear of it. You can sign up to the newsletter now by visiting the Newsletter section of the Black Thursday menu, or by clicking here.

IAN COLLINS: TOMMY'S LISTENERS DON'T MATTER

Ian Collins displayed his frustration at callers disgusted at Talk Radio's handling of Nick Abbot and Tommy Boyd by saying that their listeners don't matter. On his early Wednesday morning show a caller began asking Ian where Tommy was and whether he had been pushed or whether he had jumped. The caller tried to press Ian into giving an answer by saying that the listeners had a right to know. Collins replied by saying, "The listeners - it's got nothing to do with them."

At this point he moved the caller on to another topic and nothing more was said about the matter.

MORE THANKS FROM NICK TO THE WEBWORKERS

Nick once again paid tribute to everyone working so hard for him on the Internet as he thanked everyone for all their effort. On his Virgin afternoon show at around 2:50pm he said, "I looked up myself last night" and went on to explain he was amazed at how much was being said about him after "last weeek". He said he had found loads of stuff and was absolutely amazed at what we were doing for him.

MAILING LIST BEGINNING TO CALM DOWN AFTER PEAK

The Nick Abbot Mailing List is beginning to show the first signs of calming down after peaking following Black Thursday's sacking of Nick Abbot. On the the three week days leading up to Black Thursday the mailing list received 41, 10, and 24 mesages. Following this the list received 90 messages on Black Thursday, 154 on Friday, 100 on Saturday, 108 on Sunday and 222 on Monday. But since then things have began to calm down with 74 messages on the Tuesday, and 52 yesterday.

The 222 messages the list received on Monday 16th November was a record for the list which usually averages between 10 an 40 per day. But the sacking of Nick triggered a mass increase in subscription and the current subscription tally stands at around 100.

TALK RADIO GOING SPORT CRAZY IN SKY SPORTS DEAL

Talk Radio seems to be going football crazy after signing a new deal with Sky Sports that will allow them to have exclusive rights to all Sky's audio material. Commenting on the deal Kelvin MacKenzie said, "It will allow the station to compete more equally with BBC Radio 5 Live."

MORE THANKS FROM NICK FOR FAXES AND E-MAILS

Nick has once again paid tribute to the enormous number of people who have faxed and e-mailed him during his afternoon shows at Virgin. As his show approached its end at around 3:50pm, he thanked everyone again, saying he was very touched by all the cards, letters, faxes and emails he's received. He also mentioned that apparently the Internet had been going nuts, but wouldn't go into any details about the situation as it happened on another station.

Don't forget, I'm currently printing off all the messages that have been sent in for the Nick Abbot Special Thanks Card - if you want to write a personal note for Nick to read in a massive card given to him from all his web fans then you can do so by clicking here.

GIVE KELVIN A CALL ON HIS PERSONAL PHONE LINE

If you're still mad about the disgusting way in which Nick Abbot and Tommy Boyd have been treated, perhaps you'd like to give the new man in charge at Talk Radio a call on his personal line. You can now call Kelvin MacKenzie's office a ring on 0171 467 8050 where you will get through his personal receptionist. If you can blag your way past her by either lying or pretending to be someone your not, you may be able to speak to the man himself.

If anyone reading this is successful in speaking to Kelvin, be sure to let me know - e-mail me at IanCole@NickAbbot.com and I'll publish it on this site.

MORE DRASTIC CHANGES AT TALK RADIO LOOMING

Talk Radio looks set to undergo a series of other changes as Kelvin MacKenzie scraps the breakfast show in just over three weeks. Bill Overton and Claire Catford are set for the axe and a new team meeting MacKenzie's liking are almost certain to be installed.

Late at night, Ian Collins temporary 12midnight-5am slot will probably go back to being a three or four hour show with a couple of presenters having shows after the SportsZone possibly between 8pm and 10pm and then from 10pm to 1am. This may coincide with rumours of Ceaser returning to the station.

REMEMBER THE OLDEN DAYS - LET'S GET THEM BACK

A campaign to urge Chris Evans and Virgin Radio bosses to reinstall Nick Abbot's famous late night phone-in is being discussed on the Internet. With hopes of a return to Talk diminishing, a late night Virgin slot looks like the best chance of getting Nick back at doing what he's best at.

More details will appear on this site as a full campaign is launched - in the meantime I urge everyone reading this to call Talk Radio on 0171 636 1089 where you can now leave your comments on the dismissals of Nick Abbot and Tommy Boyd. Simply tell the person answering the phone that you would like to comment on their sackings and they will put you through to a new listeners' line where you can have your say.

WITH EVANS AWAY OUR GOOD OLD NICK WILL PLAY

Nick's Virgin Radio afternoon shows are this week seemingly a bit more lively with Nick chatting slightly more often and even chucking in the odd Talk Radio style punn. It sounds like Nick is really missing his Talk Radio shows - the occasional cracks he makes seem to show he is itching to just talk and talk. This coincides with Virgin boss Chris Evans being on holiday all week leaving Jonathon Ross to fill in on the Breakfast Show.

NEW SOUNDING TALK RADIO A POOR BBC IMMITATION

Talk Radio's new station format is sounding weak and vastly different from its former original self. News bulletins every 30 minutes break up the flow of shows and ruin the entertainment for the listeners. If people want to hear news they can tune in to Radio 5 Live, Radio 4 or The World Service - we do not need another news, news, news station to bore the hell out of us.

