Comedy legend, 67, teases radio return after ‘terrible’ axe sparked ageism row-Kitty Chrisp-Entertainment – Metro

Frank Skinner has teased a radio return with his old team (Picture: Keith Mayhew/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Frank Skinner has teased a big radio return with his former co-hosts, six months on from when he was axed from Absolute Radio after 15 years on the channel.

The popular comic presented the Saturday breakfast slot The Frank Skinner Show, alongside Emily Dean and Pierre Novellie.

Admitting he did not take the news of his axe ‘well’ at the time, many took to social media in the aftermath to shower him with support, and some accused Absolute Radio of being ‘absurdly ageist’ over the move.

Now the beloved comic and Three Lions hitmaker, 67, has teased a comeback with Emily and Pierre, as he posted a picture of the trio laughing over a coffee together and captioned it: ‘Band getting back together?’

Fans were buzzing at the tease, as Instagram user 1000dragonflys commented: ‘Yes!! Please?! Pretty Please?! Your show/podcast left a hole no one can fill – replaying old ones when I need a fix.’

sammygoliightly said: ‘My Saturday mornings aren’t the same. I refuse to listen to Absolute on a Saturday morning. Come back to us in some way please.’  

The comedian’s show was axed from Absolute Radio earlier this year (Picture: Jon Furniss/WireImage)

labrax_survey added: ‘I’ve boycotted Absolute since they canned you mate. What were they thinking?’

The star – having been inducted into the Radio Academy Hall of Fame in December 2015 – said of the axe: ‘I took it well in the way David Tennant took it well as the tenth Doctor when he started to regenerate and said: “I don’t want to go!”‘

Explaining how the conversation went, he said at the time: ‘My manager (called)… you know every year, about this time – we’ve just celebrated our 15th anniversary on the show, so obviously that means the new contract is coming – and every year I do self-deprecating jokes about the fact that we probably won’t get it renewed.’

He continued: ‘Guess what?! Yeah, we didn’t! So we’re not just going now, I’m not going to say bye and that’s the end, we’ve got some notice to serve, but um yeah… that’s it!’

Frank added: ‘We had a good run but I realise that in recent times I am ever more becoming Grandad from The Simpsons, but even so, I’m not going to pretend I took it well. I took it well in that we’ve had 15 years and Absolute have actually been very, very good to us in those 15 years, but I didn’t take it well.’

Paul Sylvester, Absolute Radio’s content director said of the news at the time: ‘Frank has been a huge part of the Absolute Radio story and after 15 years, this is truly the end of an era.

David Baddiel jumped to Frank’s defence when he was axed (Picture: Derry/Mirrorpix/Getty Images)

The comedian told Metro in July his proudest achievement is stand-up comedy (Picture: JMEnternational/Getty Images)

‘We are hugely grateful for the contribution he’s made to both Saturday mornings and our charity comedy nights at the London Palladium.’

Listeners were left angered by the news, with his comedy pal David Baddiel leaping to his defence and saying online: ‘Frank Skinner’s show on Absolute is brilliant and the decision not to renew it can only have been made by an Absolute t**t.’

Frank caught up with Metro in July this year to give his predictions on how England would fare in the Euro 2024 final.

The beloved comedian revealed that his proudest feat isn’t ratio or his football anthem, but his stand-up career.

‘I’m particularly proud that I managed to stay a comedian for so long because it could have been a two year or five year thing,’ he said.

‘I spent the first 30 years of my life drifting around, not knowing what I was going to do, getting drunk, wasting a lot of time.

‘I don’t know how many people actually find a job they love. But if you do, you really want to hold on to it with both hands.’

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