Graham Norton jokes he left BBC Radio 2 as he was sick of climbing studio stairs
Graham Norton has revealed why he left BBC Radio 2 for Virgin.
The chat show and radio host, 57, announced in November that he was leaving his show after 10 years, but would continue to work with the BBC on a number of other projects.
These include The Graham Norton Show, his hit chat show which hosts the biggest celebs in the world.
He’s now headed to Virgin Radio, and will make his debut across Saturday and Sunday this weekend.
Opening up on Times Radio about his reasons for leaving on Times Radio, Graham told Mariella Frostrup: “I’d been doing the show for ten years, it got as big as it was going to get and doing it in lockdown had taken a lot of the joy out of it – and you had to climb six flights of stairs to the studio…
(Image: Getty Images for BFI)
“Partly it was the excitement of doing a show across the weekend, doing Saturdays and Sundays. It was also the feeling of being my age and somebody wanting me.”
And teasing what’s to come this weekend, Graham added: “The show will be very close to what I was doing already, which is just me playing some music and rambling on with my old mates.
“Maria McErlane will be there and hopefully, we’ll get some listener interaction and feedback from them.”
(Image: NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Graham said in November: “Obviously I’m sad to be stepping away from my Radio 2 show. I’ll miss being a part of the Wogan House family, as well as the listeners and their lives.
“I’d like to thank my producer Malcolm Prince and all the teams I’ve worked with for a great decade of radio.
“Happily with the chat show, Eurovision and Drag Race the BBC continues to be my perfect TV home.”
Graham will be joining RuPaul again for Drag Race UK’s second season, alongside the likes of Alan Carr and newcomer Gemma Collins.
Gemma is thought to be taking part in the show’s Snatch Game episode.
*Tune in to the Graham Norton Show every Saturday and Sunday from 9.30am-12.30pm on Virgin Radio. You can listen to the show ad-free on DAB, online, via the free Virgin Radio app or on your smart speaker.