Zoe Ball has emotionally signed off from her final BBC Radio 2 Breakfast show after six years in the hosting chair.
The 54-year-old announced her departure from the programme in November, saying that it was “time for me to step away from the very early mornings and focus on family”.
Delivering her sign-off message for the final time, Ball told listeners on Friday (20 December): “You’re just there and I’m just here, having a chat with a mate. It’s such a special and intimate relationship.”
She said: “It’s been such a gift to do the show, to follow in the footsteps of Terry [Wogan] and Steve [Wright] and others. It’s been a privilege to be the first [woman] to present the show...remember girls, you can do anything.”
“I’ve been bowled over by your messages and cards over the years. There’s been lots of laughter, tears and dancing – of course, lots of dancing.”
“I’ll see you in the Spring here on Radio 2, popping up to share new adventures. It’s been very special, take care of yourselves. Love you my peeps, my top cats,” she said, before hitting play on her final song, Münchener Freiheit’s 1988 hit “Keeping the Dream Alive”.
Earlier in the show, Ball admitted that she was so teary-eyed that she couldn’t see the buttons in front of her, and apologised in advance for any mistakes.
“Everything’s going to go wrong because I can’t see the buttons through my giddy tears,” she said.
Doctor Who star David Tennant was among the stars paying tribute in a series of pre-recorded messages aired on the programme.
“You’ve been so amazing over the last six years, the country is going to miss you," the actor said. “[You’re] the best person to have breakfast with. Thank you for letting me come on to your show multiple times and annoy you.”
Singer Kylie Minogue said: “Thank you for an incredible six years. The nation loves you and I love you, and every time I’ve been in to see you, it’s been so much fun.
“We’ve danced around the studio, you, me and your fabulous prod[ucing] squad, shout out to them... it has all happened with you Zoe.
The singer concluded: “Zoe I wish you all the love success and joy and everything you want moving on... we love you.”
During the programme, Ball also paid tribute to former Radio 2 presenter Steve Wright, who died in February.
“We miss you, darling man, but your magic is always with us, thank you so much for being an amazing broadcaster and a friend to all of our broadcasters,” she said.
During the programme, Ball reconnected with viewers who have supported her over the years, such as one woman who named her daughter after Ball when the presenter made history as Radio 2’s first female breakfast show host on the day she gave birth six years ago.
In another moment, BBC Radio’s biggest names shared a package of heartfelt messages on the show, with Dermot O’Leary and Scott Mills both dedicating well-wishes to the presenter. “Right that’s it, I’ve gone,” said Ball, breaking down in tears.
Ball became the station’s first full-time female breakfast presenter when she took over from Chris Evans in 2019, and also made history as the first female presenter of BBC Radio 1’s Breakfast show, which she hosted for two years from 1998.
The presenter took a six-week break from the show over the summer, after a previous break in the spring following the death of her mother, Julie Peckham, who had been diagnosed with advanced pancreatic cancer.
When Ball announced her departure from the show last month, she said she would stay “in the Radio 2 crew” and promised to share further details about her involvement in the New Year.
According to the BBC, Ball’s Radio 2 programme is the most listened to breakfast show in the UK. But, according to industry figures from Rajar, her audience dipped from nine million when she started to 6.28 million this summer.
She was listed as the BBC’s highest-paid on-air female presenter for the 2023/24 period, with a salary between £950,000 and £954,999, which put her in second place overall behind outgoing Match of the Day host Gary Lineker.
Scott Mills will be taking over Ball’s slot on weekday mornings, moving on from the weekday afternoon programme that he presents from 2pm to 4pm.
Mills said of the news that he and Ball have been friends for 25 years and that he was “beyond excited to be handed the baton”.
“It feels ever since recording my first shows as a kid for an audience of one, my mum, all roads since have led to this amazing opportunity,” he said. “It really is a lifelong dream come true to follow in the footsteps of Sir Terry, Chris and Zoe to be the new presenter of The Radio 2 Breakfast Show.”
Ball said Mills has been a “close friend” for years, and that she was “beyond thrilled” it was him taking over.
