DJ Scott Mills' frank admission on BBC Radio paycheque as he takes over from Zoe Ball
DJ Scott Mills' frank admission on BBC Radio paycheque as he takes over from Zoe Ball
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Radio DJ Scott Mills is preparing to step into Zoe Ball’s shoes, taking over BBC Radio 2’s The Breakfast Show after the 51-year-old stepped down last year. As the BBC published how much their highest earners are getting paid, it’s likely 51 year old Scott’s salary for the stint will also be made public. It was revealed Zoe was earning a huge £950,000 a year. Earlier this year it was reported that Scott would be paid £450,000 a year, which is a small pay rise for the star.
Scott, however, is brushing off any talks surrounding his pay and revealed the minute pay packet he used to receive when he first started out as a radio DJ 35 years ago. “I’ve been doing this since I was 16 and I’ll tell you how much I got paid then — £20 a show,” he told The Sun. The show referenced was a five hour show from 1am-6am.
Although Scott acknowledges that there’s curiosity around salaries due to them being published by the publicly-funded BBC every year, he said: “I don’t think you can say that I haven’t played the long game. It’s not like some hotshot’s turned up and is earning all this cash,” before adding that no one likes discussing the topic of money.
The radio host recently opened up about the moment he received the news he’d be taking Zoe’s place, telling The Mirror ‘tears rolled down his face’. Scott recalled: “I cried in my dressing gown and Sam was upstairs, I said, 'Sam, come downstairs, come downstairs.' And, yeah, I fully sobbed.”.
“It's a massive gig and that isn't lost on me at all. And also I think I've been on BBC Radio for 25 years,“ Scott revealed. “Once I'd kind of calmed down from the sobbing, I was kind of having a real reflective moment of like, 'Well, I remember being a bit sad that I never got The Radio 1 Breakfast Show,' but then if I had at the time, would I be where I am now?”.
