Ditch the dance: BBC Radio 2 fans complain about Scott Mills’ music choices after replacing Steve Wright
- Steve Wright, 68, was replaced by Scott Mills, 49, who moved from Radio 1
- Radio 2 listeners are accusing bosses of trying to turn the station into Radio 1
- Fans of Wright’s old show say Mills plays too much dance music
Listeners to Radio 2 have hit out at the decision to replace Steve Wright with Scott Mills, claiming bosses are trying to turn the station into Radio 1.
Fans of Wright’s old show, which was dropped in September, say Mills is playing too much dance music.
Wright, 68, was replaced by Mills, 49, who moved from Radio 1. But listeners contacted Radio 4 audience response show Feedback. One said Mills’ Radio 2 show was ‘aimed at Scott’s former Radio 1 listeners’. Another said: ‘Why the need for all this dance music?’
Listeners to Radio 2 have hit out at the decision to replace Steve Wright (left and right) with Scott Mills, claiming bosses are trying to turn the station into Radio 1
Head of Radio 2, Helen Thomas, said: ‘We are told by listeners that just because they are a certain age, it doesn’t mean they don’t want to hear new music.’
She said that while making a change like this was a ‘challenge’ she said part of the decision was to ‘look at what the audience are doing at that time and what mood they might be in’.
Scott Mills (pictured) replaced Steve Wright after his show was dropped in September
Miss Thomas added: ‘And then you start to think about how we could soundtrack that, or match the mood.’
Feedback’s presenter, Andrea Catherwood, said many listeners felt there had been a shift in the music playlists aimed at younger audiences and questioned whether the intention was to ‘entice’ Radio 1 listeners over to Radio 2.
The Radio 2 boss said Mills had been doing ‘bits and pieces’ on her station for the last five years but admitted she was ‘always looking to broaden the appeal of Radio 2’. However, she added she would ‘never do that at the expense of our existing listeners’.
She said she had personally heard Mills playing songs by Nina Simone, Stevie Wonder and Queen on his show.
