Where it's at with the kids - The Herald

radio review by - Go4It (Radio 4) - The Borscht Belt (Radio 4)-The Jimmy Logan Story (Radio Scotland) - Fred MacAulay (RadioScotland) The cool street-cred kid credentials explode from thetitle: Go4It. Britney and Beckham are cool. Boyzone are just sooolast year. You gotta keep alert when dealing with this pre-teengroup. One pop faux-pas and you're outta here. Radio 4 wanted toknow where it was at with the kids and the kids told 'em. The titleof the station's new magazine programme aimed at the eight- to 10-year-old audience was chosen by a wised-up eight-year-old.

Radio 4 is bravely fighting cynicism and retro-Listen with Motherslurs. There is a tendency in children and parents alike to squirmin the face of such concerted efforts to entertain children via theancient medium of radio. Coxy or the top 40 in the Radio 1 morningis fine - but a Sunday magazine programme?

Go4It doesn't proclaim to be an alternative to Playstation,merely another option. And not bad either, judging by its debutouting. Hosted by the big-brotherly presenter Matt Smith, we get amix of pop, poetry, sport, and movies. Hear'say were taken aback bythe cynical eight-year-old interviewer who asked how long it wouldbe until they broke up. Olympic rower Steve Redgrave similarlysweated it out, while a granny and grandson's review of Spykids wasinspired. Good old-fashioned competitions, jokes, and poems balancedup the e-mail address and website correspondence.

One very big grouch, however, is the preponderance of estuary-English accents. One hopes Radio 4 realises children across Britainneed to hear their own accents.

Oy weh! was the Jewish cry echoing round the Catskills of the1950s. Comedian Tony Hawks took a trip back in time to the popularJewish holiday area dubbed The Borscht Belt on Radio 4. It was herein the hotels and clubs north of New York that comedians cut theirteeth on a very choosy audience. Woody Allen, Sid Caesar, ShelleyWinters, and Mel Brooks all plied their trade on post-war Jewsholidaying in a home from home.

Interviewing many men called Bernie, Hawks was treated to aselection of the old-timers' routines and bad jokes, though MickeyFreeman - who played Private Zimmerman in The Phil Silvers Show -magically re- created the yesteryear atmosphere in which roller-skating teams composed of Jewish refugees were on the same bill asvery bad bands singing about Israel. Sadly, the Catskills havedeclined in popularity and now depend on the conventions and singlesweekends for their trade. Woody Allen could have a field day withthat material.

Radio Scotland's timely tribute to the Godfather of Scottishentertainment in The Jimmy Logan Story on Easter Monday wascomprehensive and moving. A 65-year career that spanned panto todrama and even the inimitable recording Loganberry Pie was renderedbeautifully. Logan reading extracts from his autobiography wasaugmented with a staggering number of interviews with family andprofessional pals. They even pulled off a coup with a rare interviewwith Stanley Baxter praising the 'honourable man'. Surely a rareattribute in such a notorious business. The sound of Logan beltingout a rousing rendition of I Love a Lassie with the audienceclapping along was the best memory of all.

Memories of another kind were stoked when 1970s teen idol DonnyOsmond guested on Fred MacAulay's show. Ladies of a certain age mayrecall misspent doe-eyed hours slavering over the toothy Mormon manymoons ago. Now the Puppy Love pin-up is back, promoting upcomingconcerts. In bright-eyed, anarchic mood, Donny (with a y not an ie,he clarified) impersonated his understanding of a Scottish accent.

You know the type - part Indian, part Irish, with a pinch ofScottish. Fred tried to rein in the man whose favourite colour isnot - not - purple. Alas, Donny was off, giggling over andsubverting Fred's best efforts. Obviously rebellion has kicked in at43 years of age. Oh, Donny, you'll always be our squeaky-clean puppylover.