John Peel, the beloved BBC Radio 1 DJ, who captivated listeners with his sharp wit and Peel Sessions, also had amassed an enormous record collection. The stuff that dreams are made of – this entire meticulously catalogued volume which includes 25,000 LPs, 40,000 singles and many thousands of CDs will be published online. As of today, the first 100 albums (in alphabetical order) are available for public listening, thanks to the digital museum, The Space.

The presenter’s home office has been recreated as part of an interactive project which offers fans an unprecedented glimpse into Peel’s life with home footage, access to the famed Peel Sessions archive, as well as the opportunity to peruse his vast array of vinyl LPs. Click on say, Johnny Ace, a 50′s R&B singer and you’ll find a scanned image of Peel’s card catalog entry and a Spotify link where you can listen to the album.

His wife and patron of the John Peel Centre for Creative Arts, Sheila Ravenscroft, introduces the collection, explaining how it was catalogued:

We’re very happy that we’ve finally found a way to make John’s amazing collection available to his fans, as he would have wanted. This project is only the beginning of something very exciting.

John Peel’s Record Collection