Richard Madeley – review

Radio 2
Richard Madeley
Richard Madeley . . . mesmerising anecdotes. Photograph: Claire Greenway/Getty Images

Richard Madeley (Radio 2) is sitting in for Chris Evans this week, and the two presenters couldn't take a more different approach to breakfast radio. Madeley soothes listeners, and does lots of empathy for the recently woken. "If you're up to talking," he said, as if addressing an invalid, "send an email".

It's remarkably still and calm compared to Evans, with rather more easygoing music. Madeley does, though, deliver some stonking anecdotes, and these are truly mesmerising in their scope and length. During the newspaper review, to illustrate his point that Britons are "perverse", he took us back, via Sweden, to the 1970s oil crisis; to describe the faff of helping his son move into top-floor digs, he'd totted up how many steps he'd repeatedly climbed and translated it into actual distance for us: "It's just a little bit lower than the Malvern hills."

With Alan Dedicoat reading the news, there is a feeling of returning to the snoozier realm of Wogan. Madeley connects with his audience well, raising topics that listeners seem to relish. He was talking Christmas presents, revealing that what he really wants are toys ("a walkie-talkie, a great big water pistol") and hearing about some of the worst gifts people have received. One woman sounded still stung by hers: "A facial hair removal kit from my mum".