Emma Barnett emotional as she signs off BBC show with a beer

Emma Barnett was emotional as she signed off her eponymous BBC Radio 5 Live show with a beer.

The broadcaster, 35, is leaving for Woman’s Hour after four years presenting her morning programme.

She said her time on 5 Live had been “nail-biting, emotional, real and truly magical” as she said farewell to her listeners by “raising a beer.”

“I feel … on the cusp of a break-up with the people that radio is all about,” Barnett said.

“I’ve got to thank you for being there for me, for all of us, day in and day out,” she told her listeners.

“We’ve shared this microphone and lived our lives alongside one another.”

The broadcaster added: “When I joined 5 Live, full time on this programme, I was struggling to conceive – something very personal I felt I could share with you.

“As I prepared this morning, for our news meeting, and our little boy was playing around my feet as I tried to read the newspapers, I couldn’t believe how much my life has changed, how much I’ve grown with you and how much you’ve taught me.

“That’s because radio is a real relationship.

“It is a heartbeat. It’s a daily rhythm. And you have to earn the privilege of people trusting you to share their stories.”

She name-checked her regular callers and the behind-the-scenes staff who work on the “three-hour marathon every single day”.

And she admitted: “I’ve got to make myself laugh as I’m getting emotional.”

Barnett, who will be hosting Woman’s Hour on BBC Radio 4 after Jane Garvey and Dame Jenni Murray both decided to quit, said: “Please join me in raising a beer …

“Worry not, I have a Scotch egg with me so it is a substantial meal, in fact I’ve got two. They’re stinking out the studio right now!”

And she added: “May I also take this opportunity to wish you a very happy Hanukkah.

“I will think of you this evening as I light my menorah, eat some doughnuts.”

Her voice cracking, she added: “Don’t be a stranger and thank you so very much.”

Online Editors