Ladette life
Zoe Ball today announced she is quitting her BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show to ‘focus on family’ – handing over to her ‘bestie’ Scott Mills.
The 53-year-old revealed on air this morning that she will be leaving the show in December after six years but remaining on the station. She had taken a break from hosting over the summer – with Mills stepping in as her replacement – before returning in September.
Ball will host her last slot on December 20 before Mills, who currently hosts Radio 2’s weekday afternoon programme from 2 – 4pm, begins fronting the programme from early January.
Ball said she is ‘really chuffed for my mate’ as she and Mills posed for pH๏τographs outside New Broadcasting House.
She announced on Tuesday morning that she will be leaving her BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show in December.
She told reporters she is ‘so proud’ of Mills, 51, adding: ‘It has all turned out nicely. I’m really chuffed for my mate and really excited about it.’
Zoe Ball leaving Wogan House alongside Scott Mills as he was announced as her replacement
The pair were seen embracing each other in the courtyard outside the BBC’s headquarters
Zoe Ball today announced she is stepping down as presenter of the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show
Announcing the news to listeners earlier this morning, she said: ‘After six years of fun times alongside you all on the breakfast show, I’ve decided it’s time to step away from the early alarm call and start a new chapter.’
The veteran presenter said she was ‘thrilled’ to reveal her good friend Mill, as her replacement, telling listeners: ‘Scott and I go way back to our Radio 1 days, when he was doing early mornings before me. He’s been a close friend for years, and I’m beyond thrilled it’s him taking over the Breakfast Show.
‘Breakfast has always been his dream, and what a year he’s had – from racing around the world to his beautiful wedding to Sam. He’s not only a blooming brilliant producer but one of the best in radio. I can’t wait to tune in on the school run!’.
Reaction to the announcement on social media has been mixed, with one listener branding him ‘such a terrible replacement’ while another called this morning’s announcement ‘horrific news’.
Others have vowed to switch off as a result, with one saying it was ‘time to find another station’.
Read MoreBREAKING NEWS Fans divided over Zoe Ball’s BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show replacement 
Yet others have been more favourable, with responses including ‘fantastic news’ and offering ‘huge congratulations’ while describing him as ‘equally talented’ to Zoe.
Mills joined his friend on her show this morning and said he was ‘beyond excited’ to become host.
He said: ‘Zoe and I have been such good friends now for over 25 years and have spent much of that time as part of the same radio family here at Radio 2 and also on Radio 1. She’s done an incredible job on this show over the past six years, and I am 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. 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 was the BBC’s highest-paid on-air female presenter in 2023/24 with a salary between £950,000 and £954,999, ranking her second on the list of top-earning talent behind Gary Lineker, according to the corporation’s annual report published in July.
Lineker revealed he had been axed from Match of the Day earlier this month, in the latest of a string of high profile BBC exits.
Ball was the first female host of the Radio 1 Breakfast Show in 1998, a post she held until 2000, and she also co-hosted the BBC’s Saturday morning children’s magazine Live & Kicking alongside Jamie Theakston for three years from 1996.
Ball told listeners this morning: ‘You know I think the world of you all, listeners, and it truly has been such a privilege to share the mornings with you, to go through life’s little ups and downs, we got through the lockdown together, didn’t we?
‘We’ve shared a hell of a lot, the good times, the tough times, there’s been a lot of laughter. And I am going to miss you cats.’
She added: ‘But I won’t miss the 4am alarm call, if I’m completely honest.’
The pair were in good spirits as they stepped out following the end of Ball’s show
Ball collecting money for Children in Need at BBC Pacific Quay in Glasgow on November 15
Mills and Ball with Pudsey for a DIY SOS Children in Need special in November 2022
Ball said she was ‘thrilled’ to reveal Scott Mills, 51, as her replacement
Zoe had taken a break from hosting over the summer before returning in September. This is the social media post announcing her return
Ball has endured a difficult year, including losing her mother Julia Peckham to pancreatic cancer back in April
How Scott Mills went from commercial radio aged 16 to the heights of BBC broadcasting
Eastleigh-born Scott Mills launched his broadcasting career aged 16 at Power FM, a local commercial station in Hampshire, which made him the youngest permanent presenter on mainstream radio.
