Staffs duo celebrate radio awards hattrick

Two friends from Staffordshire University have ended their studies on a high after taking home four prizes from the Student Radio Awards.

It is the third year running that Kelvin Andrews and Chris Steers have been recognised at the annual event which celebrates the best student talent from across the UK.

After studying BA (Hons) Film, Television and Radio together the pair completed an MA in Radio Documentary this year and attended their graduation just days after the awards ceremony.

In 2019, Kelvin and Chris won the Kevin Greening Award for Creativity for a moving World War 2 documentary and followed this in 2020 by winning Best Speech Show for a podcast about music legend David Bowie. This year, however, they have each won prizes in their own right.

Chris became the first recipient of The Joe Lyons Award for Best Producer, introduced in memory of the Capital FM producer who sadly took his own life last year. Chris’s work –including a music documentary about Brit Pop and another about dogs involved in warfare – was described as one of the best entries of the night by the industry judging panel.

Chris said: “It feels incredibly humbling and moving to receive this award and to have met Joe’s family on the night. I never met Joe but everyone speaks so highly of him. This award keeps Joe’s memory alive and shines a light on what a producer does because they often go unnoticed behind the scenes.”

Winners of the Student Radio Awards, supported by BBC Sounds and Global, were announced during a special ceremony at London’s O2 with live music and afterparty DJs.

Kelvin, a music DJ and producer, scooped the Gold Award in the Best Speech Programming category for ‘Subculture Snapshot’, a documentary which explores the hidden history of subcultures and style tribes like Mods, Soul Boys, Punks and New Romantics via first-hand personal stories and music.

He was also awarded Bronze in both the Kevin Greening Award for Creativity and Best Podcast Programming categories for a follow up episode of the David Bowie podcast ‘Here Come the Bowie-ites’.

Kelvin said: “It feels absolutely amazing to win three years running. Previously we’ve won for joint projects but winning separately was the icing on the cake. It was extra special to be back at the awards in person at the O2 getting the chance to network with industry and celebrate with other students.”

Having completed their degrees, Chris now works for BBC Radio Stoke and Kelvin plans to keep producing independent radio documentaries including the Bowie & Beyond podcast.

Gavin Samways, Lecturer in Radio Production & Podcasting, commented: “We are so proud of Kelvin and Chris. They were the first members of our student radio station, OMG, to win at the SRAs which was a fantastic achievement but to make it a hattrick is a testament to the quality of their work. I’m sure they will inspire other Staffs students to follow in their footsteps.”