A BARNSLEY DJ is celebrating a quarter of a century of getting people into the groove.
Chris Kelly has been DJing in the borough for 25 years after starting out entertaining fellow pupils at school discos.
The 49-year-old, of Dodworth, said: "I realised I just wanted to entertain people. I started as a mobile DJ and did weddings and things like that."
In 1985 Chris began work at Ardsley House Hotel and soon after got his first residency at the Number Seven at Wombwell.
Over the next few years he worked at various night spots including the Full House at Monk Bretton, The Cube at Burntwood Court Hotel, Brierley, Japanese Whispers on Regent Street and Esmerelda's on Peel Street.
For the last six years he has been DJ at Retro on Wellington Street, keeping Barnsley 'Dancing Queens' on the dance floor 'All Night Long'.
He said: "I'm not everybody's cup of tea because I can be quite blue. I don't just play records, I'm funny too so I'm like a stand-up DJ. It's all about entertaining the people and keeping them interested."
Although he has been in the business 25 years, he said the type of music he plays hasn't had to evolve too much.
He said: "The young of today do appreciate the party music that was in the 1960s. I have a genre that I don't have to outgrow.
"It's all about what song you play at what time - people don't want to hear 'The Killers' or 'The Beatles' at 9.30pm but if you play 'Dancing Queen' at half past midnight it is the greatest song every written."
And Chris, who has a day job as a coach driver, says he's all set for his next 25 years on the decks.
He said: "Barnsley is a very personable town. This is where I make my living, it's my bread and butter and I don't want to move anywhere else. Long may this continue."
