Jewish Hour has been on the air for no less than 24 years.
So when it was ditched by the BBC after 21 years on the station, the thought of throwing in the towel never crossed the mind of presenter Jeff Lewis and his colleagues.
The programme covers issues of Jewish interest as well as looking at some of the more cultural aspects of the Manchester Jewish community; such as theatre, film and sport.
Now enjoying the comfort of their new home on multi-award-winning non-profit community radio station Salford City Radio, Jeff is revelling in the freedom their new slot provides.
“We are here for the community,” Jeff told MM. “Now, we are able to do our own marketing and promotion and have recently got involved with Twitter too. We could never do that at the BBC.”
But he insists he holds no malice towards the Beeb, after their 2012 belt tightening left the show in dead air and laments that he believes they have ‘lost many Jewish listeners as a result.’
Despite a short-lived legal challenge against the BBC – who ironically made the full-scale move to Salford shortly after – the show has blossomed in its new home.
RISING FROM THE ASHES: Jeff has worked on Jewish Hour since 2008
Presenter Jeff joined when the show turned 18 in 2008, and in addition to his voluntary radio work, Jeff also works as a solicitor and a part-time judge.
It was a far cry from their humble beginnings on now-defunct Sunset Radio in 1990.
Run completely by volunteers, the show was originally dubbed It’s Kosher before reverting to Jewish Citizen Manchester after the move to BBC Radio Manchester, before adopting the name of Jewish Hour.
Despite the cultural divide that is sometimes encountered in the modern-day multicultural Manchester society, Jeff has indicated that anti-Semitic issues is less prevalent than in the past – and Jewish Hour plays a key role in bridging the gap.
“We are always trying to educate the whole community on what Jewish people do – a lot of our listeners are not Jewish,” revealed Jeff.
JEWISH HOUR: Jeff interviewing UKIP North West candidate Shneur Odzedidate
“We are looking building bridges and making others aware that we are no different. We still go to parties and do what people other have faiths do but we have our own cultures too.
“There’s a reasonable degree of tolerance for Jewish people and their faith. In my personal experience, I have always found a high degree of tolerance in Manchester.”
The issue has become a hot topic in recent months after Nicolas Anelka’s quenelle gesture in a Premier League football match in December caused outrage.
Anelka’s celebration after scoring for West Bromwich Albion – who have since terminated the France striker’s contract – showed solidarity with comedian and politician Dieudonné M’bala M’bala from his homeland who has often displayed anti-Semitic views.
Jeff admits the incident caused a great deal of concern in the Jewish community with fears that the controversial views could take root in the country.
“Jewish people love football as much as anyone else. We are just the same as you are,” said Jeff.
“I think the Jewish community were quite shocked (by the quenelle).
“A France-based journalist we spoke to indicated that there is a high level of anti-Semitism in France. The concern was that this would gain a currency in the UK and people may latch on to it.
“We wouldn’t want people turning up at synagogues and making the gesture.”
However, it seems Manchester is making moves to dispel any chance of the incident leading to further flashpoints in the sport.
The FourFourJew exhibition recently moved up north from London to the Manchester Jewish Museum.
And with a number of recent talks at the National Football Museum – from the likes of Does Your Rabbi Know You’re Here? author Anthony Clavane and award-winning football journalist David Conn – Jeff is confident the quenelle will not seep into popular culture.
The Jewish Hour host believes the exhibition will be ‘really popular’ and is excited about what it could mean for the show.
“We have got some great links in the football sector,” Jeff told MM.
Jeff has interviewed a number of Jewish luminaries in his time on the airwaves, most notably Paul Michael Glazer who played Starsky from 1970’s American cop show Starsky & Hutch, but he counts his highlight as a somewhat less star-studded affair.
A heart-wrenching interview in which a holocaust survivor relayed the horrors of their experience sits as Jeff’s most memorable moment at Jewish Hour.
“Nothing could be more moving and more evocative than interviewing someone who had experienced the horrors of the holocaust first-hand,” said the radio presenter.
Jewish Hour broadcasts every Monday between 7-8pm on Salford City Radio.
