Radio legend James Whale has died at the age of 74 following a long battle with cancer.
Friends and colleagues have paid tribute to the presenter who enjoyed a hugely successful career spanning six decades.
He rose to fame in the Eighties with his frank style, dry wit and no-nonsense approach which earned him legions of fans.
James was a powerhouse presenter who had been a staple of the airwaves and was honoured last year for his outstanding contribution to broadcasting when he was awarded an MBE in the King’s New Year Honours list.
Announcing his passing, his wife Nadine said: "James slipped away very gently this morning. It was a beautiful passing and he left with a smile on his face."
In 2006, James publicly shared his kidney cancer diagnosis, before going on to found Kidney Cancer UK and raising hundreds of thousands of pounds.
He underwent successful treatment but it returned in 2020.
The presenter, who appeared on LBC from 2008 to 2013, hosting the drive-time show, is survived by his wife Nadine and his two sons James and Peter.
James received an MBE for services to broadcasting and charity back in April 2024.
He began his career with Metro Radio in 1974 where he pioneered the late-night radio phone-in. He then spent over a decade at TalkSport – before moving to host the drive time show at LBC and the breakfast show on BBC Essex. In 2016 he joined Talk permanently where he presented a weekly show, latterly with Ash Gould, until his death.
His autobiography Almost A Celebrity: A Lifetime Of Night-Time was published in 2008.
James’s cancer returned two years after losing his first wife Melinda to lung cancer.
She was diagnosed in February 2018, with James sharing: “Melinda has stage four lung cancer, it is terminal. She is not expected to live very long, it may be weeks or months. She is having treatment, and I cannot give up that last glimmer of hope.
“But the doctors say I have to face facts. She is dying. The thought of losing her is so painful, it is difficult to even contemplate.”
In 2021, James remarried – tying the knot with tax advisor Nadine Lamont Brown in a romantic ceremony at Tenterden Town Hall in Kent.
He posted a link to his final podcast just days ago titled: Tales of the Whales.
