news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8338669.stm

A richly deserved award. His shows often showcase new bands and he understands the need to keep his music a balance of classic tracks and new bands.

It is good to see him being honoured in this way after the lynch mob who did not like his salary have chased him around for the last year or so.

ROSS is easily the best presenter on British Television and hopefully this award will quieten those who detract from his talent.

Funnily enough, though I know him (gave him his first job) and like him and was absolutely on his side during MailGate, I think he's gone right off and cannot listen to him or watch him as he's so predictable and irritating!

In terms of what he says - now he is neutered by the BBC he is not a patch on the ROSS who broadcast Pre MAILGATE - I agree.

Still think that he is the best despite that - and perhaps he will go freelance in future and get onto other Channels like ITV who will allow him to be more edgey again.

Thought Tipsters would be interested in the list of previous winners of this prestigious award: (Only 3 award winners need no introduction!)
2008 Lucian Grainge, one of the music industry’s most successful and influential executives
2007 The Pop Princess Kylie Minogue
2006 The quintessential impresario Harvey Goldsmith
2005 Legendary broadcaster and star-maker Sir Michael Parkinson
2004 Visionary artist Peter Gabriel
2003 Talent finder extraordinaire, Rob Dickins CBE
2002 Sir Elton John and his partner in song, Bernie Taupin
2001 Music retail maven Brian McLaughlin
2000 The co-founder of Atlantic Records, the late Ahmet Ertegun
1999 Oscar-winning musician/composer John Barry OBE
1998 Legendary producer Sir George Martin CBE
1997 Jonathan King
1996 Broadcaster Alan "Fluff" Freeman
1995 Composer and entrepreneur, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber
1994 Andrew Miller & Willie Robertson
1993 Maurice Oberstein
1992 John Deacon, CBE, Director General of the British Phonographic Industry

what job was that?

Thanks for the list Dixie. That is a who is who of the most influential people in music over the last few years. I suppose the only one missing off it now is Simon Cowell.......but I suppose many people have mixed feelings about the way his TV shows have taken over the charts.....but his time will end like everyone elses.

Well Big Dave... many years ago I came up with a format for a music series called No Speed Limit and my co-producer was to be Jeremy Fox and the broadcaster Channel 4 TV.

Jeremy gave Jonathan Ross the job as junior researcher underneath myself and Gordon Elsbury, my director.

However, both Jeremy and John Cummins (the Ch4 commissioner) let me down; having snapped up Gordon to direct Soul Train (13 weeks) and No Speed Limit (13 weeks), they dropped my format.

I then convinced Graeme MacDonald to let me do it on BBC2 instead with Peter Hamilton taking the Gordon/Jeremy role and it became No Limits hitting ratings of 5.7 million and topping the BBC2 chart.

Soul train got cancelled.

you had nothing to do with it.
he was interviewed by someone else, along with many others you never saw, and you met on his first day, noted he had a great attitude and befriended him.
something like that?

Nope.

so what then? surely you have no reason not to tell the truth

None at all and the truth is in my post above; he was hired as researcher by Jeremy Fox and abandoned when Ch4 dropped the project. Simple.