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Business News Obituaries
Award winning JACK presenter dies
By CMU Editorial | Published on Monday 5 July 2010
The radio presenter who recently won an Arqiva Award for her ‘Cancer Diaries’ project has died from the disease she bravely documented for Oxford radio station JACK fm.
Ali Booker fell into radio by mistake, and had a long career with the BBC, working for local stations BBC Devon and BBC Oxford. She was first diagnosed with cancer in 2002, and subsequently with secondary breast cancer in 2006. Nevertheless, she carried on working and in 2008 joined Oxford-based commercial station JACK fm where she presented the news and a Sunday daytime show.
She also began appearing on the station’s morning show discussing her cancer, a slot which became much acclaimed for its frankness and good humour. The ‘Cancer Diaries’ section won a Silver Sony earlier this year and was handed the Special Programme Of The Year Gong at the Arqiva Commercial Radio Awards last month. Booker had an audience beyond the reach of her radio station too, regularly writing about her life and treatment via a blog and Facebook page.
Her condition had worsened in recent months, so much so she wasn’t able to accept her Arqiva award in person, but did send a video acceptance speech. She died on Thursday, aged 47.
Kevin Game, who fundraises for the Oxford hospice where Booker spent her final weeks, told the Oxford Mail last week: “Ali was a genuine inspiration to us at Sobell House. Her courage in refusing to be buckled by her illness and determination to continue to live her life to the full was astonishing. Not only was she a remarkable woman in her own right, but she was also a very good friend to the charity, helping us raise awareness of both Sobell House and hospice care in general. We will all miss her and our thoughts go out to her family”.