He moved to GWR FM in Bristol, followed by Piccadilly Key 103 in Manchester before later joining Heart 106.2.
Mills joined BBC Radio 1 in 1998 as host of the Early Breakfast Show and went on to host many different shows across the station before launching the Scott Mills Show in 2004 and later fronting The Official Chart Show in 2018.
He first presented on Radio 2 in 2017, when he hosted a show from 10pm to 2am during Sara Cox’s Dance-A-Thon for Comic Relief, and was then a regular voice on the station.
In he, Scott also began hosting a weekly show with Chris Stark on 5 Live, presenting his final show in August 2022. Scott joined Radio 2 permanently in October 2022 to present the weekday afternoon show from 2pm to 4pm.
He has been a part of the BBC’s Eurovision presenting team since 2011, and with his ‘Eurovision husband’ Rylan Clark has also presented Radio 2’s coverage of the Eurovision final since 2022.
Mills also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing in 2011, and earlier this year, won BBC One’s Celebrity Race Across the World with his husband Sam Vaughan.
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In an official statement, she 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.’
Ball said her last show will be on December 20, adding: ‘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!’
The presenter’s decision to step away from the show comes after she sparked concern with a mysterious six-week absence from the airwaves.
In September, she returned to air with business as usual as she offered her fans a lively welcome back and asked listeners ‘what have I missed?’
Spreading positivity on first show back, Zoe paid tribute to both Jamie Theakston and Lauren Laverne following their struggles with cancer.
The star ‘sent on the love she has received’ to the pair as she wished them well during their treatment.
She told listeners: ‘I must say while we are sending some love, our breakfast friend Laura Laverne our mate at six music is currently going through some cancer treatment.
‘She is doing OK but just wanted to send my love out to her.’
Ball also paid tribute to her old colleague Theakston, adding: ‘And my dear live and kicking Priory mate, Jamie Theakston who is also having some treatment for cancer at the moment.
‘He is going to be OK and he is doing well.
‘Sending so much love to them. So a lot of the love I got to me I am sending back to them.’
Ball recently split from her long term partner Michael Reed, 53
Ball was previously married to DJ Norman ‘Fatboy Slim’ Cook from 1999 to 2016, and they share two children together. This picture was taken in 1999
Following the split she began dating cameraman and technician Billy Yates, who tragically took his own life in May 2017 after a long battle with depression
Theakston revealed in September that he is currently undergoing treatment for stage 1 laryngeal cancer.
Meanwhile, Laverne told fans last month that she was recovering from the illness after it was picked up ‘unexpectedly’ during a screening test.
Ball has had her own personal experience with cancer this year after her mum Julia Peckham died of pancreatic cancer back in April.
The star was told to ‘take all the time she needs’ following the death of her beloved mother, but she returned to work on May 13.
It was the latest in a series of personal blows that the presenter has had to endure.
Her five-and-a-half year relationship with Michael Reed recently broke down, and seven years ago her partner Billy Yates took his own life in May 2017.
Mr Yates’s death came after the breakdown of Ms Ball’s 18-year marriage to DJ Fatboy Slim, real name Normal Cook.
Reaction to the news on social media has been mixed, with one listener branding him ‘such a terrible replacement’ while another called this morning’s announcement ‘horrific news’
In addition to presenting the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, Ball hosted BBC spin-off show Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two, and ITV’s reality compeтιтion show Mamma Mia! I Have A Dream.
Trevor Nelson will take over BBC Radio 2’s weekday afternoon slot from 2pm to 4pm after Scott Mills departs to take over the station’s Breakfast Show.
In a statement, he said it is the ‘ultimate privilege as a broadcaster to entertain the nation on the biggest station in the UK every day’.
He added: ‘I’m looking to have lots of fun and will be bringing a bit of soul to the new show.’
His Rhythm Nation show, which he hosts Monday to Thursday from 10pm to midnight, will be replaced by DJ Spoony’s The Good Grove, which he currently hosts on Friday nights from 9pm to 11pm.
Meanwhile, Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s Kitchen Disco will be extended from one to two hours with the pop star set to bring her party to Friday nights from 9pm to 11pm.
She said: ‘I can’t wait to bring my Kitchen Disco to Friday nights on Radio 2, when we will wave goodbye to the past week and bring on the weekend together in true disco style.’
