Radio legend Tony Blackburn, who’s been gracing the airwaves since his pirate radio days on Radio Caroline and Radio London in the 1960s, hasn’t lost a beat.
Launching Radio 1 with ‘Daily Disc Delivery’ in 1967, Tony has become an enduring voice at the BBC, and despite stepping away from his local radio gig last year, he remains a beloved figure on BBC Radio 2.
Celebrating an impressive 60 years in radio last year, Tony was probed about hanging up his headphones during a chat on Lorraine.
Kate Garraway, filling in on Wednesday’s show, remarked: “You don’t stop! You’ve got no intention of retiring and you keep moving.”
To which Tony responded: “No, I think it’s very important if you like what you’re doing, and I love what I’m doing, I love touring around with the band and everything.
“We’ve got a seven-piece band, two singers, and very good singers. I talk about the past and things like that, pirate ships and have a joke with the audience.
“So basically, I love what I’m doing so what’s the point in retiring? I love doing Radio 2.
“What’s to give up? I think when you give up and when you become retired, you have nothing to do! You’ve got to have something to keep your brain working, I think. I love it.”
Despite having no intention of hanging up his radio headphones just yet, the 82-year-old is well-acquainted with the small screen. Back in 2002, he braved the Aussie jungle for the inaugural series of ITV’s I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!
Tony was crowned the first ever King of the Jungle, beating the late socialite Tara Palmer-Tomkinson to the title.
With the celeb edition of The Traitors and Strictly Come Dancing set to hit our screens later this year, Kate was eager to find out if we can expect to see Tony back on the TV, reports the Express.
He responded: “I couldn’t do Strictly Come Dancing, I’m the worst dancer, I’ve got no rhythm whatsoever at all. I think, no I don’t think I really want to do another reality show.
“I loved doing I’m a Celebrity, it was great fun and I did the first one, I loved it. But it’s much harder now, I think. They’ve made it much harder.
“Being a vegetarian, I didn’t have to eat all that food; they gave me soy!”
Lorraine is available to watch on ITVX.
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