Ray Cokes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Raymond "Ray" Christopher Cokes (born February 24, 1958 on the Isle of Wight) is a British entertainment personality.
Contents |
[edit] The Early Years
Cokes doesn't remember a lot about his early years, but he has vivid memories of the many journeys that he made to several locations with his father between the ages of 4 and 14.
Cokes' father, an officer with the Royal Navy, sailed all the world's seas. Cokes, his parents, his brother, and his two sisters travelled from one British colony to the next every time that his father changed base. He had seen the most exotic places in the world, so at the age of 15, when his family moved back to England (Gosport, to be exact), it was hard to become accustomed to the less affluent way of life (until then they had enjoyed a comfortable lifetle, thanks to the Army) and the strict British schools. He didn't feel comfortable at school ("It had nothing to do with real life."[citation needed]), so he left.
"I was Bart Simpson," says Cokes of his wild years. "I can't describe it better. I was an unbelievable naughty boy. I constantly teased my brother and sisters, and I was always planning my next prank. I never took someone else's feelings into account. I was a real egoist. I changed when I realised how much grief I caused my mum."[citation needed]
A couple of months later, Cokes left Gosport and his parents and moved to Brighton. "I wanted to become a cook, because as a cook I would be able to work in foreign hotels and restaurants. It would give me the ability to explore the world."[citation needed] He worked in restaurants in Brighton for four years.
At the age of 20, Cokes found harmony in his life by becoming a punk: a sober one, with a black leather jacket, army boots, and short hair. His new motto was 'Fuck the world'[citation needed]. At that time, he only needed cigarettes and beer; everything else was redundant. He lived in a cellar with six other punks, four of whom were gay, which would influence the rest of his life: "I became more sensitive and vulnerable."[citation needed]
[edit] Before MTV
Before becoming a popular MTV Europe VJ, Cokes was already famous in the Benelux, France, Switzerland and Germany by virtue of his presenting several music programs for Sky Channel and Music Box.
He learned his presenting skills in Belgium. After working in a Brussels café and record shop, he began plying his trade at local radio stations and he also did some disk-jockeying in a disco in Brussels. He got the chance to present on the national pirate radio, Radio Cité (Radio 21 nowadays). Shortly afterwards he also became the presenter of Rox Box on the national TV station RTBF. The program was also broadcast on the English Sky Channel.
Cokes also worked for France's national TV network Antenne 2 (now France 2), where he did freelance work for Les enfants du rock.
[edit] Ray Cokes: The Fame & Fortune
In 1987 MTV Europe, now the largest broadcaster in the world[citation needed], offered Cokes the chance to break down barriers across the continent. For four years Cokes spent four nights each week entertaining six million viewers across 38 countries with his live, award-winning show, MTV's Most Wanted. Everyone wanted to be on their hit list. The show was a cocktail of entertainment with live music, quickfire competitions viewer interaction, and Cokes with his crazy crew of cameramen, producers and soundmen. The phone lines glowed and the fax machine overheated as an abundance of Europeans raced against time to speak to the host.
In 1996, following a brief sabbatical, Cokes returned and transformed MTV's London headquarters into his new set. X-Ray Vision was a once-a-week show packed with live performances, celebrity guests, and comedy stunts in front of a live audience. Most television presenters require rehearsals prior to live transmission - but not Cokes. At 7:45pm, a relaxed host glided into a the studio armed with ironic charm, hard-hitting humour, and natural spontaneity to see him through the next ninety minutes of live television.
Cokes has also presented many MTV specials, including In Search Of Madonna (which featured a cameo performance from the diva herself), The Big Picture (a movie review show), and the live pre-game shows prior to MTV's monumental Europe Music Awards extravaganzas in Paris and Berlin.
Cokes left MTV in 1996 after nine years at the company. His next project would be a German radio show called Voll auf Cokes, which he co-hosted with Naughty Nympho Nina. Not long after, he went on to present Channel 4's big-budget show, Wanted. Cokes had to work within the parameters of a live reality game-show, but he managed to incorporate his well-known style of presenting.
In February 1998, Cokes returned to the radio waves. Thanks to a little help from his friend Chris Evans, he landed a job at Virgin Radio, where he was able to re-create the Most Wanted atmosphere with a lot of success.
Soon after, in 2001, Cokes relocated to Paris to host Music Planet Tonite on Arte. It was hailed as one of the best music shows that France has ever seen.
Next he appeared as the eccentric and funny English guy on the hugely popular, Saturday night, prime time entertainment show "Union Libre" on France 2. At the same time, Cokes hosted I Love the 90s on the Belgian music channel Jim. Another music show was to follow in 2005, with En direct de, a 3-hour live show featuring festivals around France.
[edit] External links
- www.raycokes.com - Everything there is to know about Ray Cokes
