New Podcast can be heard HERE
Radio years: 1999-2004 (Austereo – Triple M and 2Day FM. Both national stations)
I started doing radio as a lark. I sent Triple M a tape of my most offensive material, knowing full well they’d never get back to me. To my utter surprise, they loved it!!! I just wanted a little graveyard show on 3RRR and everything went haywire. But from community radio (Plenty Valley FM) to COMMERCIAL radio) in less than six months? NUTS! And one helluva learning curve!!
Triple M’s M-One Concert
Check out my EMCEE work HERE
Bio from 2003: California native Doug Steele is the voice of Austereo’s national Hot 30 Countdown alongside The Labrat and Alexis. Prior to this current line up, Doug worked with Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O on the same program for several months.
In addition to voiceovers, Doug performs audio stunts and pranks on the Streets of Sydney for the show each weeknight. He is also the voice behind popular characters on Hot 30 such as ‘Louie the Pimp’, and ‘Carson’ from Queer Eye.
Before moving to Austereo’s Sydney based Today Network, Doug spent four years with Triple M Melbourne. During this time he hosted his own local program called ‘Saturday Night Steele’ and was an integral part of network programs such as ‘Maroon and Milly’, ‘Radio Graffiti’ and ‘Planet Rock’. At Triple M Doug was also a regular guest on Melbourne breakfast radio with ‘The Morning Madhouse’ and hosted a Melbourne based show, broadcast in Sydney, called ‘The Backpackers’.
Capitalising on his Sydney profile Doug was also the MC at the ‘Charlie’s Angels Full Throttle’ Red Carpet event at the Sydney Café. A regular voice on Sydney and Melbourne radio, he has a substantial catalogue of commercial voice-overs for both the Today and Triple M Networks.
Doug’s forte is unscripted interviews with guests and musicians, prank phone calls, character voices, song parodies and spontaneous or improvised comedy.
How did I come up with the Doug Steele name? I was doing graveyard shifts at Plenty Valley FM 88.6 and working at the Melbourne International Airport. One of my workmates was a guy named Doug Steel. Used to be a banker. I liked him, but he gave me the shits. So I figured, ‘I’ll take his name, use it on air for a month, then use someone else’s name..’ A good way for John Sanders to be guilt free in the real world while some idiot on radio named Doug Steele would cop all the heat. Well, that was how I rationalized it.
Around that time, I had sent that tape to Triple M. When the brass at Triple M took interest, I told them the Doug Steele story (I added the E so the real Doug couldn’t sue me or whatever).. And Triple M loved it, so the name was kept. Apparently the real DS called the station, demanding to sue, saying his kids were being harassed at school, bla bla bla..Tough titties, baby. Be proud!! I used your name, not Che Mora’s, or Mark Bowers’, or Charley Swarthout’s, but YOURS, Doug Steel, yours!!! Now gimme a hug.
Obviously I still use it, but if you want, you can call me John. Or better yet: Jesus Zappa!!
No workplace was perfect, I had to deal with some challenges there for sure, but I will say this as far as Austereo goes; they let me get away with A LOT. They hardly ever held me back and they let me be me for the most part. I’d especially like to thank Todd Campbell, Simon Mumford, and Guy Dobson, who were very supportive of me, which was greatly appreciated.
So, there was a time on Triple M where I was doing a Saturday night show called Saturday Night Steele. I wasn’t allowed to play requests, but the listeners didn’t know that. So what I’d do is, ask them to make requests, then deny them. I thought it was funny.
Y’all heard my voice over stuff?
Doug Steele 
I could only wish that was me. But nah, I can’t take credit for something I didn’t do. This time.