Sara Cox, the new host of the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, has revealed she developed an aversion to Oasis for years after a run-in with Liam Gallagher. The incident occurred in the late 1990s when Cox was a presenter on Channel 4's The Girlie Show, which featured a segment called 'W***** Of The Week' where the team would mock a public figure. Cox targeted Patsy Kensit, who was married to Liam at the time.
The Backstage Confrontation
Cox recounted the encounter on the Adam Buxton podcast. She recalled bumping into Liam Gallagher backstage at Top Of The Pops shortly after the segment aired. Despite having insulted his wife, Cox approached him without fear. 'I ran into Liam first backstage at Top Of The Pops. I don't know why I went over. I went over to chat to him. I'd called his wife a w***** on the telly like the week before. You know, you're just fearless, aren't you? You're 21, you're 22. I was just completely fearless. Like, 'oh, I'll go and say hello to him. We like his music,' she said.
However, the exchange quickly turned sour. 'So I go over to him and we have a short exchange, which ends with him calling me a slag, which was like, if you're raised in the eighties and nineties, the 'S' word is the worst word you can be called. And he was, you know, quite rightly miffed at me,' Cox explained. She added: 'He knew who I was. He knew what I'd done. And, you know, he was like, 'yeah, you can f*** off you slag' or whatever he said to me. I can't remember how the exchange happened. I just know that he called me a slag. I was like, 'I don't know what else I was expecting'.'
Long-Term Impact on Music Taste
The insult left a lasting impression. Cox said: 'I'm not a slag. And then obviously I couldn't listen to Oasis for ages. I mean, they were huge, but I was like, well, that's ruined Definitely Maybe for the foreseeable. I can listen to them again now.' She noted that she hasn't seen Liam since, but has crossed paths with his brother Noel. 'I don't think I have. I've interviewed Noel since. No, I've definitely said hello to him at stuff. I don't think there's any ill feeling there now. It was a different time,' she said.
Reconciliation with Patsy Kensit
Cox also made amends with Patsy Kensit. She described a chance meeting at Nobu restaurant in London: 'I saw Patsy Kensit in Nobu on Park Lane. And she kind of waved and smiled. And I sort of went over again, like potentially throwing myself into the jaws. And she was really gracious and really friendly and kind and really nice to me. Which put me on the back foot I thought I was going to get a b******ing over like a plate of sashimi or whatever. And whenever I've seen her, she's been lovely.'
The new Radio 2 Breakfast Show, hosted by Sara Cox, begins on July 6.
