S Poddar
Zoe Ball, the popular BBC Radio 2 host, says she will leave her breakfast show after an impressive six years. Scott Mills, who hosts the station’s mid-afternoon slot, will take over. Ball broke the news to listeners on Tuesday, explaining that she wanted to prioritize her family life and was leaving for the early-morning schedule.
After six incredible years on the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, it’s time for me to step away from the very early mornings and focus on family,” she said. Ball also announced that her final broadcast would be on Friday, December 20, and hinted at remaining part of the Radio 2 family with new projects to come in the new year.
Scott Mills who was newly recruited to Radio 2 in 2022 to fill the shoes of Steve Wright, had much to say having admired and appreciated Ball as he entered into the new role. “Zoe and I have been such good friends now for over 25 years and have spent much of that time as part of the same radio family.”. She’s done an incredible job on this show and I am more than excited to be handed the baton,” Mills said. “It really is a lifelong dream come true to follow in the footsteps of Sir Terry [Wogan], Chris, and Zoe.”
Ball began her tenure with the Radio 2 breakfast show in 2019, becoming the station’s first female presenter in the role. Her long broadcasting career has showcased quite a few highlights over the years, including her years as the first woman to host the Radio 1 Breakfast Show, a position she held from 1998 to 2000; and the children’s program Live & Kicking, which aired alongside Jamie Theakston in the late 1990s.
On reflecting on her decision to leave, Ball shared warm sentiments about her experience on the breakfast show. “I’ve decided it’s time to step away from the early alarm call and start a new chapter. You know I think the world of you listeners, and it truly has been such a privilege to share the mornings with you,” she said. “I’m excited to embrace my next chapter, including being a mum in the mornings, and I look forward to tuning in on the school run!
The shake-up at BBC Radio 2 forms part of a far larger reshuffle on the station, which remains the UK’s most popular, reaching approximately 13.3 million listeners weekly. Among other changes, Trevor Nelson will take over Mills’s old mid-afternoon slot, meaning he becomes the first Black presenter to appear on the station’s daytime schedule. Nelson, known for his expertise in soul and R&B, shared his enthusiasm about the new opportunity. “It’s going to be great being on daytime. It’s the ultimate privilege as a broadcaster to entertain the nation on the biggest station in the UK every day. I’m looking to have lots of fun and will be bringing a bit of soul to the new show,” he said. Fans of his game Five Seconds to Name can also expect its continuation in the new time slot.
Elsewhere on the station, DJ Spoony’s The Good Groove programme increases to four nights a week with broadcasts Monday through Thursday from 10 p.m. to midnight. In addition, Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s Kitchen Disco will be doubled in length and will now run two hours long on Friday nights from 9 p.m. until 11 p.m.
Zoe Ball’s leaving is the end of an era for the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, and yet it’s clear her influence and charm have left an indelible mark on her listeners and colleagues alike. Her voice may not be there so early to greet the nation, but her legacy as a trailblazer and darling of the air remains forever the same.
