Liza Tarbuck fought back tears as she paid tribute to Steve Wright during the last ever episode of his Sunday Love Songs show on BBC Radio 2. The 59-year-old presenter asked listeners to 'light a candle' for the legendary DJ, who died suddenly at the age of 69 on Monday.
Opening the special 'Remembering Steve Wright' episode, Tarbuck said: 'This is Steve Wright's Sunday Love Songs but without the chief, without our genius friend.' Her voice shaking, she added: 'So while you're getting a tissue, I think it would be lovely if you lit him a candle. I make no apologies if I get upset over the next two hours and I don't think you should either.'
Wright's final show was a pre-recorded Valentine's Day edition broadcast last Sunday, in which he told listeners: 'I'll be back for more love songs next Sunday, ta-da then.' He was found dead at his home the following day.
It has emerged that Wright underwent secret heart bypass surgery about 14 or 15 months ago, after BBC bosses axed his afternoon show. Friend Mark Wells said: 'I think he had been more ill than he had been letting on.' Neighbours reported that Wright became extremely withdrawn after the death of his ex-wife Cyndi Robinson in July 2020, with one saying he 'completely shut down'.
Wright's son Tom, who returned from Los Angeles to care for his father, said in a social media post: 'It meant the world to me that I was able to get to know my Dad in a way I never had in the months before he died.'
