5MU’s Adam and Jennie celebrate their 1000th show

The stars of a Murray Bridge radio station’s breakfast program will celebrate their 1000th show together with a live broadcast in Murray Bridge this Friday.

Journalist Jennie Lenman and long-time presenter Adam Connelly have been presenting the show together since 2023, when their natural chemistry led them to join forces.

On a shoestring budget, the pair present and produce the three-hour program from a studio in Murray Bridge while Lenman also delivers half-hourly local news bulletins.

This Friday they will broadcast live from Bridge Bakery and Barista, on Bridge Street, Murray Bridge, from 6-9am.

The pair described themselves as cheerful, sometimes irreverent and always local, appealing to a broad audience across the Murraylands, the Adelaide Hills and the South Coast of the Fleurieu Peninsula.

They were recently recognised at the inaugural Mumbrella Australian Audio Awards as finalists in the category of best breakfast show in a medium market.

Their “unfailingly cheerful” tag line came from best-selling local author Leonie Kelsall, who has included them in multiple novels in her popular Settlers Bridge series, with one character even exclaiming, “Only Adam and Jennie are capable of providing such honest enthusiasm that early in the morning”.

“We realised early on that cheerfulness and positivity and affection still have a place in the showers and breakfast tables of our region,” Connelly said. 

Their highlights over the years have included:

• Having a muffin and kransky named after them at Ocean Street Bakery in Victor Harbor: the Connelly kranski and Jennie Lenman meringue muffin
• Gathering a crowd as they attempted to crush watermelons between their thighs
• Riding on a speed boat at more than 100 kilometres per hour during an Aquafest broadcast

Connelly’s improvisational comedy, years of public performance, skit writing and voice acting have combined well with Jennie’s skills as a journalist, her empathetic curiosity and her natural comedic timing.

“Adam has also helped get me out of my comfort zone, going from reading scripts to riffing on air about all kinds of topics ranging from serious to silly,” Lenman said.

But it takes a village to make a regional radio show.

Don and Rose have been married for more than 60 years and now don’t leave bed in the morning until the closing song of the show.

Dee from Monarto shares a joke each day, Nev from Goolwa contributes fun facts every Friday, Billy regales the team with colourful local stories and Daniel from Murray Bridge North keeps the team in the loop with history facts and power outages. 

Adelaide Tech Guy Richard Pascoe joins in for a weekly chat and fellow 5MU announcers Chris Guscott and Jacqui “from Maccy” Irvine regularly contribute to the program.

Entertainment remains a defining feature of the program, with segments such as “Ask Adam and Jennie anything” that highlight the duo’s ability to explore topics ranging from everyday curiosities like shopping trolleys to bigger philosophical questions about the universe and our place in it.

On a whim, the pair were asked by listener Tracey Roe to do an Australian remake of the iconic US radio series Chicken Man.

Bin Chicken Man was born and has become a much-loved addition to the repertoire, now in its second season.

• Listen to the 1000th show: Tune in to 96.3FM in the Murraylands, or via the iHeart radio app, from 6-9am this Friday.
• Read more: Meet Adam Connelly, the man behind the mic