Mills won Celebrity Race Across the World with his husband Sam Vaughan in September. Ball was invited to their wedding
Mills with Mel C and Ball after completing his Great Scott TreadMills Challenge to raise money Children In Need in November 2022
Helen Thomas, Head of Radio 2, said of Ball’s decision to step down: ‘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 she’ll remain an important part of the Radio 2 family.’
How Zoe Ball transformed herself from the poster girl of wild ladette culture to embrace a quiet family life after her struggles with alcohol sparked a stint in rehab
By Laura Fox
Zoe Ball has faced a turbulent life, battles with alcohol, relatonship woes and devastating family loss.
Despite kickstarting her career as the poster girl of the ladette lifestyle, in later years Zoe has transformed herself, admitting last year she prefers listening to Gardeners World over a wild night out.
The BBC Radio 2 star was hit by a devastating blow when she revealed that her ‘dear mama’ Julia had sadly pᴀssed away, after battling pancreatic cancer.
Zoe had taken a break from her radio work to help care for her mother during her final weeks.
MailOnline takes how Zoe has evolved from being a fixture on the London party scene, to a low-key star with a quiet family life…
Ladette life
During her rise to fame in the 1990s, Zoe became the image of so-called ‘ladette culture’ thanks to her wild partying
Zoe has also confssed that while preparing to host her Radio 1 show live in Ibiza, she was so ‘high’ she had trouble speaking while hosting the live broadcast
During her rise to fame in the 1990s, Zoe became the image of so-called ‘ladette culture’ thanks to her wild partying.
She previously told Grazia Magazine: ‘I loved it at first. Hanging out with people who partied every day, woke at 5pm, had a few sH๏τs of vodka and a bag of chips, then went clubbing again.’
The star has also admitted that at times her partying was so wild, she only has ‘vague memories’ of her time at the helm of the BBC Radio 1 Breakfast Show.
She added: ‘It was quite a time. It was the Nineties. It was wild, it was wild.’
Zoe has also confssed that while preparing to host her show live in Ibiza, she was so ‘high’ she had trouble speaking while hosting the live broadcast.
She added that her behaviour also began to concern BBC bosses, saying: ‘I remember turning up one day looking at the clock and trying to say it’s ten past seven – and all the words came out in the wrong order.
‘So something had to give. I know the bosses were a bit concerned about my health – and my mental health.’
Alcohol struggles
In previous years, Zoe has detailed her struggles with alcohol and wild partying, having become the poster girl for ladette culture
She said it took her several attempts to tackle her alcohol problem that accompanied her career from children’s television presenter to the first female host of Radio 1’s Breakfast Show
Explaining how she finally dealt with her problem drinking, Zoe says: ‘I was lucky enough to go to rehab actually and through meeting other people who had addictions as well’
In previous years, Zoe has detailed her struggles with alcohol and wild partying, having become the poster girl for ladette culture.
The mother-of-two said it took her several attempts to tackle her alcohol problem that accompanied her career from children’s television presenter to the first female host of Radio 1’s Breakfast Show.
‘You’ll find that you’ll deal with it a little bit but then you slip back into old ways,’ she says. ‘It took me a couple of attempts to sort that out.’
Explaining how she finally dealt with her problem drinking, Zoe says: ‘I was lucky enough to go to rehab actually and through meeting other people who had addictions as well.’
Her reputation as a party girl increased after her 1999 marriage to superstar DJ Fatboy Slim, when she often found herself among other female stars known for their booze-fuelled antics.
‘It’s weird, because you do this job and you are talking and are gregarious and all these things but I am actually quite shy. But you could walk into the room if you’d had a drink.’
She credits her appearance in the 2005 series of Strictly Come Dancing, when she came third, for allowing her to reinvent herself as an adult presenter.
‘You go from this sort of ladette, this sort of boozy person who is always in trouble,’ she says.
‘I went on Strictly and people did a double-take. I will always be grateful to that show.’
Marital antics
In 2016, Zoe revealed that she had split from her husband Norman Cook , known as Fatboy Slim, after 18 years of marriage (pictured in 2002)
Their romance began in 1997 after they met in Ibiza and they married two years late
For 18 years, Zoe was married to veteran DJ Fatboy Slim, whose real name is Norman Cook, before they split in 2016.
