1504: Final Eddie Mair PM on Radio 4

On Wednesday 8th August 2019, Eddie Mair hosted his last PM programme on Radio 4. Although the programme had existed since April 1970, Eddie was to make it his own. His immaculate teasing, his deadpan humour and a cleverness - sometimes even too clever for many of his listeners - made the programme shine. Plus, of course, an interviewing style unmatched by anyone. Calm, targeted, persuasive and – if you’re on the wrong end – devastating.

His last programme made no mention of his departure, although his imminent end had been well publicised. Unlike most programmes, he did not talk up to Big Ben – he let ‘Bring me Sunshine’ so the job for him. Regular listeners would have mused of the significance of the change. It was such subtle nods that lent the programme an unspoken intimacy which similar programmes so often lack.

LBC beckoned – and only the most alert would have spotted his early preparations for his transfer to commercial radio as he uttered “…after these messages” into a trailer.