Most weekday mornings, my alarm goes off in the dark hours of the morning. Breakfast radio means you’re up before most people have even thought about hitting the snooze button, and by 6am I’m live on Atom Radio helping to kickstart the day.
But today is different. It’s the August Bank Holiday. A rare Monday when I’m not in the studio and the schedule looks a little more relaxed.
Days off are vital when you work in jobs that thrive on creativity — whether that’s radio, DJing, podcasting or any form of content creation. You need downtime to recharge, otherwise the well runs dry. For me, a Bank Holiday is the perfect opportunity to slow down, spend time with family, and maybe sneak in something I rarely get time for in the week: a proper breakfast.
While I’m not working today I probably will listen in to Atom Radio when I’m not doing something else as it’s Eighties Day today! The Eighties is my favourite decade for music so it will make a perfect background soundtrack to down times.
I’m sure my son will have something for us to do in mind today and it’s nice to not have the pressure of fitting that around any work on a regular day.
There’s also something nice about being part of the Bank Holiday rhythm. Families heading out for day trips, people firing up barbecues, and that unmistakable feeling of one last long weekend before autumn rolls in. I’m usually the one talking about it on the radio, but today I get to just live it.
Of course, the gears never fully stop. In my head I’ll still be thinking of ideas, content for the shows, tunes for the Jets playlist. But today’s all about balance. Work, yes — but also rest, music, and a bit of fun.
It didn’t always used to be this way. Once upon a time there was the legendary Bank Holiday skate through at Slough Ice Arena from 12.30 – 10.30. Fun, games, giveaways and of course tunes and the joys of getting a takeawy delivered to the rink when they always used to ask what number Montem Lane!
So however you’re spending your Bank Holiday, I hope you find that same balance. After all, life sounds better when you’re tuned into the right mix.
