PopMaster Replacement Announced By BBC Radio 2 Bosses Following Ken Bruce's Departure
When Ken Bruce announced he was leaving Radio 2 in January, it was also revealed that he would be taking his hugely popular - and legendary - music quiz, PopMaster, with him to his new home at Greatest Hits Radio.
It left Radio 2 bosses with the challenge of coming up with a replacement for the long-running quiz, which has had millions of listeners glued to their radios for the last 25 years as they play along every weekday morning at 10.30am.
Today (Monday 6 March) will see the launch of PopMaster’s replacement, Ten To The Top.
Gary Davies, who hosts the station’s Sounds Of The 80s, will launch the quiz as he presents the mid-morning show until new host Vernon Kay takes over Ken’s old spot in May.
The new daily music trivia game is described as an “accumulator quiz where it pays to answer the questions correctly in order”, the BBC said.
“Ten To The Top will test our listeners’ music knowledge as they battle for pop supremacy,” it added.
The quiz will see each player asked 10 questions about pop music, with the first question worth one point, the second question worth two points, all the way up to 10.
However, if a question is answered incorrectly, the value of the following question goes back to one point and the accumulator begins again.
The BBC said each contestant has a joker to play on one question which will earn them double points if answered correctly, and the player with the most points wins a smart speaker.
A draw will see players having to answer a tie-breaker question.
Ken signed off from his mid-morning show after more than 40 years at the BBC on Friday.
Prior to his exit, the broadcasting legend admitted he thought it was “a shame” he had been made to leave his show earlier than intended after initially stating he’d be at Radio 2 until the end of March.
Speaking to Radio 4’s Today programme ahead of his final Radio 2 broadcast, Ken shared that he was disappointed by the BBC’s decision.
“It’s entirely within the BBC’s right to ask me to step away a little early,” he said.
“But for the sake of 17 days, which was all that was remaining [on my contract], it seems a shame.”