Steve Wright: Radio 2 listeners pay tribute
- Published
Steve Wright - pictured here in 1979 - presented BBC radio programmes for over four decades
A constant presence, a comfort to hospital patients and a "friend" - BBC Radio 2 listeners have been paying tribute to veteran presenter Steve Wright, who has died at the age of 69.
Wrighty - as he was affectionately known - touched the lives of millions of people over his four decades on the airwaves.
The BBC has received hundreds of emails from listeners sharing their memories of the presenter.
'Constant companion'
Wright started his career at a local radio station in Reading back in 1976 and made an instant impression on Liz Scarff, who was working there at the time.
"A shy young blond was introduced to us as a newly recruited member of staff and we all shook hands with him. It was Steve Wright, who was so desperate to join that he'd take any job and apparently had been hired as a salesman. For some reason he stuck in my mind," she said.
He moved on to BBC Radio 1, where his weekday afternoon show attracted millions of listeners, and joined Radio 2 in 1996.
Rebecca Jakobsen, from Bolton but now living in Trondheim, first listened to Wright while he was on Radio 1.
"His afternoon show was always on in our shop, and I timed closing up to his closing jingle.
"Then, throughout all these years, his voice has been a constant companion. My kids who are now 14 and 16 grew up listening to him every evening as I made them dinner", she said.
Nick Clive, in Worthing, says listening to the DJ was the "highlight of my day" in the early 1990s.
"I remember living in a bedsit in the early 90s on the dole, no TV, no internet, no smartphones, living on £32 a week and generally bored stupid most of the time. But I had a radio and Steve Wright in the Afternoon was a major highlight of my day, humour mixed with good music it was awesome," he said.
'Precious memories'
The presenter helped people going through difficult times, says Lindsey Millington in Warwickshire, a fan of his Radio 2 shows.
Wright was a "legend" who got her through a "scary" hour-long scan when she was in hospital two years ago, she said.
"The nurses kindly let me listen to his radio show through my headphones, which cancelled out the noise of the scanner and instantly made me feel calm," she said.
Listening to Wrighty on the radio was just like he was "having a chat with you over a coffee", said Gavin Egan in Dorchester.
"He understood we all need a bit of simple entertainment and laughter when life can get tough. A one-off," he said.
Meanwhile, Sarita says Wright's shows brings back memories of her mum.
"My mum passed away last month, and listening to Steve Wright with her is one of my precious memories.
"We would always tune in to his Saturday afternoon show as we were getting ready to go and have coffee in town, carry on listening in the car and then hear his show echoing around the shops through the town centre," she said.
He also helped listeners feel connected to home. Chris Wootten, who now lives in Indonesia, says Wright "was my radio" while abroad.
"From listening to Steve whilst a student in UK to being a waiter in Amsterdam, a restaurant manager in Sun City, a hotel manager in the Caribbean, a club manager in Malaysia and now a business owner in Indonesia, Steve has always, and I mean always, been on my radio."
'Warm and friendly'
During the Covid pandemic, Wrighty's companionship helped listeners get through a period of isolation.
Charles Savin, from Bristol, said: "Radio 2 provided me and so many others with such vital company during those strange times, and Steve Wright was one of those familiar, friendly, funny voices that we needed now 'more than ever'."
And Terence Beckett, from Chelmsford, said Wright was the same on the radio as he was in real life.
He said he was "lucky enough to bump into him" on Great Portland Street in central London near the BBC a few years ago, and "he was as warm and friendly as he came across on the radio".
"Even if you'd never met him you'd consider him a friend, a special, special man and DJ... we will all miss him."
- Published13 February
- Published13 February
- Published14 February
