Beloved BBC station chief dies aged 45 as Vernon Kay stops Radio 2 show to pay tribute to ‘larger-than-life’ colleague
VERNON Kay stopped his BBC Radio 2 show to announce the death of his beloved colleague, station chief Ian Deeley.
The radio star paid tribute to his “larger than life” station manager Ian, 45, who passed away unexpectedly.
Ian’s cause of death remains unknown, with Vernon saying “the BBC family were devastated to hear that our brilliant studio manager, Ian Deeley.”
Vernon, 51, hailed his colleague’s passion for radio, saying Ian loved his job and had worked on most BBC radio stations.
The presenter went on to say: “Even though he was a relatively young chap, Ian had a long and illustrious career, during which he pretty much worked on every BBC radio station.
“His time at the BBC started with news shifts followed by production work and more recently, Ian was working with our colleagues on the outside broadcast team, or ‘the Broadside Outcasts’ as he jokingly called them.
“With the OB team, Ian worked on all manner of big radio stuff, including pop festivals, BBC Proms and numerous royal events.
“The one that stands out for us and our little team is the one where Ian personally made sure that our show from the beaches of Normandy a few years ago went seamlessly – and it did.
“Ian was our lead engineer on our D-Day [80th] celebrations and he was so dedicated that he went on a [reconnaissance trip] over to France in his own time, just to make sure everything was up to his incredible high standard.”
Vernon added: “Ian loved working with us here at Radio 2 and I know one of his career highlights was working with our friend, Steve Wright, he was thrilled to be able to be a part of the big show and as ‘one of the top operatives’ as Steve called him.
“Steve always said, ‘Ian, keep it cranked’ and he did.”
The radio star would go on to offer condolences to Ian’s mum, partner and brother on behalf of the Radio 2 staff.
Later in the show, Vernon thanked his listeners after they sent in some words of condolence.
Paying tribute to Ian himself Vernon said: “As an engineer, there were few better but there are also so many things we can say about Ian, the person.
“He was an exuberant, larger-than-life character who was always enthusiastic and brought a smile to everyone’s faces.”
He went on to say that he and his colleagues would miss Ian’s “quick wit.”
Hailing the work Ian and other team members do Vernon added: “As you can imagine at Radio 2, it’s not just the names in the Radio Times who do all the work.
“We do very little, we just talk when we put up the fader, I’ll be honest with you, myself and every on-air name included.
“It’s the massive team behind Radio 2 that make this network so successful.”