Official Report; Zoe Ball is BBC’s highest paid female – but she’s still thousands behind Gary Lineker
Zoe Ball is BBC’s highest paid female – but she’s still thousands behind Gary Lineker
The BBC has been required to publish salaries of the talent it employs annually since 2017, but the corporation isn’t required to publish the salaries of celebs who are paid through production companies
Radio 2 breakfast show host Zoe Ball is the BBC’s highest paid female, but she’s still thousands behind the corporation’s top earner Gary Lineker.
The DJ, 53, has been one of the highest paid celebrities employed by the BBC in recent years, but her salary has done nothing to quell the disappointment over the huge gender pay gap at the BBC. Match of the Day host Gary raked in between £1,350,000 and £1,354,999 over the last 12 months, with the pundit and former footballer a regular fixture on TV screens over summer as he was the host of the Euro 2024 coverage.
Gary’s Match of the Day co-host and fellow pundit Alan Shearer earned between £380,000 and £384,999, while Football Focus host Alex Scott is paid more than £1 million less than Gary, earning between £220,000 and £224,999. Mark Chapman, host of Match of the Day 2, earned up to £264,999 over the last 12 months.
Zoe, who has been the host of the Radio 2 flagship breakfast show since taking over from Chris Evans in 2018, earned between £950,000 and £954,999, while Radio 1 breakfast show host Greg James was paid between £415,000 and £419,999. Zoe’s Radio 2 colleague Jo Whiley, who presents her Shiny Happy Playlist from 7pm to 9pm, earns between £245,000 and £249,999, while Sara Cox, who hosts the station’s drivetime show, rakes in between £315,000 and £319,999.
Meanwhile, their male counterparts on Radio 2 raked in slightly more, with Vernon Kay, who took over from Radio 2 veteran Ken Bruce, earned between £320,000 and 324,999, and Scott Mills, who replaced the late Steve Wright on the mid-afternoon show, was paid up to £319,999. Jeremy Vine, who presents the Radio 2 current affairs show from 11am until 1pm, earned between £285,000 and £289,999.
Trevor Nelson earned up to £239,999, Gary Davies, who’s a regular stand-in for absent Radio 2 hosts, was paid between £200,000 and £204,999, and the late Steve Wright, who died earlier this year, was paid up to £209,999.
The list also included other well-known figures, such as Lauren Laverne, who made between £395,999 and £395,000, and Fiona Bruce, host of Antiques Roadshow and Question Time, who made up to £409,999. While former news presenter Hugh Edwards made up to £479,999, BBC News anchor Sophie Raworth earned between £325,000 and £329,999. Between £325,000 and £329,999 was earned by Laura Kuenssberg, who is most renowned for her political interviews on her own Sunday morning BBC show.
At £345,000 to £349,999, BBC breakfast anchor Naga Munchetty was the morning show’s highest paid presenter.Charlie Stayt received payments of up to £194,999, Sally Nugent earned between £195,000 and £199,999, and Jon Kay received up to £229,999.
