Zoe Bawl! Tone it down, Radio 2 listeners tell host

WHEN Zoe Ball took over the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, she asked listeners to let her ‘bed in’ before judging her.

But six weeks after her debut as host, they clearly think she’s had long enough.

The former ‘ladette’ faces a backlash from Radio 2 fans complaining about her ‘shouty’ manner. They have also accused the DJ, right, of interrupting guests, talking too quickly and being too ‘over the top’ for mornings. Listener Chris O’Brian told Radio 4’s Feedback programme: ‘We’ve tried to listen to the new breakfast time with Zoe Ball but can’t stand the over-the-top, nonstop excitement any more. Who at the BBC thought that Zoe Ball was the best replacement for Chris Evans?’

Miss Ball took over from Evans last month on a £1.2million contract after he went to Virgin Radio. Defending her, one fan wrote on Facebook: ‘It’s interesting about the “shouty mornings”. I love a manic morning show. But that’s because I am a morning person.’ The impact Miss Ball, 48, has had on audience figures will not be clear until May, when data covering the first three months of 2019 is published.

A BBC spokesman said: ‘We’re thrilled with the launch of the all-new Zoe Ball Breakfast Show on Radio 2 and delighted with the overwhelmingly positive response we’ve received from the audience.’