On his Thursday mid-morning show, Vernon Kay found himself being mocked by colleagues as he bundled up in a hoodie while struggling to cope with the chill from the air conditioning in the BBC Radio 2 studios.
After playing a song, the star hit back: “Hey, stop it, or I’ll call it out – all of you! I’m cold!” Vernon’s co-star Ellie Brennan compared him to a Lord Of The Rings character in response, quipping: “You do look funny though. You look like Gollum!”
Explaining his appearance to listeners, Vernon replied: “Oh, you! I’ve got my hoodie up with my headphones on, it’s freezing.”
Ellie further clarified: “You’ve done that thing with the hoodie where you’ve pulled the strings up really tight around your face, it’s just a nose poking out!”
View 3 ImagesVernon Kay wasn’t happy with how cold the studio was
Vernon then didn’t hold back, as he shared his true feelings on the design of the BBC Radio 2 studios. He complained: “It’s too cold in here, there’s something wrong with the air conditioning!
“I mean, I’ll be honest with you, right, whoever built these… they’re not sound proofed and they’re freezing. ‘Hi, we’re going to build some new studios’, ‘oh, do you want a shed?’, ‘Yeah, go on then’.”
Turning to his assistant producer Janine Maya-Smith, Vernon continued: “Do you know what I mean Janice-Janine? You’ve been here for a lifetime! It’s freezing and you can hear conversations in the corridor. It’s true though,” with Janine agreeing: “It is.”
Ellie then chimed in to defuse the situation, telling listeners: “But we have a wonderful time and it’s a very good job, it’s a very fun job, we can’t complain.”
Letting out a nervous chuckle, Vernon sheepishly asked Ellie: “What have you heard? Why are you saying that? Now don’t make me worried, don’t make me worried!” After laughing at Vernon’s concern, Ellie insisted she was “just saying”.
View 3 ImagesVernon Kay attends The ARIAS Awards 2026
Doubling down, Vernon responded: “I’m just telling the truth, honesty is the best policy! It’s freezing cold and we can hear Danny Howard next door recording his Radio 1 show with his repetitive beats!”
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After sharing some more laughs about the situation, Vernon got on with the show and introduced Ellie’s latest travel report.
Vernon recently attended the The ARIAS with his Radio 2 colleagues, as his show had been nominated for a prestigious radio award for its coverage of the Oasis Homecoming Concert last summer.
The team narrowly missed out on the award, with BBC Radio 3’s Train Tracks taking the gold prize, while BBC Radio 4’s Shipping Forecast Day took home silver, and Greatest Hits Radio’s Live Aid Relived landed the bronze award.