What gift do you get Scott Mills as a welcome to the BBC Radio 2 breakfast show?, asked the travel presenter Ellie Brennan. You rename Stockport train station Scottport, obviously.
Mills followed in the footsteps of Terry Wogan, Chris Evans and Zoe Ball on Monday by taking the reins of one of the UK’s biggest radio shows.
Shortly after 8am, Brennan revealed that she had used her travel connections and credentials to get Mills a gift – but things had got out of hand.
Accompanied by the Rev Kate Bottley, a spokesperson for the train station told Mills on air: “The team have been working so hard right the way through the night to change Stockport to Scottport.
“All the information screens have been changed. All the signage has been changed from Stockport to Scottport … A whole new town, a whole new name, just to welcome Scott Mills.”
Mills seemed genuinely surprised. “No. I’m sorry. That’s not true. Why?”
He asked if it was a permanent change and was told it was for one day only. “You’ve gone to Stockport because it could be changed a little bit to Scottport?”
Bottley agreed: “Yes. It’s tenuous, Scott, we’ll give you that.”
Scott revealed he used to live nearby. “That’s good enough, Scott. We’ll take it,” Bottley said.
Listeners also heard fun facts about Stockport station, topped by the revelation that in April 1970 a little-known David Bowie slept on the platform after playing at the Poco a Poco nightclub and missing his last train home.
Mills joined Radio 2 in 2022, replacing Steve Wright in the afternoon show slot. Before that he was a presenter on Radio 1 from 1998.
He was announced as the new breakfast show host after Ball said she was stepping down after six years. It is one of the most coveted jobs in UK radio. Mills, who also has a bridge on the M3 named after him, told listeners he would give “give it absolutely everything”.
He added: “I’ve worked at the BBC for 25 years now, on the radio, a lot of you may well have grown up listening to me. I’m sure a lot of you will not have much idea about me at all.
“Either way, if you could make me part of your morning routine, it would honestly mean so much because, believe me, I’m going to give it absolutely everything I’ve got. I really hope you enjoy it. Let’s go.”
After playing his first song, Rock DJ by Robbie Williams, Mills said: “This might be the best day of my life, apart from getting married.”
