BBC Radio Leeds has signed up Stephanie Hirst to present the mid-morning show during August.
The former Capital FM Yorkshire breakfast host will be on-air from Monday 7th to Wednesday 23rd August 2017, from 9am till 12pm. It’s her first time back on the radio in the region since leaving Hirsty’s Daily Dose in 2014.
Stephanie told RadioToday: “After waking up Yorkshire for over well over a decade I can’t wait to be back on the air looking after Richard Stead’s show, who I’ve known for over 20 years! I’m really looking forward to getting back behind the mic broadcasting to the greatest county on earth!”
Other presenters covering over the summer include pop singer Gareth Gates and the former Liberal Democrat MP Greg Mulholland.
Bradford’s Gareth Gates is taking over on Bank Holiday Monday, 28 August, from 4-6pm. In his show he will feature the music that has shaped his life and the local musicians that have influenced his own career.
Gareth Gates said: “I’m thrilled to be hosting my own show on BBC Radio Leeds! For two hours, I will take over the airwaves and play some of the music that influenced me and my career… tune in and have a listen!”
And from Tuesday 29 August – Friday 1 September, former MP Greg Mulholland stands in for Andrew Edwards on the Big Yorkshire Phone-In, between midday and 3pm. Greg said: “I am hugely excited and honoured to guest present on BBC Radio Leeds. I’ve appeared on the station as a Leeds Councillor and MP and I’m now looking forward to swapping chairs. After spending 14 years as an elected representative speaking up for Leeds and Yorkshire, I am looking forward to letting other people have their say.”
Sanjiv Buttoo, Editor of BBC Radio Leeds, said: “It’s a really busy summer as we welcome three new – but very familiar – faces to our daytime line up that are already hugely popular in the region.
“We’re proud to welcome Stephanie Hirst on her long awaited return back to the airwaves of West Yorkshire, Gareth Gates is really looking forward to trying his hand at presenting his first ever radio show, and we can’t wait to hear Greg Mulholland grill a few politicians on the Big Yorkshire Phone instead of in his usual parliamentary setting.”
Sanjiv Buttoo added: “We’re open to the idea of former politicians from all parties taking to the airwaves, so watch this space!”
Also, West Yorkshire Playhouse and BBC Radio Leeds have collaborated to present Partition, a unique radio broadcast and live performance marking the 70th anniversary of the division of India and creation of Pakistan. This specially commissioned radio play, by writer and BBC Radio Leeds presenter Nick Ahad, explores the devastating legacy of a religious division which cost around a million lives. It will be broadcast at midnight between Monday 14 and Tuesday 15 August, with performances of the stage version at the West Yorkshire Playhouse on Friday 8 and Saturday 9 September.
BBC Radio Leeds will also broadcast live from Leeds West Indian Carnival as the event celebrates its 50th anniversary on Monday, 28 August.
