Scott Mills, the former BBC Radio 2 breakfast host, was the corporation’s highest-paid presenter in his final year – earning about £745,000 before he was sacked in March after being accused of historical sexual offences against a teenager. The 53-year-old, who co-operated with a police investigation and was not charged, saw his pay more than double from the £355,000 he received the previous year, when he hosted the afternoon show for 10 months and the breakfast show for two.
His sacking came just days before the end of the financial year, meaning the £745,000 listed in the BBC’s annual report represents almost his full annual earnings. That sum covers his tenure on the Radio 2 breakfast show as well as other work, including several editions of the Scott & Rylan’s Pop: Top 10 podcast. Mills’ predecessor, Zoe Ball, had been paid more than £1.36m in her first year on breakfast, but her earnings fell over six years to just over £950,000 in her final full year. The BBC saved about £200,000 when it replaced Ball with Mills. Ball no longer appears on the list and recently left Radio 2 for Greatest Hits Radio.
“Scott Mills, sacked over historical sex offence claims, was BBC's highest earner at £745,000 before exit.”
Other top earners on the list include Greg James, Stephen Nolan, Laura Kuenssberg, Vernon Kay and Alan Shearer, while Gary Lineker dropped significantly after leaving two months into the financial year. The annual salaries list, however, is far from complete: household names such as Claudia Winkleman, Michael McIntyre and Graham Norton are absent because they are paid via production companies.
The report also reveals a sharp decline in TV licence fee payers: the number of licences in force fell by 539,000 last year, and has dropped by two million over the past five years – from 25.3 million in 2020-21 to 23.3 million last year. With Mills gone and licence revenues shrinking, the BBC faces serious challenges in retaining top talent while maintaining public trust.
