Vernon Kay's BBC Radio 2 show crashes off air and replaced with emergency music
BBC Radio 2 listeners were left baffled earlier today, as Vernon Kay's mid-morning show suffered a major technical blunder.
Vernon - who took over from broadcasting legend Ken Bruce on the mid-morning slot in May of last year -was chatting away to his audience as normal when his voice was suddenly cut off and listeners heard nothing but silence before "emergency tapes" began to play.
The dad-of-two, 49, was in the middle of saying: "When The Sun Goes Down reached number one in January..." before the malfunction happened. When he returned to air, the presenter confirmed Radio 2's system had crashed and needed to be rebooted. He said: "Right well that's exciting isn't it?"
Vernon went on to tell listeners: "Let me explain what's happened. Basically the system needed a reboot. That's what happened. Everything just crashed, literally crashed. We have a machine where we play all the music off and that's gone kaput. That's got warning signs flashing in front of me. I don't know whether it's overheated or having a day but it's gone kaput."
Vernon stepped into Ken's shoes on the mid-morning slot in May last year. Ken, 72, left to join commercial rival Greatest Hits Radio in March after hosting the same BBC slot since 1986 - with Vernon announced as his replacement two months later. Vernon has always said there are no hard feelings between them and they often have a chat on their way to work.
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He told The Radio Times: "We take the same train every morning! He gets on a few stops further down the line but we bump into each other all the time we say hello and have a chinwag." Talking about the big shoes he had to fill when taking over from Ken, Vernon added: "Ken did 31 years in the mid-morning slot but in 31 years, I'll be 80. There's no way I'll be sat at this desk! It's a precious slot that needs the utmost respect. It's not about me or Ken, it's about the listener."
Vernon Kay admitted 'everything's crashed' (BBC/PA Wire)Earlier this month, Vernon paid tribute to legendary broadcaster Steve Wright, who was a famous voice on BBC Radio 1 and 2, following his passing at the age of 69. Speaking on his Radio 2 show in the wake of Steve's death being announced, Vernon said: "As we know, the big news story our dear friend and colleague Steve Wright has passed.
"I am not going to get down about it because that's what Steve would have wanted. He'd have wanted us to celebrate so I am going to do the show today with a smile on my face and think of the big man, the don, the master of his craft. He was an absolute perfectionist and that's what we will try and do today." He added: "It really is a sad loss, but I am not going to think about it throughout the show because I will get really upset."
Steve's death rocked BBC Radio 2, with presenter Nicki Chapman breaking down as she paid tribute to Steve on the Breakfast Show. "It is so difficult to sum up what Steve meant to all of us," the former Pop Idol star began saying. "The devastatingly sad news has come as a complete shock. Everyone seems to have such fond memories of our Wrighty because that's how we viewed and that's how we listened to him. He was ours. He was our mate, talking to us in our kitchens as we made a brew, in our bedrooms, in the shower, in our cars, taxis, lorries, in our form rooms at school, in our gardens, at work - he was always in our hearts."
Sara Cox, another Radio 2 presenter, also gave a heartfelt homage to Steve, stating that she was determined to make him "proud" with her show. On air as Steve's death was announced, Sara told her listeners: "It's really hard to know what to say about the news of Steve Wright's passing, except we are all absolutely devastated and shocked and blindsided by this news. Steve was an extraordinary broadcaster, a really, really. kind person. He was witty, he was warm, and he was a huge, huge part of the Radio 2 family, and I know my fellow DJs will all be absolutely shattered too."
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