Rachel Burden, a longtime presenter on BBC Radio 5 Live, struggled to contain her emotions as she told listeners she will leave the breakfast show after 15 years. Naga Munchetty, who is leaving BBC Breakfast after nearly two decades, will take over the role in January 2027.
Emotional announcement on air
Burden, 51, made the announcement on Tuesday alongside co-host Rick Edwards, who will also step down in December. Holding back tears, she said: 'I have some news to share with you – ah, I really need to try and keep it together.' She added: 'I said I’d keep it together! We have been working together on 5 Live Breakfast for five years now, and I have been co-presenting this show for over 15 years. And I have loved, I think, almost every single minute of it.'
Burden explained that both she and Edwards have been 'thinking a lot in recent months about what comes next' and how to meet 'shifting priorities.'
Munchetty's new role
Munchetty, who announced she is leaving BBC Breakfast after 17 years, will take over the flagship morning programme five days a week. She expressed being 'thrilled' by the opportunity, saying: 'It has been a privilege to be part of the BBC Breakfast TV team for the past 17 years... Presenting a flagship programme on 5 Live is an opportunity that was simply too good to pass up.' Until January, Munchetty will continue presenting her current mid-morning show on Radio 5 Live.
As part of the changes, Rachel Burden will move to present the weekday mid-morning programme from 11am to 2pm, Monday to Wednesday, after her 15-year stint on the breakfast show.