Their romance began in 1997 after they met in Ibiza and they married two years later – but split briefly in 2003 when it emerged she had an affair with a close friend of her husband’s DJ Dan Peppe.
While Zoe had painted herself as a low-key mother-of-two during her marriage, the final years of her relationship with Norman were tinged with drama.
Despite releasing a statement insisting their marital split was an amicable one, a source told The Sun at the time: ‘Zoe packed her bags and left. They have been arguing a lot recently and she decided she’d had enough.’
The newspaper claims the marriage has been in trouble in their marriage for months when the couple fought during a trip to Ibiza.
The source added: ‘There was a row about her drinking and it all came out then. Zoe is supposed to be dry but she has been going out drinking more and more with girlfriends.’
It also came nine months after Zoe was seen embracing Franklin Lake singer Tay Tay Starhz at the 2015 wrap party for Strictly Come Dancing’s BBC2 spin-off show It Takes Two.
Zoe reportedly met the rising pop star at Soho’s Freedom nightclub in the early hours of the morning.
She revealed she was feeling worse for wear on Twitter the following day, writing: ‘Ouch. It Takes Two wrap party last night. Piecing together the crews drunken antics in Soho.’ (sic)
A spokesman for Zoe dismissed her antics on the night out, insisting: ‘This was nothing more than a silly moment at a Christmas party that meant absolutely nothing.’
Later, the presenter alluded to the kiss on Twitter with a post that read: ‘Ouch. It Takes Two wrap party last night. Piecing together the crew’s drunken antics in Soho.’
Further playing down the incident, Zoe later joked of her husband: ‘He has always said he wants his gravestone to read, ‘Norman was a very patient man.’ And that sums it up really!’
Despite a turbulent end to their marriage, Norman and Zoe have stayed on good terms, with the DJ discussing their relationship in a 2023 interview, sharing that Zoe would ‘check him’ on his behaviour.
He told the Changes podcast: ‘One thing I did have to keep a lid on during that crazy time was my ego.
‘While you’ve got licence to break rules, you’ve always got a lot of people who’ll let you get away with murder.
‘Zoe was really good for me for that, because she knew the fame game and we would sort of check each other.
‘If I wasn’t respectful to people, she’d go: ‘Oi, come on, that’s not how we behave! Go back and thank them for that.’
‘We were both quite good at keeping each other’s feet on the ground. Because it’s hard when everyone’s saying: ‘Here, have this, take this, drink this, you’re brilliant.’
‘It’s hard to keep some kind of limit and say: ”I am actually a human being, not a superstar.” I think we probably saved each other a lot of bother.’
Motherhood
Zoe has previusly credited the birth of her daughter Nelly with helping herself and her then-husband Norman quit booze
In 2012, Zoe shared that she had given up booze in 2009, telling MailOnline: ‘It meant I was on time for Chris [Evans] show and I never had a hangover. I haven’t touched a drop since January 2009, although I do have a boozy dessert now and again.
‘The problem was that if I opened a bottle of wine, I couldn’t have just one, or maybe two, glᴀsses. I had the whole bottle. It got to the point when it was easier not to drink anything at all.’
The star, who is parents to son Woody, 23, and daughter Nelly, 14, credited the arrival of her second child with helping herself and then-husband Norman to quit alcohol.
She said: ‘The truth is, she came along when we both stopped drinking. I’m sure that’s the reason.
‘The fact we hadn’t managed to have another child for all those years and then Nelly was conceived when we gave up the booze must be linked. It felt like our reward. Very much so.
‘Now, I’m really enjoying having hit my 40s. There’s a feeling of relief that I can take life at a slightly slower pace.
‘I’ve also come to understand the joy you get from your kids. It’s wonderful watching them grow and discover the world. It feels like a good time at the moment.’
Single life
After she and Norman split, Zoe began dating her longtime friend Billy Yates in 2017, but he tragically died by suicide that year after a long battle with depression
After she and Norman split, Zoe began dating her longtime friend Billy Yates in 2017, but he tragically died by suicide that year after a long battle with depression.
In an emotional 2020 interview, the star admitted that Billy’s death was ‘the hardest thing she’s ever had to deal with in her life.’
