Student Radio Association

The Stephen and David Sunday Lunchtime Show was the brainchild of two brothers who, for the period of a year, both attended Exeter University. The aim of the programme was to mix enthralling yet amusing features with the humorous lives that both Stephen and David were experiencing at Exeter. The peek into the lives of both Stephen and David not only provided topic for conversation, but also created a platform for comedic discussion due to the knowledge that both of them had of the others personality. It was the hope that by discussing life on a personal level the listeners would be able to empathise with the presenters, understanding their personalities and thought patterns. Furthermore, due to Exeter being a reasonably small city, listeners also had intimate knowledge of venues that were discussed on the show. The commitment to the radio show was evident from the brother’s willing/eagerness to pre-record their show on the occasions when one/both were unavailable on the Sunday afternoon.

While the often comedic lives that both Stephen and David lived beyond the radio studio provided both content and at times hilarity, the true genius of the Sunday Lunchtime Show came from its unique and eccentric features. Throughout the nine months that the Show was broadcast, many different features were heard over the airwaves. “The toilet review” saw the blocks of toilets around campus being judged throughout the course of a term, with both the victors and the losers being publicly named and shamed.

 Instead of bringing the national news, halfway through the show the Sunday Lunchtime team provided the listener with their own ‘Morals of the week’, that they created either from their own lives, or current events in the media.

Another segment of the show was put aside to answer the question “Is Stephen ready to adopt?” Due to Stephen becoming 21 and the limited employment opportunities available upon leaving university, David decided the important traits that a father should have, and each week tested Stephen to see if he had the capacity to adopt and care for a child.

As well as being creative in terms of the content, the Sunday Lunchtime team were also ambitious technically, highlighted by the “Road show”, where the show was broadcast live from Stephen’s house for a three hour extravaganza, complete with live audience. This showed the desire of the brothers to entertain, while keeping the show fresh and exciting to the listener base.

Furthermore, throughout the course of the final term auditonees entered the studio as part of the segment “Stephen Factor”, with the aim being to replace Stephen at the end of the year. Stephen and David created various amusing challenges for the contestants, from personality comparisons to having entrants attempting to make others drop out of the competition. The show also had over 30 original and humorous idents written and recorded by the Sunday Lunchtime team.

In summary, the Stephen and David Sunday Lunchtime show, for the period of time that it was in existence, aimed to provide an entertaining mix of radio broadcasting. This mix was achieved through a willingness from the brothers to allow listeners to peek into their eventful lives, an understanding of the issues surrounding the students of Exeter University, and a creative element that allowed conventions to be disregarded, and for revolutionary ideas to be portrayed.  The hosts’ ability to spontaneously work off one and other allowed for unexpected and compelling radio that enraptured the listener. This all occurred while still being fabulous fun to create, something that is evident from the energy levels and up-tempo feel of the show.