Helen Mayhew is a British

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

 radio presenter and producer, specialising in jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 music. Mayhew started with the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

, and then moved to 102.2 Jazz FM

102.2 Jazz FM

102.2 Jazz FM was a local jazz and soul music station for London run by GMG Radio. The station was based and broadcast from Castlereagh Street in London to around 15.5 million people within the broadcasting area...

 at its launch, then rejoined the BBC where she presented her own weekly show, and finally returned to the relaunched Jazz FM. She is also vice president of the National Youth Jazz Collective.

Early career

Mayhew's broadcasting career began at BBC Radio Devon

BBC Radio Devon

BBC Radio Devon is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Devon. It began transmissions on 17 January 1983, replacing a previous breakfast show for Devon and Cornwall broadcast on the local frequencies of Radio 4....

 & BBC Radio Kent

BBC Radio Kent

BBC Radio Kent is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Kent.It broadcasts on FM on 96.7 , 97.6 and 104.2 also 774 and 1602 MW and DAB.- History :The radio station was launched in 1970 under the name of BBC Radio Medway, originally only serving the...

, presenting and producing a wide range of programmes. She was one of the original presenters on Jazz FM when it started in 1990, where she devised & presented the 'Dinner Jazz' programme, broadcast on weekday

Weekday

Weekday may either refer to only a day of the week which is part of the workweek thus not part of the weekend or to any of the days of the week.-Weekday as a day of the workweek:In most countries the days of the workweek are:# Monday# Tuesday# Wednesday...

 evenings from 7-9 pm.

Also at Jazz FM, she presented & produced many other programmes including blues, jazz-dance music, new releases, and Latin music.

BBC

Mayhew joined BBC Radio 2

BBC Radio 2

BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...

 in July 2004, presenting the Monday evening Big Band Special

Big Band Special

Big Band Special is a BBC Radio 2 series which launched in 1979 as a showcase for the BBC Big Band in session and in concert. Big Band Special is a 30 minute programme broadcast on Monday nights at 9.30pm and has been presented by Clare Teal since April 2006...

, Mondays 10-10.30 pm featuring the BBC Big Band

BBC Big Band

The BBC Big Band, originally known as the BBC Radio Big Band is a British big band run under the auspices of the BBC. Widely regarded as the UK’s leading and most versatile jazz orchestra, the band broadcasts exclusivley on BBC Radio, particularly on BBC Radio 2's long running series Big Band Special...

. In September 2004, she took over her own weekly show, which she described as "A chill-out zone with a difference featuring music perfect for dreaming away the small hours. This aired every Saturday night/Sunday morning from 1-4 am.

Mayhew also occasionally presented the 'Jazz Line Up' programme on BBC Radio 3

BBC Radio 3

BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...

, on Saturdays from 4-5 pm.

theJazz and Classic FM

Her roles on Radio 2 ended in April 2006, and made her final appearance on Radio 3 in February 2007. She joined GCap

GCAP

GCAP may refer to:* Global Call to Action Against Poverty, a global anti-poverty movement/coalition* GCap Media - British commercial radio company* Grupo Capoeira Angola Pelourinho - Capoeira group by Mestre Moraes* Guanylate cyclase-activating protein...

-owned theJazz

TheJazz

theJazz was a British commercial jazz digital radio station. The station was run by GCap Media and launched on Christmas Day 2006. originally as a non-stop jazz station on the Digital One DAB ensemble, Sky Digital, Virgin Media and the Internet....

 in April 2007. She then went on to be heard on Classic FM

Classic FM (UK)

Classic FM, one of the United Kingdom's three Independent National Radio stations, broadcasts classical music in a popular and accessible style.-Overview:...

 every Monday-Friday from 12 midnight-2 am presenting the now defunct Classic FM Jazz programme.

Current work

Mayhew came back to the relaunched Jazz FM in 2009 to co-present the Dinner Jazz programme with Sarah Ward, which expanded to six nights a week and is currently broadcast between 7 pm and 10 pm.

In addition to her 'day-job' in radio

Radio

Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...

, she is also a club DJ, playing jazzy dance music

Dance music

Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...

.