Johnnie Walker, legendary BBC Radio presenter, dies aged 79

Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. God bless that extraordinary husband of mine who is now in a place of peace.” BBC director general Tim Davie described Walker as a “pop radio pioneer and champion of great music”, adding: “No-one loved the audience as much as Johnnie, and we loved him back.” Walker had previously been diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a condition in which “the lungs become scarred and breathing becomes difficult”. open image in gallery BBC DJ Johnnie Walker in a radio booth in November, 1971 He was also scolded for criticising the Bay City Rollers song “Give a Little Love”, which he described as “musical garbage”. However, in 2015, the BBC stood by Walker after a listener complained that he hadn’t played a single Bay City Rollers song in more than 310 Radio 2 shows, accusing him of being “anti-Scottish”. “Johnnie and I have been friends since my years presenting Old Grey Whistle Test and the original Sounds Of The Seventies and I will do everything I can to maintain his legacy and curate the programme with the very best music from that incredible decade.” open image in gallery DJ Johnnie Walker stepped down from his role as a BBC Radio presenter in October 2024 Announcing his retirement on 6 October, Walker read a letter from a listener whose father had loved his Sounds of the Seventies show, but who had died in 2022 from the same condition Walker suffered from.