Steve Wright has passed away at the age of 69, leaving long-term listeners, colleagues and friends devastated. He was found dead by emergency services at his home in central London on 12 February. Wright’s family released a statement announcing the death of their ‘beloved Steve’, and mentioned ‘the 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’.
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Wright joined Radio 1 in 1980 and hosted his iconic Steve Wright in the Afternoon show from 1981-93 before moving to Radio 2 in 1996. He continued in the afternoon slot for 24 years and when he was replaced in 2022, he still presented the Sunday Love Songs and Pick of the Pops segments. Winning the hearts of the nation over years on the airwaves, he was even awarded an MBE in the 2024 New Year Honours list for services to radio. The news of his death comes just one month after the death of Annie Nightingale, the first woman to host Radio 1. Let’s take a look at his heartbreaking final appearance on the radio, and the touching tributes from friends.
Wright’s final appearance on air
Wright was last heard on the radio on Sunday, when he hosted a Valentine’s Day special. During the show, he promised listeners that he would be back next week. Wright had always remained a loyal and consistent presenter over the years, and in 2022 when the radio decided to take a different approach in order to attract a younger crowd, he reacted with professionalism and humour:
I’ve been doing this programme for 24 years, so how can I possibly complain? I can’t hog the slot forever.
Helen Thomas, head head of Radio 2 who delivered the news to Wright, explained that he ‘understood the connection and companionship that radio engenders better than anyone, and we all loved him for it’.
Tributes from friends and colleagues
Wright’s former co-host Janey Lee Grace, who worked with the veteran presenter for 24 years, said she was ‘absolutely devastated’ by the news:
He was just so funny and we really didn’t stop laughing for the 24 years we worked together.
He was incredibly relatable... he always fought so hard to make sure everything we ever did was completely relatable to everyone
Lora Clarke, director of BBC Music, explained that Steve’s priority had always been his listeners:
Steve was an extraordinary broadcaster – someone audiences loved, and many of us looked up to. He loved radio, and he loved the BBC, but most of all… he loved his audience.
The shock of his death has added to the heartbreak felt by those who knew him; Radio 2 DJ Jo Whiley said at the start of her show that she had seen him just ‘days ago’. She explained it was extremely hard to know what to say’:
It’s very hard to find the words to say and to talk about someone in the past tense when it’s someone that you wish was very much still here. So it’s tough. The Radio 2 family are devastated.
Heart surgery update
Since, it has come to light that Wright had had surgery months before his death, but had kept it under wraps. After Wright's brother stated that his lifestyle and diet probably had a part to play in his death, his close friend Mark Wells revealed:
Steve told me he had a heart operation about 14 or 15 months ago. He had a bypass operation that had gone well… but I think he had been more ill than he was letting on. The recovery had gone pretty well but the events of the last couple of days was probably what in the end came for him.
Wright’s cause of death remains unknown.
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Sources used:
Independent: Steve Wright death – latest: Sara Cox leads tributes to legendary BBC Radio 1 and 2 DJ
The Telegraph: Steve Wright, ‘truly wonderful’ BBC Radio DJ, dies aged 69
Entertainment Daily: Steve Wright ‘underwent heart surgery’ months before his death: ‘He had been more ill than he was letting on’
