Zoe Ball 'really touched' as she breaks silence after quitting BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show

Zoe Ball has breached her soundlessness aft announcing she is leaving the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show adjacent month, with Scott Mills acceptable to instrumentality implicit the slot

Broadcaster Zoe Ball has shared her heartfelt gratitude, saying she is "really touched" by the question of well-wishes pursuing her announcement that she volition beryllium stepping down arsenic host of BBC Radio 2’s Breakfast Show.

The media star, aged 53, plans to permission adjacent period and cites wanting to "focus connected family" arsenic her reason but besides expresses she's "really chuffed" for Scott Mills, who volition measurement into the aboriginal greeting role.

Ball succeeded Chris Evans successful 2019 and aft six years, she's acceptable to bid farewell to the dawn chorus, indicating it's clip for her to "step distant from the precise aboriginal mornings and absorption connected family", with her last broadcast scheduled for December 20. Meanwhile, Mills, presently hosting Radio 2’s day slot, is acceptable to instrumentality implicit from January.

On Instagram, Ball showed appreciation: "Really touched, acknowledgment for the messages, thrilled for my mates Scott, Trevor, Spoony and Sophie." TV favourite Rylan Clark hailed Zoe arsenic "being the champion wake-up for the past six years" portion besides lauding Mills successful his Instagram stories: "Scott, I’ve ne'er been much blessed for someone. If you grazed your genu you would bleed radio. I cognize however overmuch this means to you and I’m truthful so arrogant of you".

Ball, beaming alongside Mills for a photograph op extracurricular New Broadcasting House, told reporters of her pridefulness for her workfellow Mills. "It has each turned retired nicely," she said contently. "I’m truly chuffed for my mate and truly excited astir it." Ball warmed the hearts of her fans during her Tuesday vigor amusement erstwhile she addressed her audience, saying, "You cognize I deliberation the world of you all, listeners, and it genuinely has been specified a privilege to stock the mornings with you, to spell done life’s small ups and downs, we got done the lockdown together, didn’t we?"

She carried connected to explicit her sentimentality: "We’ve shared a hellhole of a lot, the bully times, the pugnacious times, there’s been a batch of laughter. And I americium going to miss you cats." Despite the emotion for her job, Ball couldn't defy adding a enactment connected her aboriginal starts: "But I won’t miss the 4am alarm call, if I’m wholly honest."

The fashionable presenter, formerly wed to big-beat DJ Norman Cook, amended known arsenic Fatboy Slim, is besides a arrogant parent to Woody Fred Cook, welcomed successful 2000; and girl Nelly who arrived successful the satellite successful 2010. In the latest reports detailing BBC's wallet, Ball topped the charts arsenic the highest earning pistillate on-air endowment for 2023-24, pocketing a wage betwixt £950,000 and £954,999, which placed her conscionable down apical earner Gary Lineker. Released successful July, the broadcaster's yearly relationship of riches crowned her arsenic 1 of its astir vaunted stars.

Ball made past arsenic the archetypal pistillate dependable to big the Radio 1 Breakfast Show backmost successful 1998 and held onto the seat until 2000, alongside co-hosting the staple of kids' weekends, Live & Kicking, alongside Jamie Theakston from 1996 for 3 fun-packed years. After immoderate clip distant during summer, Ball bounced backmost to the airwaves successful September, and earlier, successful April this year, she shared the sombre quality of her mother, Julia Peckham's death.

Mills reminisced connected his long-standing relationship with Zoe Ball and expressed his excitement astir taking implicit her show, "She’s done an unthinkable occupation connected this amusement implicit the past six years, and I americium beyond excited to beryllium handed the baton." He fondly recalled starting his broadcasting journey, "It feels ever since signaling my archetypal shows arsenic a kid for an assemblage of one, my mum, each roads since person led to this astonishing opportunity."

Emphasising the value of his caller role, helium said, "It truly is simply a lifelong imagination travel existent to travel successful the footsteps of Sir Terry, Chris and Zoe to beryllium the caller presenter of the Radio 2 Breakfast Show." Meanwhile, Zoe Ball assured fans that she wouldn't beryllium retired of the representation entirely, stating, "I’ll inactive beryllium a portion of the Radio 2 family, with much quality successful the caller year."

Ready to bask her mornings differently, she declared her enthusiasm for the future, "I’m excited to clasp my adjacent chapter, including being a mum successful the mornings, and I can’t hold to tune successful connected the schoolhouse run." After the announcements, Mills shared idiosyncratic moments with Ball connected air, thanking her for her support, particularly astatine his wedding to Sam Vaughan, revealing a touching memory, "I wasn’t definite if you could marque it, due to the fact that I cognize you’ve had specified a pugnacious year, but connected the large day, oregon really the time before, I remember, connected the Friday, you texted maine like, I’m connected the plane. And I shouted to Sam, ‘Zoe’s connected the plane’, and I was truthful gladsome that you could come."

Ball gushed successful response: "I wouldn’t person missed it for the satellite ... and to spot you and Sam, and to spot however successful emotion you are, and you know, which we each got to spot connected Race Across The World. And I emotion you some to pieces. You are going to beryllium astonishing astatine this job". Helen Thomas, the caput of Radio 2 added her praises saying, "Zoe has woken up the federation connected Radio 2 with unthinkable warmth, wit and truthful overmuch joyousness since January 2019, and I’d similar to convey her for approaching each amusement with arsenic overmuch vim and vigour arsenic if it were her first." It was besides announced that Trevor Nelson would beryllium taking connected the weekday day slot from 2pm to 4pm pursuing Mills's departure.

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