The station has revamped its style with a new set of jingles and voice overs. The news in and news out jingles as well as various other station promos have been rerecorded with a different voice and in a diferent manner. The station is now also reading it frequencies as '1053 and 1089 medium wave' or 1053 and 1089 AM medium wave' as just one of several minor alterations.

THE GREAT FLOOD - STRIKE BACK FOR NICK'S SAKE

The target for the first strike back on behalf of Nick has been decided as being Lorraine Kelly and her show this afternoon. Listeners everywhere are being encouraged to call up the show and show your disgust at Nick's ridiculous sacking. More details are available in the 'Strike Back' section.

BOYCOTT HIRED BY MACKENZIE FOR CRICKET NEWS

Kelvin Mackenzie has hired Geoffrey Boycott to cover Talk Radio's cricket coverage on a short term contract. Boycott - snubbed by the BBC, Sky and the Sun - was offered the chance to work on Talk despite recently having a French conviction for woman beating upheld. On this matter MacKenzie said, "French justice stinks."

Meanwhile rumour is also high that Ceaser may be in line to return to Talk Radio as MacKenzie brings in more changes. Ceaser was sacked three years ago because his image did not suit that of the station.

NICK GETS ANOTHER MENTION IN SATURDAY PRESS

Nick was again mentioned in the press following Black Thursday's dismissal, this time in Saturday's edition of the Daily Telegraph. The story was mainly focused on Geoffrey Boycott joining Talk Radio and Kirsty Young's sacking but Nick and Tommy Boyd are both refferred to towards the end.

You can read the full story in 'The Papers' section and see a picture of the article in the 'Pictures' section.

NICK THANKS LISTENERS FOR FAXES AND E-MAILS

Nick thanked the many listeners who faxed and e-mailed him during his three hour Friday afternoon show on Virgin expressing their sympathies and best wishes at his Talk Radio sacking. As the show came to an end at five to four he made the unusual move of showing his grattitude by thanking the senders for all their comments. He did not however elaborate at all and a typical Virign would certainly be none the wiser.

THE MIRROR REPORTS NEWS OF SWEEPING CHANGES

The Daily Mirror was the only newspaper to my knowledge that mentioned the reported sackings of Nick Abbot and Tommy Boyd in its Friday issue. The paper ran a two-thirds sixe article on the story which you can read from the "Black Thursday - The Papers" page on this site. You can also see pictures of MacKenzie, Nick and Tommy Boyd amongst others as they were featured in the paper in the "Black Thursday - Pictures" section.

ODDS ON OTHER PRESENTERS LEAVING IS HIGH

The odds on other Talk Radio presenters being given the boot are high according to the bookies. Before Nick and Tommy were dismissed the pair were ranked at 2-1 to get the boot with Scott Schisholm at 3-1 and Lorraine Kelly at 10-1. Other presenters such as Peter Deeley, Ian Collins, Claire Catford and Bill Overton are also said to be on MacKenzie's hit-list and could be sacked at any time as new recruits are gathered by Talk Radio's new programming team.

NEW TALK RADIO DAILY LINE-UP SEES MORE SPORT

The new Talk Radio weekday line-up sees a new two hour sports show every weekday evening following on from Peter Deeley's Drive Time. Scott Chisholm has had his show extended to midday with Lorraine Kelly and Anna Raeburn both being moved back an hour. The complete revised listings look like this:

0:00 - 5:00  Ian Collins
5:00 - 6:00  Bill Overton
6:00 - 9:00  Bill Overton & Claire Catford
9:00 - 12:00  Scott Chisholm
12:00 - 14:00  Lorraine Kelly
14:00 - 16:00  Anna raeburn
16:00 - 18:00  Peter Deeley
18:00 - 20:00 Sportsnight with Gary Newbon and Alan Parry
20:00 - 0:00 James Whale

NICK SOUNDING GOOD 'THE DAY AFTER' ON VIRGIN

Nick Abbot continues to do himself and his ever growing band of faithful listeners proud as he returns to Virgin Radio the day after his Talk Radio sacking in top form. Nick came on air at around 1:10pm sounding confident and bright despite the fact he had a slight cough. He joked, "You're listening to Virgin radio with me Nick Abbot - your dying presenter."

Nick continues to work on Virgin Radio from 1pm to 4pm Sunday through to Friday.

NICK FIRED FROM TALK RADIO IN STATION SHAKE-UP

Nick Abbot has been fired from Talk Radio only four days into the new Kelvin MacKenzie era - he was sacked from his duties after arriving for work as normal on Thursday evening with his employment at the station ceasing immediately. There has been much critisism of the move by Mackenzie who is determined to rebuild the station with a new image with Nick being one of the first names to be given the boot.

BOYD ALSO SACKED AS KELVIN STAMPS AUTHORITY

Tommy Boyd has also been shown the door at Talk Radio following several years with the station - he was with the Talk when it was first launched back in the early 90s hosting the marathon 3pm-7pm afternoon show and since then has been moved around three times. But Tommy was called into an office after his Thursday show and was told he was no longer a part of the station's line-up.