DJ Steve Wright’s death unexpected, but not suspicious, police say

BBC radio presenter Steve Wright’s death is being treated as “unexpected”, but not suspicious, police have said.

The veteran broadcaster died this week at the age of 69, the corporation announced on Tuesday.

Police and paramedics had been called to a flat in the Marylebone area of central London on Monday morning.

A Metropolitan Police spokesperson told the PA news agency: “A man in his 60s was pronounced dead at the scene. His next of kin have been informed.

“The death was unexpected, but is not being treated as suspicious. A report will be prepared for the coroner.”

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said paramedics were called to the address following “reports of an incident”.

The spokesperson added: “We sent a number of resources to the scene.

“Very sadly, a person was pronounced dead at the scene.”

Wright’s colleagues hailed the veteran broadcaster as “one of the greatest exponents of the art of radio” following the news of his death.

The radio DJ, most known for presenting Steve Wright In The Afternoon, was a fixture on BBC Radio 1 and then Radio 2 for more than four decades, attracting millions of listeners.

Appearing on ITV’s This Morning on Wednesday, radio presenter Paul Gambaccini recalled how Wright would come into the studio hours before his show to ensure he was prepared.

He said: “He knew what he was going to do (and) when and that’s when the greats like Noel (Edmonds) and Chris Evans shone.

“They made it sound like it was off the cuff, but it was really well planned.

“And Steve stayed afterwards, this was his life. He gave us his life for 44 years, five days a week and then six with Love Songs.”

Gambaccini also revealed the news was a shock to him as he last spoke to Wright on Saturday, and had sent him two emails on Tuesday not realising his friend had died.

Wright took over Gambaccini’s long-running BBC Radio 2 show Pick Of The Pops last year.

Noel Edmonds, who worked across BBC radio during his career, described Wright as a “brilliant communicator” as he video called into This Morning from New Zealand.

He said: “We have lost one of the greatest exponents of the art of radio. And radio, if done well, is an art form.”

Elsewhere, Nicky Campbell, who was Wright’s colleague for many years, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “It’s where he belonged. He was absolutely born to be in a studio, it’s where he thrived. It was his natural habitat.

“His heart soared when he was on the air and that was contagious. Our hearts soared when we listened.”

Chris Evans, who was also a stalwart on Radio 1 and 2 for many years before joining Virgin Radio, said Wright was to afternoons as Sir Terry Wogan was to breakfast.

Wake Up To Wogan on Radio 2 ran from 1993 to 2009 and was the most listened-to radio show in the UK.

Wright last appeared on air on Sunday, hosting a pre-recorded special Valentine’s Day edition of his Love Songs programme on Radio 2.

The broadcaster joined BBC Radio 1 in 1980 to host a Saturday evening show before moving on to host Steve Wright In The Afternoon a year later until 1993.

Wright then fronted the Radio 1 Breakfast show for a year until 1995, and completed a stint at commercial radio stations before returning to BBC Radio 2 in 1996 to host Steve Wright’s Saturday Show and Sunday Love Songs.

In 1999, he recreated Steve Wright In The Afternoon every weekday on Radio 2, with celebrity interviews and entertaining trivia featured in his Factoids segment, before stepping down in September 2022 but he continued to present Sunday Love Songs on BBC Radio 2.

Former BBC Radio 1 host Scott Mills took over the afternoon slot as part of the station’s schedule shake-up.

Wright was made an MBE in the New Year Honours for services to radio.