Vernon Kay's Radio 2 show had plenty of news, chief among it confirmation that Ben Earl of The Shires will become the new permanent host of the Radio 2 Country Show on Thursday nights from November, taking over after Bob Harris stepped down. Harris sent Earl a recorded message of congratulations, calling him "a wonderful" addition to "the Radio 2 family." Kay and Earl also revealed the 2027 line-up for Country to Country (C2C), which returns to London and Glasgow and, for the first time, Manchester, across 12–14 March. Headliners are Ashley McBride, Riley Green and Jelly Roll, with tickets on sale from Friday.
The week's Tracks of My Years guest is Linda Perry, 4 Non Blondes frontwoman turned hit songwriter. She opened with The Carpenters' "Superstar" and Sergio Mendes & Brasil '66, discussing a difficult childhood in San Diego and how Karen Carpenter's voice gave her "an emotional connection" during hard times.
Kay also paid tribute to D-Day veteran Ken Hay MBE, who has died aged 101, replaying part of their 2024 Normandy interview and reading messages from his sons. Elsewhere, Vernon's Vault marked Songs of Praise's 65th anniversary with a Thora Hird archive clip, and two listeners, Steve from Windermere and Julianne from Greater London, went head-to-head on the Ten to the Top quiz, with Julianne winning the smart speaker on 26 points. Record of the week was Taylor Swift's new track, while album of the week was Miley Cyrus's "Something Beautiful."
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