Zoe went onto date model Michael Reed, but they split in 2023, with sources claiming that he relationship began to break down after he became ‘a bit demanding’.
In recent years the star has set up home in a £1.5 million mansion in SusSєx.
The six-bedroom property, which was created by Baron Vladimir de Wolff in the 1920s, has a swimming pool, tennis court and acres of gardens.
At the time, Zoe, daughter of Johnny Ball, put her 18th century cottage in Ditchling on the market for £1.25 million, £275,000 more than she paid for it two years prior.
Before that, In February 2018, the BBC star sold her beachfront mansion in Brighton for £2.5million before moving to the period property in a quiet village.
From wild raves to ‘quiet nights’
She told The Mirror how she now pops into parties only briefly before heading home to put her feet up (pictured in 2003)
In 2023, Zoe shared that she has left her partying days behind her for quiet nights at home watching Gardners’ World after beating her battle with booze.
She told The Mirror how she now pops into parties only briefly before heading home to put her feet up.
‘I do the French exit now. I go early. Everyone sees you, and you get to see your friends. Then I do a ‘Woohoo’ and they don’t ever remember you weren’t there for a bit.
Adding: ‘I am back in bed with some crumpets and watching Gardeners’ World by 10 most nights’.
Gardners’ World is a series that fist debuted on the BBC way back in 1968 offering viewers tips and advice for their own outdoor spaces.
Reflecting on her past, the mother of two, who shares son Woody, 23 and daughter Nell, 13, with ex-husband Norman Cook said she was glad to have her crazy ‘tales to tell’.
‘Woody’s quite impressed by it. Nell’s not impressed by it yet, hopefully one say she will be’.
Family support
In April 2024, Zoe shared the sad news that her ‘dear mama’ had pᴀssed away after a short battle with pancreatic cancer
The BBC Radio 2 star announced in early March that her mother had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was being ‘incredibly brave’
Although Zoe’s parents, Julia and Johnny, split when she was just a toddler, she maintained a close relationship with them in later years.
In April 2024, Zoe shared the sad news that her ‘dear mama’ had pᴀssed away after a short battle with pancreatic cancer.
The BBC Radio 2 star announced in early March that her mother had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and was being ‘incredibly brave’.
Earlier that week, Zoe told her BBC Radio 2 listeners Julia had been transferred to a hospice, as she dedicated a Bon Jovi song to paramedics who helped her.
In a tribute, she said: ‘Sleep тιԍнт dear Mama. Thank you for teaching us how to love unconditionally, to always show courage and empathy. And how, even in the darkest of days, laughter is the greatest of gifts.
It continued: ‘We are bereft without you but will hold so тιԍнт to each other. Your grace & your smile that lit up every room you were in, will light the stars to guide us.’
After announcing her mother’s illness last month, Gaby Roslin ‘occasionally’ stepped in to replace her on The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show so the pair could spend time together.
Zoe shared the heartbreaking news a week earlier that Julia was being transferred into hospice care, telling listeners that things were ‘pretty tough at the moment for the family.’
She said: ‘Things are really tough for my mum at the moment, just sending out loads of love. Love you Mum.’
Zoe revealed her mother’s pancreatic cancer diagnosis on March 6, as she told fans on social media she would be taking time away from her BBC show to focus on her family, who were going through ‘tough times’ – but added her mother was being extremely ‘brave’.
Zoe shared the heartbreaking news a week earlier that Julia was being transferred into hospice care, telling listeners that things were ‘pretty tough at the moment for the family’
Despite her mother’s diagnosis, Zoe remained positive as she told fans at the time she is ‘in awe’ of the nurses and doctors in charge of her care.
Posting a picture of Julia surrounded by family last month, as well as a second of her receiving chemotherapy in hospital, she wrote: ‘Heartbreakingly our beautiful Mama Julia has been diagnosed with Cancer.
‘As many of you know from experience, these are extremely tough times. Mum is being incredibly brave.
‘My brother Jamie & I are completely in awe of the brilliant Doctors, Nurses & support teams looking after Mum. Thank you.
‘Graтιтude to our families & our extended family & friends at home & at work for their support at this time.
‘Sending out love to people reading this who are battling cancer, or awaiting diagnosis & also to the folk looking after their dear ones who are poorly.’
