Who will replace Chris Evans on Radio 2? The candidates being touted to take over the breakfast show
Sara Cox, Jo Whiley, Simon Mayo... who will fill the former Top Gear presenter's shoes?
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Your support makes all the difference.Chris Evans has announced he is leaving the BBC Radio 2 breakfast show after eight years.
Though he got off to a bumpy start when he first took over from Terry Wogan in 2010 (the veteran presenter was forced to defend his successor after his new show was met with a lukewarm reception), Evans subsequently found his footing, and his show now regularly attracts nine million listeners.
When he steps aside this December, his replacement will have some big shoes to fill. But who are the breakfast show’s most likely heirs?
Sara Cox
As an alumna of The Radio 1 Breakfast Show, which she presented between 2000 and 2003, Sara Cox is already familiar with the pressure – and the early alarm calls – that come with taking over such an illustrious BBC time slot. With her gently conspiratorial tone and warm Northern burr, Cox’s presenting style is markedly different from Evans – which would be a blessing for some.
Claudia Winkleman
Though she’s perhaps better known for her TV work fronting BBC shows such as Strictly Come Dancing, The Great British Sewing Bee and Film… , Winkleman currently hosts Claudia on Sunday on Radio 2 and could easily graduate to the early morning slot. Her eccentric, enthusiastic presenting style would make her a divisive choice, but sometimes the best choices are.
Simon Mayo
A consummate professional with a dry sense of humour, Mayo is perhaps best known as the presenter of Kermode and Mayo’s Film Review on BBC Radio 5 Live – though his long radio career includes a stint as Radio 1 Breakfast Show presenter in the early ‘90s. He’d certainly be a safe pair of hands, but his newly revamped Radio 2 drivetime show with Jo Whiley only launched a few months ago.
Jo Whiley
A Radio 1 veteran and longtime champion of new music, Whiley would be another low-risk pick for the breakfast slot – though she perhaps lacks the uninhibited demeanour of Evans. In fact, writer Caitlin Moran once described her presenting style as one of “squirming awkwardness”.
Zoe Ball
Back in 1997, Ball became Radio 1’s first ever female breakfast show host – two decades later, could she break the same ground on Radio 2? She’s covered for Chris Evans on several occasions, though only began her Saturday afternoon show back in March.
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