Zoe Ball's final BBC Radio 2 song with incredibly sad meaning and secret message

Zoe Ball wrapped up her six-year run on BBC Radio 2's Breakfast Show today with an emotional farewell and a meaningful musical choice

Zoe Ball, 54, said an emotional goodbye to her BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show today, wrapping up her six-year run with a meaningful musical choice.

For her final song, she played Kim Wilde’s version of Keeping the Dream Alive, originally released in 1988 by the German band Münchener Freiheit. Wilde's 2015 cover, from her Wilde Winter Songbook album, brought a fresh take on the song’s message of hope and perseverance.

Keeping the Dream Alive is all about holding on to your dreams despite life’s challenges, making it a perfect song for Zoe as she moves on to the next chapter. Her decision to step away from the breakfast show was to spend more time with her family, especially with her daughter’s upcoming exams. Zoe thanked her team and listeners for their support through the years and welcomed Scott Mills, who will take over the show in the new year.

By choosing this song, Zoe not only reflected on her own journey but also left her audience with an inspiring message to keep chasing their dreams as she begins a new phase of her life.

One line of the song, "The game will never be over because we're keeping the dream alive" feels particularly fitting as Zoe embarks on a new chapter. Her decision to leave the Breakfast Show is not the end of her story, but a new beginning.

This comes after Zoe teases a totally new career in emotional chat with Robbie Williams. Angels hitmaker Robbie, was one of the big names who popped in to wish Zoe the best as she embarks on a new chapter in life. "Oh and by the way, congratulations to you on your service to entertainment" the singer began in his tribute as he appeared on Zoe's BBC Radio 2 show this morning.

"I know this is not the end completely for you," he continued, before Zoe piped up to joke: "Or is it? I'm taking up gardening. I'm going to work in a garden centre" Getting back on track with his on-air accolade, Robbie tweaked his planned tribute to tell the DJ: "Well I just want to say thank you for your services SO FAR to the entertainment world, to BBC Radio 2, to all that have gone before you and will come after you, but to you in particular."

Zoe revealed on her BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show on November 19 that she she felt it was time for her to "step away from the very early mornings and focus on family". The radio DJ, who took over presenting the morning programme in 2019 from Chris Evans, took a break from hosting her show over the summer, returning in September, and in April this year announced the death of her mother Julia Peckham.

The mum-of-two was the BBC’s highest-paid on-air female presenter in 2023/24 with a salary between £950,000 and £954,999, ranking her second on the list of top-earning talent behind Gary Lineker, according to the corporation’s annual report published in July. She was the first female host of the Radio 1 Breakfast Show in 1998, a post she held until 2000, and she also co-hosted the BBC’s Saturday morning children’s magazine Live & Kicking alongside Jamie Theakston for three years from 1996.

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