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Graham Norton has confirmed he will be leaving his weekend shows on Virgin Radio after three years.
The Irish presenter, 60, has presented The Graham Norton Radio Show on the station since 2021 alongside Maria McErlane.
Announcing the news of his departure live on Saturday’s show, Graham said: “It’s my last weekend of shows here at Virgin Radio.”
Graham added that he will not be leaving Virgin Radio entirely, but will be stepping away from the weekend show with immediate effect.
Their last show of the weekend will be Sunday, February 25.
Virgin Radio revealed that Angela Scanlon will be stepping in over the coming weeks and told listeners to “get ready for an exciting announcement”.
Graham Norton has confirmed he will be leaving his weekend shows on Virgin Radio after three years.
The Irish presenter said he will not leave Virgin Radio completely, but will step away from weekend programming with immediate effect.
When Graham first joined Virgin Radio, chief content officer Mike Cass said: ‘Graham Norton is one of the few truly unique talents in broadcasting. I’m delighted to welcome you to the Virgin Radio family in the new year.
“It will bring double the wit, double the jokes and double the love throughout Saturday and Sunday.”
Graham has repeatedly mentioned reducing his work and not wanting to continue until he is too old.
He told SiriusXm in September 2019: ‘We’re on the air right now 35 to 36 weeks a year. So if I cut it back, maybe take ten weeks off, then I think that would be ideal.
“What I could try to do is just reduce my workload.”
And in 2015 he said he would retire before turning 60.
He told the Mirror: “I won’t be jumping tomorrow but it’s on my head.” You want to get out when you can still enjoy your life.
Virgin Radio revealed that Angela Scanlon will be stepping in over the coming weeks and told listeners to “get ready for an exciting announcement”.
‘My neighbors worked and worked and took this unique trip around the world. They had to be airlifted three times because they were too old to make this trip. They got stuck on every walk they took.
‘So I don’t want to be them. You want to leave work when you still have time to enjoy your life.’
Graham is reportedly in the running to take over Steve Wright’s Love Songs on BBC Radio 2 following the veteran DJ’s death.
Wright, 69, was found dead in his £2m London flat days after allegedly speaking to BBC bosses and before a meeting to reportedly discuss the return of a new Radio 2 spin-off station with “pop nostalgia.”
And although the broadcaster had been unceremoniously booted from the station’s coveted afternoon slot in 2022 after 23 years, he had continued recording the weekly Steve Wright’s Love Songs, with the most recent edition airing last weekend.
Wright had headlined the show since 1996, featuring classic romantic themes, along with dedications and real-life love stories.
Singer and presenter Michael Ball (left) and veteran presenter and former Radio 2 presenter Graham Norton (right) are among the candidates to take over Love Songs.
The final edition, which had been recorded, will not air. But reports suggest the BBC plans to keep Love Songs going in some form with a new presenter.
Among those suggested by media experts are singer and presenter Michael Ball, Davina McCall and Graham, who presented a Saturday show for a decade until defecting to Virgin Radio in 2021.
Ball already presents a show on Radio 2 on Sundays, meaning he may have to give up the 11am slot if he wants to step into Wright’s shoes. Meanwhile, McCall replaced Claudia Winkleman, who will leave her Saturday mid-morning show in March.
Grant Michaels, director of talent agency Encanta, says the BBC is caught between trying to change the programming of the mainly male station and avoiding alienating Radio 2’s already dwindling audience.