• The Sounds of the 21st Century

  • By: Tom Eames
  • Podcast
The Sounds of the 21st Century By cover art

The Sounds of the 21st Century

By: Tom Eames
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  • Summary

  • An unofficial continuation of BBC Radio 2's Sounds of the 21st Century. If you’ve found this podcast, then chances are, like me, you were a massive fan of BBC Radio 2’s Sounds of the 20th Century. Created by Trevor Dann’s Company, the original series ran from 2011 and 2012. Each episode was an hour of one particular year’s biggest moments (news, TV shows, films, sports etc), alongside that year’s memorable hit songs. It was similar to the Rock and Roll Years TV shows from the ’90s, which broadcasting legend Trevor Dann was also behind. What was particularly awesome about it, was that it didn’t feature any ‘talking heads’, analysis or hindsight. They were simply audio collages of each year, allowing you to work out what was being played, and to make connections to what happened in the following years. With the series ending after the year 2000, I was left bereft and wanted more. As someone who is obsessed with nostalgia, charts and pop culture, and because the 2000s were my formative years, I decided to give making an unofficial continuation a go myself. So this series is an ongoing project that will continue the original series from 2001 onwards, with attempts made to keep it in the original style as much as possible (including the theme tune, run-length etc). Each episode aims to be a 60-minute snapshot of the world (largely from British eyes!), as it was back then. Archive news clips have been taken from various sources (such as BBC News, Sky News, Channel 4, ITV, The Guardian, CNN and other news networks). However, as I only have access to what is available online, some clips, particularly from the early years of the internet, may sound a bit tinny in quality, as they were ripped from incredibly old files (such as old .ram files – remember them?), that no longer exist since I made the first few episodes back in 2012. NOTE: If you’ve previously downloaded the series – I have since made revisions to the episodes in 2022. Please re-download to get updated versions with improved intros and other new clips. The series is in no way endorsed by Trevor Dann or the BBC, but was meant as a bit of fun, as a homage to the brilliant series, and to give fans something new. Trevor himself has been kind enough to acknowledge the series, as long as I call it ‘Bootleg Sounds of the 21st Century’. In 2021, the original series returned as Sounds of the 21st Century. It was in a slightly different style, with Claudia Winkleman replacing original host Jeremy Vine. I greatly encourage everyone to listen to the original series if you can track it down. The 2021 series can be found here. Please do get in touch in the comments sections if you’d like to say hello or give feedback – or follow me on Twitter (@eamezey).
    Tom Eames
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Episodes
  • 2015

    2015
    Jul 8 2023

    The Paris attacks, FIFA scandal, Jeremy Clarkson's fracas, The Force Awakens...

    Tracklisting:

    • Eastenders – Who Killed Lucy
    • Mark Ronson – Uptown Funk
    • Buckingham Palace denies Andrew claims
    • Poldark
    • Charlie Hebdo attacks
    • Hozier – Take Me to Church
    • Australia allowed in Eurovision
    • Piers Morgan joins GMB
    • OMI – Cheerleader
    • Princess Charlotte born
    • The Dress
    • Justin Bieber – What Do You Mean
    • Justin Bieber – Sorry
    • General Election – debates/Tories win/SNP success/resignations
    • James Bay – Hold Back the River
    • Tunisia beach attack
    • Ellie Goulding – Love Me Like You Do
    • Calais migrant crisis
    • Furious 7
    • Wiz Khalifa & Charlie Puth – See You Again
    • Nepal earthquake
    • Lost Frequencies – Are You With Me
    • Jeremy Clarkson fracas
    • Love Island
    • Jason Derulo – Want to Want Me
    • Same sex marriage in US and Ireland
    • Jess Glynne – Hold My Hand
    • Snapchat
    • Major Lazer – Lean On
    • Britain win Davis Cup
    • Jess Ennis wins Heptathlon
    • Lewis Hamilton wins F1
    • Walk the Moon – Shut Up and Dance
    • Tyson Fury beats Klitchscko
    • Sepp Blatter arrested, FIFA scandal
    • Jurassic World
    • Elon Musk
    • Little Mix – Black Magic
    • Alton Towers crash
    • Trump announces Presidency run
    • Drake – Hotline Bling
    • Hatton Garden raid
    • The Weeknd – Cant Feel My Face
    • James Corden
    • Jeremy Corbyn becomes leader
    • Years & Years – King
    • Caitlyn Jenner
    • Nadiya wins Bake Off
    • Queen is longest reigning monarch
    • Calvin Harris – How Deep is Your Love
    • Germanwings crash
    • Justin Bieber – Love Yourself
    • Tim Peake in space
    • Star Wars the Force Awakens
    • Paris attacks
    • Adele – Hello
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    59 mins
  • 2014

    2014
    May 26 2020

    Indyref, Benefits Street, Tower of London poppies...

