Mark Pawsey dropped in to Rugby Hospital Radio at the weekend to visit the station, have a chat and choose his 'desert island' discs. The local MP was the guest of presenter David Head and appeared on a programme called 'Sunday Evening Spin'. He chose a diverse selection of music, from his Seventies favourites Led Zeppelin and Genesis to more recent songs by Alicia Keys and Elbow, plus the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra's recording of 'Jerusalem'.
Mark maintains much of his own Twitter feed and was invited to visit the station via a tweet. “It's really something that Rugby Hospital Radio has been going for over 40 years now,” he said. “A number of local people have mentioned the service in conversations. It's good to finally be able to visit and find out more about the work done by the volunteers in entertaining the patients in St Cross”.
“It's been great to have Mark on the programme,” said David Head. “Of course, being a community visit we didn't discuss party politics, but he was able to give some interesting insights into the workings of Westminster. We also talked about the local issues such as fly-tipping and the town's plans ahead of the Rugby World Cup next year”.
Anyone with a wide-ranging taste in music and an interest in getting behind the microphone is welcome to apply to volunteer for Rugby Hospital Radio. Training involves visiting patients and collecting requests. To find out more, visit www.rugbyhospitalradio.org
Mark Pawsey's music: the full list
1. World In Union – Hayley Westenra
2. Stairway To Heaven – Led Zeppelin
3. Mama – Genesis
4. Nessun Dorma – Luciano Pavarotti
5. Tonight’s Gonna Be A Good Night – Black Eyed Peas
6. I Predict A Riot – Kaiser Chiefs
7. Viva La Vida – Coldplay
8. Empire State Of Mind – Alicia Keys
9. One Day Like This – Elbow
10. Jerusalem – Royal Philharmonic Orchestra