Cotton's last stand

Today marked Fearne Cotton's last show on BBC Radio 1 (although she's popping up to host some of the Big Weekend coverage before she hangs her headphones up for good).

Never as bad a DJ as her detractors would have you believe, she championed Lana Del Rey and Fleet Foxes on daytime Radio 1, making up for her inexplicable love of Kodaline. Well, almost.

Her last show was a truly star-studded affair with appearances from Dave Grohl, Ricky Gervais and... er, Keith Lemon. But the best bits were the surprise songs recorded in her honour. And, bless the BBC, they've put them up online for your listening pleasure.

My personal favourite was this cover of Dolly Parton's 9 to 5 by Lucy Rose. In typical Live Lounge fashion, it took a perky pop song and turned it into a seriousface acoustic "jam". But in this instance it really works. A cover of unusual beauty.


Rae Morris also popped up with a cover of Ben Howard's Keep Your Head up that practically defined the word "ethereal".


Lianne La Havas played Fearne's favourite song, Etta James's At Last.


And Coldplay (no wait, come back) penned a tune especially for the occasion, called Gone But Not F. Cotton.

Witty and affectionate, it was a highlight of the show.


So #FarewellFearne, as twitter would have it ("it's not like I'm dead," the presenter wryly observed). You played some good music, you were brilliantly scathing about Fuse ODG, and you said "amazing" a lot. I'll miss you even more than the paparazzi who waited outside the BBC every day to see what kaftan you'd worn to cover up the baby sick.

I'm also looking forward to Clara Amfo's take on the show, and the Live Lounge, when she settles into the hotseat next week. I've heard they've revamped the whole format - so it'll be interesting to see what difference the new host makes.

And, if you're interested, here's Fearne's hand-picked playlist from her last show.

• Arctic Monkeys - Hold On, We're Going Home (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 13 Sep 2013)
• The Avalanches - Since I Left You
• Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Home
• Kodaline - The One (Fearne Special)
• Chris Malinchak - So Good To Me
• Hozier - Do I Wanna Know? (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 15 Sep 2014)
• Take That - Pray (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 22nd November 2010)
• James Blake - Limit To Your Love
• James Bay - (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher
• Duke Dumont - The Giver (Reprise)
• Royal Blood - Out Of The Black (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 18 Feb 2015)
• First Aid Kit - Stay Gold
• Dave Grohl - My Hero (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 4 Nov 2009)
• Kings of Leon - Dancing On My Own (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 10 Sep 2013)
• Jack White - Sixteen Saltines
• Lucy Rose - 9 To 5
• Coldplay - Gone But Not F Cotton
• D.A. - Glowing
• Adele - Hometown Glory (Radio 1 Live Lounge, 27th Jan 2011)
• Eaves - As Old As The Grave
• Rae Morris - Keep Your Head Up
• SOAK - Immigrant Song
• Lianne La Havas - At Last
• Fleet Foxes - Helplessness Blues
• Darwin Deez - Constellations
• Tom Odell - Farewell Fearne
• Lana Del Rey - Video Games

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