VIV ATKINSON
Director & Producer
(North)

Viv joined Smooth Operations in 2001. A Masters graduate of Cambridge and Leicester Universities, where she read History and later Museum Studies, Viv dropped all that worthiness like a hot brick for the glamour of music production. Having worked across practically every area of Smooth Ops output producing concerts, documentaries and Nick Barraclough's Radio 2 country show, she re-located to Delph, produces the Radcliffe and Maconie Show for Radio 2 and was accepted onto the board of Smooth Operations in summer 2007.

NICK BARRACLOUGH
Presenter & Producer (South)

During the 1970s Nick was a musician and the front man with Telephone Bill and the Smooth Operators (yes, that's where the name came from). He joined BBC Radio Cambridgeshire as their mid-morning presenter in 1982, and in 1985 went to network radio as a producer. During the late 1980s he was the music advisor to BBC local radio, advising on music policy for 37 BBC stations. He has also presented a number of programmes for BBC 2 Television and Anglia Television. Nick founded Smooth Operations in 1992 and remains a director of the company. He lives in Cambridge with his wife and children, continues to play music with his band The Burglars, and is now producing and presenting specialist music documentaries for BBC Radio 4.

IAN CALLAGHAN
Senior Producer
(South)

"Fenland's fastest-rising shed-based production whizz kid" - Stuart Maconie
Having studied English and Media at university, Ian fell into radio having done work experience stints at Radio Leeds and Radio Cambridgeshire. A complete music nut, he'd been interested in working in a recording studio but not knowing his elbow from his splitter box, that wasn't likely. At Radio Cambridgeshire Ian met Nick Barraclough; the rest is history and Ian's been at Smooth Ops man and boy. His production credits include the Bruce Dickinson Rock Show, Masters of Rock, the Mark Radcliffe Show and Seven Days That Rocked The World with which he helped Stuart Maconie (his former pool cleaner) win a gold Sony award.

HELEN CLERY
Accounts
(South)

ANNIE GRUNDY
Assistant Producer
(North)

A Lancashire native who emigrated to Canada at the age of 6, Annie returned to the UK in her late teens. Early work as a veterinary nurse and personal assistant to a BBC governor gave her unequalled contacts in the BBC and the ability to castrate a cat on the kitchen table. She joined Smooth Operations' northern base in 1998, from where she co-ordinates both the office and projects including the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards and works on numerous other Smooth Ops productions, a personal highlight being the 2006 Radio Ballads.

LIZZIE HOSKIN
Broadcast Assistant
(Manchester)

Lizzie arrived at Smooth Operations via a lengthy journey across the corridor at BBC Manchester, where she was previously billeted in BBC Magazines Advertising. Brought up in Holland, Suffolk and London, she studied Music at York University and now resides in Manchester, where she works on the Mark Radcliffe & Stuart Maconie Show and finds the abundance of cheap beer, bars and gigs - and the occasional BBC Philharmonic concert for that hint of culture - the perfect compliment to the hectic lifestyle of the young executive.

VINCE HUNT
Producer
(North)

Vince came to Smooth Operations from the BBC where he was a reporter and producer for Five Live, World Service and World Service TV, with extensive experience in documentaries, feature making, print journalism and as a musician. He researched and gathered the interviews at the core of the 2006 Radio Ballads documentary series, and as one of the Radio 2 Folk Awards producers, he's brought in presenters including Sir David Attenborough, Peter Gabriel and Peter O'Toole. Work abroad includes the Civil Rights series Walking with the Wind and The Otis Redding Story. Now freelance.

MEL LEDGARD
Website producer,
BBC Folk & Acoustic website
(North)

Mel joined Smooth Operations in February 2001 after 12 years at Sheffield Hallam University, first as a graphic designer then as a multimedia courseware developer designing educational applications for CD-ROM and online. She has an MA in Writing and a BA (Hons) in Silversmithing & Jewellery and used to be a designer/jeweller amongst other occupations too bizarre to mention. Until June 2008 Mel produced the BBC Folk & Acoustic website from a corner of the kitchen at Smooth Ops Delph, but now hosts the BBC Folk & Acoustic message board and tweaks the occasional bit of website content on a part-time basis.

JOHN LEONARD
Managing Director
(North)

John was a professional musician on the folk circuit until he joined the BBC at Radio Sheffield in 1976. After 4 years as the station's music producer he joined Network Radio, Manchester as a producer of music programmes for Radios 1 and 2. In 1993 he became Editor of Radio 1 North and was responsible for bringing to the network Janice Long, Andy Kershaw, Simon Mayo and Mark Radcliffe. John left the BBC in 1995 to join Nick Barraclough at Smooth Operations, and in 1998 returned to his first love of folk music, when Smooth Operations won the commission to produce Radio 2's folk-roots show. Since then John has added the Mark Radcliffe & Stuart Maconie Show (weeknights, Radio 2), the Bruce Dickinson Rock Show (6 Music) and a co-production with Komedia of Count Arthur Strong's Radio Show (Radio 4), as well as television coverage of the Cambridge Folk Festival and the BBC Folk Awards (BBC Four). He was the executive producer of the 2006 Radio Ballads (Radio 2) as well as a stream of social history music documentaries, one-off music specials and radio series. John has been nominated for six Sony awards, winning 3 of them and was made a Fellow of The Radio Academy in 2007. He lives with his family just outside Oldham.

JON LEWIS
Broadcast Assistant
(Manchester)

While studying the dark art of Journalism at Sheffield University, Jon chased ambulances for the local press, edited the Sheffield edition of the Itchy City Guide, reported for student radio, and made a nuisance of himself for BBC Three, the BBC Concert Orchestra, and Radio Sheffield. After graduating in 2006, he joined Smooth Ops as a Website Content Producer. He now works as a BA and researcher on a range of programmes including the Mark Radcliffe & Stuart Maconie Show.

KATHRYN McDONALD
Broadcast Assistant (South)

Kathryn joined Smooth Ops in January 2007 after completing her Masters in Radio Production at Bournemouth University. Over the past four years she has dabbled in presenting, acted (badly) in a soap opera and developed a fondness for all things Bon Jovi - which she attempts to get on every playlist each week with little success. She currently works on Bruce Dickinson's Rock Show and has just received her second successful commission for BBC 1Xtra.

KELLIE WHILE
Producer
(North)

Kellie joined the company in 2003 on a temporary basis and has never gone away. Having stepped in to fill holes left by expectant mothers, she quickly got the hang of all things 'Smooth' and now produces the Mike Harding Show and the Radio 2 Young Folk Award, as well as working on all the folk and acoustic based live events. Born into a musical family, Kellie spent much of her life as a professional musician, but has since decided it was high time she hung up her touring boots and got stuck into a 'proper' job.

LOUISE WHITEHEAD
Broadcast Assistant
(North)

Louise joined the company in August 2002 after four years as a management consultant. Born and bred in Saddleworth, she was happy to escape the smog of London for the green fields and fresh air of the Saddleworth hills, but the quiet village life she was hoping for went out of the window when she joined Smooth Operations and had her daughter Eleanor! Louise works on various aspects of the business, including the Mike Harding Folk Show. Louise is currently on maternity leave, having recently given birth to second daughter Ruby.

JULIA ALLEN
Senior Producer
(Manchester)

Julia left Smooth Operations in August 2008 to pursue a freelance career in London. We wish her all the best.