Sometimes you meet people who make you want to be a better person.

Last night I met one of those people - Dave Smith who is the secretary of the Blacklisting Support Group who help uncover, what for me, is the biggest scandal involving working class people in Britain.

The state colluding with big business to allow a blacklist which stopped thousands of construction workers getting employment due them either asking questions about safety or workers rights.

He was a guest on the Steve Zacharanda Radio Show and picked all the songs as we set aside our normal daft bollocks for a really important piece of social history radio.

Hearing the passion as Dave talked about the undercover coppers who fathered children with the women they were spying on, for legally protesting made my goosepimples rise like a ripped off workforce realising they have been tucked up for decades.

The Blacklisting special will be listened by countless people, some who have an idea about the scandal and some who never had an idea this was going on in this country of ours.

A lot will have no idea about me and Gurdip and the kind of show Dave decided to come on, I'm sure we might get a bit of flack for cracking jokes but we had to keep true to ourselves, our loyal band of listeners deserved that respect, and I know they appreciated that, so I'll not take the brickbats to heart. I know Dave through a friend of mine Martin who was on the blacklist.

I owe him for opening my eyes about blacklisting. Forget phone hacking this is a massive scandal which ripped families apart and led to suicides of men who could not provide for their families during a boom in the industry they were qualified in.

I wish I had done more to help the cause, but I did my bit when I interviewed the Prime Minister David Cameron and was the first journalist to get him on the record about blacklisting, it is a small footnote in Dave's Blacklisting book but one I am proud of. Speaking with Dave sparked my interest and I will be doing a few more articles on blacklisting.

If you are a journalist reading this you can help - here is an easy story - ask the council you cover if they will ban the companies Carillion etc from bidding for public paid projects, and if they are Labour controlled ask why not?

Radio is an incredible medium, my favourite, it is so personal. So I am proud, and surprised that we were the first radio show in Britain to invite this remarkable man on for an in depth chat about the scandal. We asked him about how music has helped him in his fight against the state, and through that angle we got some incredible answers.

The show is also notable for containing the first on air apology for a song's language, I was going to say the first for bad language but remembered the classic when we had the incredibly fit lapdancing club owner who danced for Gurdo and swore like a trooper years back, but we had to say sorry for The King Blues singer Itch screaming "taking the piss" in them great song The Schemers, The Scroungers and The Rats.

The show within a show is what is said off air as the songs play, Dave told us about him being a DJ and how he played Drum and Base tunes during protests and other fascinating insights of his life, we could have easily done a two hour special, but as the kids say "it is what it is."

We could only play six songs of his choices and as I know how he agonised over the choices here they are in full: Billy Bragg - Which side are you on? Tracy Thorn - Femme Fatale. Public Enemy - Fight the Power. Steel Pulse - Handsworth Revolution. Lethal Bizzle - Pow! Chase & Status - No Problem. King Blues - The Schemers, the Scroungers and the Rats. ADF - Fortress Europe. Sean Taylor - Stand Up. Natty - July.

Give the show a listen - it is fascinating and hopefully you will try and find out more about this disgusting scandal which is a stain on the so called liberal democracy we live in.

Head over to www.mixcloud.com/stevezacharanda to hear the show.

Over and Out.

Steve Zacharanda.

1970-01-01