Zoe Ball to leave BBC Radio 2 Breakfast show
BBC Radio 2 presenter Zoe Ball has announced that she is leaving her morning show. After six years presenting Radio 2’s Breakfast show, the broadcast veteran has announced it is time to step away to “focus on family.”
A statement from the BBC said the presenter will remain at the station, with more to be announced soon. She made the announcement on air on Tuesday morning.
The 53-year-old said: "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. It’s been a privilege. I think the world of you listeners and I’m grateful to my bosses here for their support, especially this year. Huge thanks go to my awesome team on the show, Tina, Mike and Richie, and of course our listeners, with whom I’ve shared some of life’s highs and lows, the good, the bad and the daft times.
READ MORE: I tried the unassuming shipping container selling banging Christmas food and can't wait to go back
READ MORE: This Morning star dies 'with family and dog' at his side after saying 'I might not make Christmas'
"My last show will be on Friday December 20, just in time for Christmas with plenty of fun and shenanigans. While I’m stepping away from the Breakfast Show, I’m not disappearing entirely – I’ll still be a part of the Radio 2 family, with more news in the New Year. I’m excited to embrace my next chapter, including being a mum in the mornings, and I can’t wait to tune in on the school run!”
Helen Thomas, Head of Radio 2 says: "Zoe has woken up the nation on Radio 2 with incredible warmth, wit and so much joy since January 2019, and I’d like to thank her for approaching each show with as much vim and vigour as if it were her first. I’m thrilled that that she'll remain an important part of the Radio 2 family."
It has also been announced that Scott Mills will take over from Zoe in the breakfast slot.
Zoe joined BBC Radio in October 1997 as the co-host of the Radio 1 Breakfast Show with Kevin Greening. She was the first woman to host the show solo from 1998 to 2000.
She joined Radio 2 in 2006, presenting programmes around the schedule before becoming the permanent host of the Saturday afternoon show in 2017. Zoe took some time off the show earlier this year.
She took some time off in Spring as her mother was diagnosed with cancer, a month later Zoe announced that her mother Julia had died. The presenter also took some time off in August and September, with Scott Mills filling in for her in the meantime.
