BBC’s Steve Wright death latest: Tributes pour in for beloved Radio DJ and Top of the Pops presenter

Steve Wright’s family confirmed his passing today.

They said: ‘It is with deep sorrow and profound regret that we announce the passing of our beloved Steve Wright.

‘In addition to his son, Tom, and daughter, Lucy, Steve leaves behind his brother, Laurence and his father Richard.

‘Also, much-loved close friends and colleagues, and millions of devoted radio listeners who had the good fortune and great pleasure of allowing Steve into their daily lives as one of the UK’s most enduring and popular radio personalities.

‘As we all grieve, the family requests privacy at this immensely difficult time.’

In an Instagram video, he said: ‘[Wright] was not only the best at what he did, he was basically the only at what he did.

‘There had been zoo radio in the United States with Scott Shannon, but Steve really perfected it. And he is one of the all time greats and will never be replaced, because he can never be replaced.

‘No one else here did what he did, and he did it regularly.’

He added: ‘We will love him forever.’

Wright took over from Gambaccini on BBC Radio 2’s Pick Of The Pops in October 2023 and was known for honing the zoo radio format with his show Steve Wright In The Afternoon.

‘We were all shattered in the Radio 2 family because it’s very sudden and we are beginning to hear the very last programme he recorded and that incredible life that he had, that energy in his voice is there,’ Jeremy Vine said.

‘In fact when I think about it, it always amazed me. He was my neighbour on-air at BBC Radio 2 for 20 years. He had done 20 years before that.

‘The very last show he did, which was three or four days before he died, he still had the same energy he had when he was 25.

‘He is an absolute pro, he is someone we all look up to.’

Head of BBC Radio 2, Helen Thomas, said Wright ‘understood the connection and companionship that radio engenders better than anyone, and we all loved him for it.

‘He was a consummate professional whose attention to detail was always second to none, and he made his guests laugh, he was fair, and he wanted to showcase them and their work in the best possible light, bringing brilliant stories to our listeners’, she added.

She recalled feeling ‘pure amazement’ watching him 20 years ago when he became the first presenter she produced.

‘For all of us at Radio 2, he was a wonderful colleague and a friend with his excellent sense of humour, generosity with his time, and endless wise words,’ she added.

‘We were lucky to have him with us for all these decades, and we will miss his talent and his friendship terribly.’

‘He created a kind of club which whether he was interviewing you or whether you were enjoying it as a listener, you looked forward to joining every day,’ she said.

‘It is a very rare quality, and he made it sound easy. It was frequently very funny, and when he left his daily afternoon show he really knocked a hole in the day for many of us who relied on his company.

‘He will be a real loss.’

Tony Blackburn told Sky News tonight: ‘I heard about it this afternoon and couldn’t believe it.Steve and I were great friends and he was a one-off and we got on so well together.’

He said every Sunday, ‘up until recently’ they would meet up and ‘talk complete rubbish’ together and make each other laugh.

Mr Blackburn said Steve Wright was one of his favourite DJs ‘of all time’.

‘He will be remembered as a greater broadcaster who made a lot of people very happy including myself and I will miss him very much.’