BBC radio host announces he has terminal cancer live on air

BBC Radio Derby presenter Andy Potter has told listeners it will be “one of the last times” they will hear him after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

The 55-year-old spoke to the station’s breakfast show from hospital on Thursday morning to “let people know exactly what’s going on”.

Revealing he had been battling cancer, he said: “I have it in my liver, I’ve got it in my kidneys, it’s inoperable.

“So basically this is one of the last times you’re going to be hearing me coming out of your radio box.

“I thought the best thing to do is get everybody in a room together and let them know exactly what’s going on.

“This has been ongoing for a few weeks … I sat in a room, as a lot of people do, with your consultant and with your family and the news that you get is, ‘well, that’s it Mr Potter, you have a few months’.”

While Andy has been mentioning recent hospital visits via social media, he said he did not know how to react when he was given the prognosis on Wednesday afternoon.

“I actually said to the consultant ‘well, I suppose I have had better days’, because nothing can prepare you for somebody saying that to you,” he said.

“And when the nurse comes in and says, ‘Can I get you anything?’ you think ‘Oh, I tell you what, can I have another 20 years? That would be nice’.”

During an almost 20-year career on the BBC station, Andy has presented the afternoon show since 2010 and featured on the Saturday breakfast and Sunday mid-morning and afternoon programmes.

While he said he did “not know how to deal” with the news and the months ahead, he reassured his fans he would “deal with it the best way I possibly can”.

He said: “We all say we’re going to fight, we all say we’re going to get through it, so let’s see what the next few months bring and start working on it.

“I’ve got a few months, hopefully we leave a mark across Derbyshire or wherever we go.

“All you want to do is leave your mark and then it’s on to the next person to come along.”

Thanking listeners for their supportive messages, he added: “I just want to tell everybody this morning thanks so much for everything that has been coming through.

“I doubt I am going to be on the radio much in that time, but thank you to everybody.”

Messages from well-wishers have poured on to social media since the news was revealed.

One listener tweeted: “Never met Andy, but feel I know him well. Great presenter and person.”