He left the station in October 2010 to present Pick of the Pops on BBC Radio 2 because the BBC would not allow him to continue working for a rival broadcaster. Andy Peebles was also a presenter with the station, having hosted his Andy Peebles Soul Train from 2004 to 2013, before moving the programme to Gold, another station owned by Global Radio. David "Kid" Jensen was a weekday presenter from April 2011 to December 2013. Special programming and events In September 2011, Simon Bates presented a week of programmes from South Australia as part of a promotion in which the station gave away a holiday to the state. In December 2011, Bates travelled to Afghanistan to present a series of shows with British troops at Camp Bastion, which featured Christmas messages from British soldiers serving there to their friends and relatives. Bates discussed the possible future of Afghanistan as coalition forces prepared to hand over control to the Afghan National Army. On 8 April 2012, Easter Sunday, the forces broadcaster BFBS simulcast a two-hour show presented jointly by Bates and BFBS's Rachel Cochrane, with Smooth, allowing family and friends of serving troops to connect with their loved ones. On 27 May 2012, Bates presented a special programme ahead of the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant, previewing Elizabeth II's journey along the River Thames on the royal barge, Spirit of Chartwell. He was given special access to the vessel and spoke to the boat's owner, Philip Morrell and to composer Debbie Wiseman who was commissioned to write the music for the event. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the end of the 1982 Falklands War, Bates broadcast the breakfast show from the Falkland Islands for a week; he explored the lives and experiences of Islanders and reflected on the conflict. From 2010, Smooth and Real Radio were the official broadcaster of the switch-on ceremony for the Blackpool Illuminations, the broadcast rights to which it won from BBC Radio 2, which had aired it since 1997. 2010 was the first time the event was broadcast on commercial radio. The annual event was compered by presenters from the two stations at a purposely-built arena, and featured a music concert by popular artists. Performers in 2010 included Alesha Dixon, Gabriella Cilmi, The Wanted, Olly Murs, and Robbie Williams, who switched on the lights that year. The 2012 switch-on was performed by Greg Rutherford, Luke