Ken Bruce gives brutal nine-word verdict on BBC Radio 2's future

Ken Bruce has shared his thoughts on the future of the BBC following his departure from the broadcaster.

Bruce hosted Radio 2's popular weekday morning show for over three decades before moving to rival station Greatest Hits Radio in January 2023, ending a 31-year tenure.

Since his departure, the 73-year-old radio host has expressed concern about the BBC's future, urging the broadcaster to be cautious about its direction.

He expressed that while commercial radio is thriving and expanding, reinventing something as established as the Radio 2 schedule is a challenging task.

He told the Times: "I do worry for the future of the BBC. I think it needs to watch where it is going.

"Commercial radio is really healthy; it is growing and growing and growing. And I just think it's difficult to reinvent something [the Radio 2 schedule] that has been successful for many years.

"It's a slow organisation to turn around, like a supertanker. It needs people with vision to make sure it goes the right way."

Bruce's departure sparked controversy, given his high popularity and significant influence during his radio career, while it was later suggested he had been forced to leave the BBC earlier than he intended.

However, the star has since offered advice to those in the industry who are much "younger" and "less experienced" than him.

"I think some younger people in broadcasting, less experienced people, can say, 'They want to hear me talk about myself'. And that's not necessarily true.

"It's not about what you say, it's what you don't say on the radio. You don't have to talk a lot to make an impression. You can do that in three words or a sentence. You don't have to talk for four minutes about what you were doing or what you thought was funny."