03 April 2023 , 23:01
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Ken Bruce has said that he wasn't given the credit he deserved by BBC bosses following his premature exit after more than 40 years on Radio 2.
Veteran broadcaster Ken, 72, vacated his show last month, after more than 40 years with the BBC, claiming bosses were making him leave three weeks prematurely.
The much-loved radio broadcaster called the decision to cut short his final weeks by the BBC 'a shame' as he hosted his final show on 3 March.
He admitted he was 'a little surprised and disappointed' to discover he was being taken off the air early.
In a new interview this week, Ken has insisted that he wasn’t given the credit he deserved at the BBC as he expressed his disappointment with the way he was treated.
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Ken says he wasn't given the credit he deserved at BBC (PA)“There were times when I felt I wasn’t really noticed by either the BBC itself or some listeners. So I thought, ‘I’m going to make these people appreciate me," he told Radio Times.
“I thought that, after 45 years, I could be trusted to do the right thing for the next few weeks. But obviously it’s up to them. It’s their choice.”
Ken previously shared his disappointment at how he was forced to leave his job at Radio 2 three weeks before he was expected to say his final goodbye to his loyal listeners.
Ken was forced to leave his post at Radio 2 three weeks prematurely (Mike Lawn/REX/Shutterstock)"It’s entirely within the BBC’s right to ask me to step away a little early. But for the sake of 17 days, which was all that was remaining (on my contract), it seems a shame," he told Radio 4’s Today programme.
“My belief is that, when I’m given a contract, I work to it and complete it. Over the last 46 years I haven’t had very much time off. I’ve attempted to turn up whenever I’m required to turn up.
"So my natural feeling as a broadcaster is I’ve got 17 days to do, I want to do them.”
Veteran broadcaster Ken Bruce leaving BBC after his last day presenting his BBC Radio 2 show (PA)Ken announced he would be leaving Radio 2 in January, becoming the latest big name star to part ways with the station.
He follows in the footsteps of late Paul O’Grady, Graham Norton, Chris Evans, Craig Charles and Vanessa Feltz in what has been described as a ‘legends exodus’.
The DJ is not retiring though – he is moving to rival station Greatest Hits Radio to present a new mid-morning show from 10am to 1pm.