BBC Radio 4 Today programme presenter Mishal Husain has given her “heartfelt thanks” to listeners and colleagues on her final show with the corporation.
The presenter will leave her role on the show in the new year, moving to front a new interview series at financial and data media company Bloomberg, as editor-at-large of Bloomberg Weekend Edition.
After a tribute which saw journalists Justin Webb, Sarah Montague and John Humphrys honour the 51-year-old, she said: “Well, the moment is now upon me, time to say farewell to this programme and to the BBC.
“In my time here, I have found more in me than I knew was there, and I journey on to discover what yet might lie within.
“In the tradition of my faith, when people used to go on pilgrimage in generations past, they would not only take their leave of friends and associates, but they would ask for their forgiveness, because in those days, many did not return from the arduous journey.
“I hope therefore you might forgive me for the times I crashed the pips, squeezed the weather, any other dastardly deeds, and yes, the one 8.10 that did involve swearing.
“But my heartfelt thanks go to all my BBC colleagues across the UK and around the world, and to you, wherever you are listening from, for your time and your trust.
“On this last morning, I’ve been allowed music, and so I’m going to leave you with my choice, which is The Monkees’ Daydream Believer that is coming up.
“But it just remains for me to say that our editors were Dan Macadam and Hannah Wilkinson, the studio director was Nathan Chamberlain, the Today programme’s editor is Owenna Griffiths and from me, good morning and goodbye.”
"From me, good morning and goodbye."
Listen to @MishalHusain sign off from her last #R4Today programme.
We'll miss you! 👋
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) December 17, 2024
During Tuesday’s programme, a number of clips from Husain’s previous interviews with the likes of Sir Keir Starmer, James Cleverly and Nigel Farage were played, and guests on the show also wished her well.
A clip was also played of Husain bursting into laughter while trying to present a piece on the world’s richest dog, Gunter, saying “this is a German Shepherd dog, not an actual German shepherd”.
Introducing the tribute segment, her co-presenter Nick Robinson said: “The time has come, we can put it off no longer, even though we dearly wish it were not, this is Mishal’s last day.”
Paying tribute, Humphrys described Husain as “a joy to work with” and “a pleasure” to know, before asking her if she wanted to leave.
Husain said: “This is when I now regret having said, wouldn’t it be a nice idea if we invited John back?
“I think it was time for me to do something else, it really was.
“I know that actually all of you did the program for longer, Nick is only just starting out, but I think that when we do new things, we grow and develop.
“And I think that I’m a different journalist, a much better journalist than I was 11 years ago, and this programme, with all its pressures and all the scrutiny that goes with it, it’s an immense responsibility to be on here, and a privilege as well.
“But from all those tough times, you grow and develop, and I know I’ll miss it for sure.”
Humphrys pushed her once again, saying she “wouldn’t get away with that answer” if she herself was answering the question, but Husain did not give any further details about her departure.
Husain first joined the BBC as a producer in 1998, before becoming a presenter on BBC World News in 2001.