    Tracklisting:

    • Donald Trump does the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge
    • Pharrell Williams – Happy
    • UKIP and Nigel Farage win at European elections
    • Magic – Rude
    • Nude celebrity photo iCloud hack
    • Ed Sheeran – Sing
    • Ukraine revolution / Russia annexes Crimea
    • Ariana Grande – Problem
    • Bake Off‘s Bingate
    • Ella Henderson – Ghost
    • Rocket lands on comet 67P
    • Guardians of the Galaxy
    • Robin Williams dies
    • Mr Probz – Waves (Robin Schultz remix)
    • Teacher Ann Maguire killed
    • Sam Smith – Stay With Me
    • Scotland votes to stay in the UK
    • Clean Bandit – Rather Be
    • Facebook buys Whatsapp
    • Benefits Street
    • Lewis Hamilton wins second F1 Championship
    • Rory McIlroy wins two Majors
    • Meghan Trainor – All About that Bass
    • World Cup: England out at group stage, Luis Suarez bite, Germany thrash Brazil, Germany beat Argentina in final
    • Sigma – Nobody to Love
    • Philip Hughes death
    • Nico & Vinz – Am I Wrong
    • Streaming included in charts
    • True Detective
    • Max Clifford jailed / Rolf Harris jailed / Bill Cosby allegations
    • Katy Perry – Dark Horse
    • Solange vs Jay Z elevator fight
    • Iggy Azalea & Charli XCX – Fancy
    • Peaches Geldof dies
    • George Ezra – Budapest
    • PewDiePie on YouTube
    • Taylor Swift – Shake it Off
    • Hong Kong’s umbrella revolution
    • Ferguson protests / Black Lives Matter
    • Route 94 & Jess Glynne – My Love
    • Flight MH370 goes missing
    • Flight MH17 shot down over Ukraine
    • Sia – Chandelier
    • Ebola outbreak
    • Barack Obama warns of global pandemic
    • John Legend – All of Me
    • Boko Haram kidnap schoolgirls
    • Rise of ISIS
    • Kiesza – Hideaway
    • Boris Johnson to stand as MP
    • Take That – These Days
    • Tower of London poppies
    • Ed Sheeran – Thinking Out Loud
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    59 mins
  • 2013

    2013
    Jan 29 2020

    Murray's Wimbledon, Lee Rigby, a royal birth, Richard III is found...

    Tracklisting:

    • ‘Let me take a selfie’
    • Bastille – Pompeii
    • Horsemeat scandal
    • Lorde – Royals
    • North Korea’s nuclear tests, truce with South Korea ends
    • GTAV
    • Boston Marathon bombings
    • will.i.am & Britney Spears – Scream & Shout
    • Pope Benedict retires, Pope Francis announced
    • OneRepublic – Counting Stars
    • Russia meteor
    • Selfies
    • Miley Cyrus and twerking
    • Miley Cyrus – Wrecking Ball
    • Dhaka garment factory collapse
    • Naughty Boy & Sam Smith – La La La
    • Nigel Farage’s UKIP rise
    • Bauer – Harlem Shake
    • David Cameron promises EU referendum
    • Ellie Goulding – Burn
    • Murder of Lee Rigby in Woolwich
    • Passenger – Let Her Go
    • Ghouta chemical attack
    • Justin Timberlake – Mirrors
    • Morsi removed as President of Egypt
    • Les Miserables
    • Prince George born
    • Daft Punk – Get Lucky
    • Hugo Chavez dies
    • Margaret Thatcher dies
    • Avicii – Wake Me Up
    • Edward Snowden
    • Icona Pop – I Love It
    • Wigan win FA Cup
    • Sir Alex Ferguson retires
    • Andy Murray wins Wimbledon
    • Katy Perry – Roar
    • HMV saved from administration
    • Blurred Lines controversy
    • Robin Thicke – Blurred Lines
    • Oscar Pistorius arrested
    • Ian Watkins jailed
    • House of Cards on Netflix
    • Paul Walker dies
    • Richard III’s body found
    • Gogglebox
    • Bedroom tax
    • The Lumineers – Ho Hey
    • Gay marriage passed
    • Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – Thrift Shop
    • Plebgate
    • Taylor Swift – I Knew You Were Trouble
    • Clutha bar disaster
    • Michael Schumacher ski accident
    • Nelson Mandela dies
    • Pink & Nate Ruess – Just Give Me a Reason
    • Frozen
    • Idina Menzel – Let It Go
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    1 hr
Music World Politics & Government
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