Zoe Ball has taken a step back from the limelight, swapping her high-profile radio gig for a quieter life “working in a local cafe” and embracing a more relaxed pace. The former BBC Radio 2 breakfast show host, who left her role in December to “focus on her family”, has said goodbye to her hefty £950,000 salary.
Her son Woody, 24, has opened up about how Zoe has been filling her time with “lots of puzzles” and reigniting her passion for gardening post-BBC career.
Woody found it “funny” to see his “crazy party” parents, Zoe and Norman Cook, better known as Fatboy Slim, trading their lively nights out for a more down-to-earth life. “In the last five years, it’s been funny watching my parents take up gardening both of them,” he commented.
He then shared that his parents are now active at their local cafe, with Fatboy Slim owning the Big Beach Cafe in Hove, where he’s often spotted helping out, donning a name badge that reads: “Norm.”
Woody reflected on the shift, saying: “These crazy party people I grew up with are now gardening, making puzzles and working in the local café. It’s very funny to see that transitional period, just as I’m kind of leaving the nest and now at the start of something big for me in music,” during a chat with MailOnline, reports the Mirror.
Woody mentioned his mother’s decision to leave BBC Radio 2, which he’s pleased about as it means he can spend more quality time with her. He stated: “It’s lovely seeing my mum more, because obviously she’s had quite a weird schedule for the last few years.”
Zoe had revealed she would be leaving BBC Radio 2, following a prolonged absence over summer due to her mother’s passing.
In her on-air announcement, Zoe expressed her desire to “start a new chapter” after six years of presenting the Breakfast Show, although she confirmed she would still collaborate with Radio 2.
She explained: “Ok you lovely bunch, I have some news. After six years of fun times alongside you all on the Breakfast Show, I’ve decided it’s time to step away from the early alarm call and start a new chapter. You know I think the world of you all listeners, and it truly has been such a privilege to share the mornings with you, to go through life’s little ups and downs, we got through the lockdown together, didn’t we?”
Reflecting on her time presenting Radio 2’s Breakfast show, the host stated: “We’ve shared a hell of a lot, the good times, the tough times, there’s been a lot of laughter. And I am going to miss you cats. I’m going to miss my amazing Prod Squad who I adore. Already missing Mike, I’m going to miss Tina and Richie. They’ve all become like family to me, like you lot. But I won’t miss the 4am alarm call, if I’m completely honest. So my last Breakfast show will be with you on the 20th of December and then its high kicks all the way to Christmas, gang.”
Speaking of plans for the future, she announced that: “I’m not going to be a stranger, I’m staying in the Radio 2 crew and family because it’s an amazing family – as we saw last week with Paddy’s fantastic Children in Need challenge – and I’ll have more news on that in the New Year. I just want to say I’m so grateful to my incredible boss ladies, to Helen and Laura and Lorna and Fiona, they have always been so supportive of me especially in this job and particularly this year, so thank you ladies.”
The host also revealed plans to unveil the identity of her replacement later on the show with it being Scott Mills. Zoe made history as the first woman to host the Radio 1 Breakfast Show in 1998, a position she held until 2000. Additionally, she co-presented the BBC’s Saturday morning children’s programme Live and Kicking with Jamie Theakston for a three-year stint starting in 1996.