Meteoric rise of Matt Hallsworth from Harleston continues as Radio 1 Anthems snaps up young DJ

A young DJ, who took his first steps in the industry at Park Radio, has signed his first professional contract with BBC Radio 1.

Matt Hallsworth, who hails from Harleston, will present a run of shows for the national broadcaster’s spin-off station, Radio 1 Anthems.

The news caps a whirlwind few months for the 20-year-old, who won the Best Presenter award at the International Student Broadcasting Championships last year, which saw him work for the national radio station over the Christmas period.

He said: “I was working on some university assignment work in January when I got a call from Aled Hayden Jones, head of station at BBC Radio 1, with feedback from my Christmas show, and offering me the opportunity.

“I am so excited to be joining the BBC Radio 1 Anthems family across this month.

“Since the stream’s launch in October, it has been evident the BBC is using it as a platform to nurture new presenters, and I feel thrilled to be able to join that.”

The former Sancroft High School pupil took his first steps into the world of broadcasting with Park Radio, which covers Diss, Eye and Harleston, when he was a fresh-faced teenager.

“I was doing my Duke of Edinburgh Scheme at the time and, as part of that, you had to go somewhere and either learn a new skill or start volunteering.

“A few mates were also doing it, so I decided to get them all involved in broadcasting.”

The group approached Park Radio and they took part in its Year 10 Takeover.

The group went through a few months of training at Diss Youth and Community Centre, once a week, to find out how the desk works, before having a run of 13 shows over the course of six months.

After sixth form, the DJ started studying at the University of Salford for a degree in television and radio production in 2022 and joined the student station, called Shock.

In addition to his Best Presenter win last year, he has collected the Gold Award for Best Chart Show at the Student Radio Awards, and also earned the title of Best On-Air Team for the second year in a row in the International Student Broadcasting Championship.

Since August 2024, he has worked as a freelance presenter for Hits Radio, working across a variety of shows across its network, and was the lead host officer for The Student Radio Association’s annual conference last month.

Matt Smith, studio manager at Park Radio said: “It is a real pleasure that Park gave Matt his first chance on the radio and to have been a small part of this incredible presenter’s amazing journey so far.

“He has worked really hard to carve himself a spot in a tough industry, with the whole team here so proud of him for what he has already achieved.”

Talking about how far he has come, Mr Hallsworth said: “I used to use a dictaphone and a CD player and pretend I was on the radio in my garden shed. But Park Radio was the real catalyst for getting me started.

“This is a golden chance to put Norfolk and my hometown of Harleston on the national map.”

Mr Hallsworth’s run of shows started on Radio 1 Anthems on Wednesday at 8am and he will have 16 programmes airing over the month in total.

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