A SKIPTON man with many strings to his bow has provided a lifeline to many residents through his prowess as a DJ.

Currently furloughed from his bar job at the Boathouse, in the canal basin, Brett Butler turned to radio broadcasting to keep everyone’s spirits up and for this has been named this month’s Salt of the Earth.

Our monthly feature, in partnership with North Yorkshire County Council, showcases the unstinting efforts people go to in their everyday lives to make someone else’s life that bit better.

For Brett it was a case of occupying himself doing something he loves while spreading that love to his listeners through his CV19 Show which you can listen to live on Facebook.

He said: “When the lockdown happened I managed a bar in Skipton and prior to that I actually worked at Skipton Town Council.

“Before I had worked in radio broadcasting most of my life, and certainly mobile discoing and stuff since I was 13. I just thought music tends to be the thing to bring everybody together.

“I just thought, I would put together something I enjoy doing, which would help me mentally while I’m furloughed. Originally I was only going to do one or two a week, then decided because there are so many different genres of music and people like different things then I ended up doing seven days a week. I did a show every single evening between 8pm and 10pm ranging between all sorts.

“On a Monday I’d do a specialist show which would be a specific genre so one time I did reggae, one time I did Latin, one time I did punk and new wave.

“On a Wednesday was a rock show, on a Thursday was what I call club classics, like dance music, in effect,. Friday was a request show, Saturday was a party show and Sunday was what I call a stress-buster, some nice chill tunes to relax to.”

Brett said that within the first week it got picked up by South Craven-based Drystone Radio who asked him to do a show for them every week. His stress-buster show is still running every single Sunday.

After eight weeks of going on air each night, he decided to spend a bit more time with his family and has reduced his air ways presence to three shows each week on Thursday’s, Saturdays and Sundays.

“Thursday’s is still club classics as that is a favourite because people like it.

“Saturday I changed it to an all request show so people literally pick all the music for the two hours. And Sundays is obviously my stress busters, and every now and again if somebody wants one, I will put in a Monday show.

“I’ve had a lot of support and it’s been very good. It works both ways, as they interact with me, so I get that bit of interaction, and it helps me mentally.

“I am quite a stable person but it has helped me considerably. I have family that have had to shield so it’s been a way of channelling my mind-set really, just to use music in that way.

“I’ve really enjoyed it, it’s taken me back to my days of when I used to work in radio. I started in Wakefield straight from college, when I was 17, and used to help set up the radio station in the town house called Ridings FM.

“W hat brought me to Skipton in 2003, was a job at what was Fresh Radio but is now Stray FM. He also said he had to thank his understanding wife as currently he DJs from the kitchen, but is looking to move his equipment into a spare room.

One person who found his online music show a lifeline was self employed Allan McIntyre who who works as a heating engineer and is sub-contracted by Skipton Stoves and Ranges.

“I was on lockdown and my wife was working from home. Between us we were doing the home schooling.

“I’ve known Brett for sometime. He’s a great bloke and when he started the radio show I said that time was my time. It is great.

“I’m back working now and the shows are only on a few nights a week but I will enjoy listening to them.”

Allan’s wife Karen added: “It really kept him going throughout the lockdown which I’ve been grateful for. Brett’s shows have given him the respite he needed to get through the days and weeks and what turned into months.”

To tune into the CV 19 Show go to the Facebook page or via: https://www.facebook.com/thecv19show/

Anyone who knows of someone they believe is the salt of the earth and deserves to be featured should nominate them via: SaltOfTheEarth@northyorks.gov.uk