After divorce and tragedy, Zoe Ball bounces back with a new man and a new job

JUST 16 months after the worst moment of her life, Zoe Ball has been offered the gig of a lifetime.

The popular presenter, 47, has been handed a chance to replace Chris Evans as host of the BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show.

It is the biggest gig in radio, with a brief to entertain around nine million listeners each weekday morning.

The Sun’s revelation yesterday was a shock to many — with Zoe’s old pal and fellow broadcaster Sara Cox, the star most thought would get it.

Predictably, social media was awash with caustic comments. “Zoe Ball’s a hard listen,” moaned Cox fans.

But if life experience is what makes for a good breakfast host, Zoe has that in spades.

Indeed, the fact she is the BBC’s No1 choice is testament to her success at rebuilding her life after a series of traumas.

The former kids’ TV favourite and Radio 1 breakfast host has battled booze, overcome the very public collapse of her 18-year marriage to Norman Cook, a.k.a. DJ Fatboy Slim, then grieved the suicide of boyfriend Billy Yates.

But Zoe — currently host of Radio 2’s Saturday afternoon slot and BBC TV’s Strictly Come Dancing spin-off It Takes Two — has against the odds cemented herself as one of the country’s most powerful presenters.

Once her new Radio 2 deal is signed — and that is expected shortly — she will also be one of the richest.

So how did she do it?

Turning her back on her famously hard-partying “ladette” ways, for a start. Living that life in London was not healthy so she relocated back to Brighton — where she had lived with Norman — to spend more time with her kids and, crucially, put further distance between herself and former drinking buddies.

A friend of Zoe’s revealed the constant parties of “Strictly season” were too much temptation because there is such a massive social scene connected with the show — on which she was also a contestant in 2005.

Her role as host of It Takes Two means she is a focal point for the cast and crew and always an easy target to ask out for a drink.

Her lowest ebb, when she was pictured drunkenly kissing fame-seeking boyband singer TayTay Starhz in a London gay club in 2015, happened during an It Takes Two Christmas party.

It turned out to be the final nail in the coffin for her marriage to Norman — and they announced their separation nine months later.

Unlike her previous affair with DJ Dan Peppe in 2003, their marriage was never going to survive this.

Having moved to Brighton, settling two doors down from her estranged husband, Zoe gave up the booze and embarked on a new, healthy lifestyle.

She got together with cameraman boyfriend Billy and enjoyed a whirlwind romance, only for tragedy to strike in May 2017 when he killed himself in his London flat.

Zoe — who in the Nineties hosted Saturday morning kids’ show Live & Kicking as well as the Radio 1 breakfast slot — credits sobriety for enabling her to stay strong after Billy’s death.

She revealed, as she took part in a charity event organised to raise awareness for mental health, that she “wouldn’t have survived” if still drinking. Zoe, daughter of Eighties kids’ TV host Johnny Ball, also used work as a tool for regaining positivity in her life following Billy’s death.

She breathed new life and energy into her Radio 2 weekend show, and returned to It Takes Two with even more enthusiasm.

As one pal put it: “Throwing herself into work was a coping mechanism but it’s turned out to be an inspired move, as she’s done some of her best work since Billy died.” Witnessing her surge in popularity, ITV waded in, signing Zoe up for her own chat slot, The Zoe Ball Show, every Saturday and Sunday morning.

She also met a new man, con-struction boss Michael Reed, 48, who helps her maintain a healthy lifestyle and leads their fitness workouts.

The couple, who began dating in December, spent the past weekend at Jason Vale’s juice retreat in Portugal where Zoe has been weighing up the BBC’s new offer.

Keen to express her enthusiasm for her new lifestyle, the usually private Zoe posted a picture of herself and Michael from the retreat, stressing how the “paradise place” enabled her to “reset, recharge, learn, detox & heal” — with yoga, hiking, aerobics, meditation and plenty of kip.

Zoe continues to enjoy a good relationship with Norman, who by sheer coincidence happened to be a guest on Evans’ breakfast show yesterday morning and was grilled on The Sun’s front-page story.

“I couldn’t possibly comment,” was his response.

The family arrangement, with daughter Nelly, eight, settled at primary school, and Woody, 17, approaching university age, also means Zoe could commit to a job as big as the Radio 2 breakfast slot.

The job is also another timely boost to her income.

Zoe, who earned £299,999 for her BBC work in 2016/17, has yet to settle her divorce from multi-millionaire Norman, despite their healthy relationship.

But she knows taking over from Evans at this time, when the BBC are under pressure to hire a female replace-ment, will work in her favour and she can land a lucrative deal, albeit no doubt less than the £1.7million a year handed over to Evans.

Ken Bruce, hosting a less popular show after Evans on Radio 2, took home up to £309,999 last year, according to the latest BBC figures.

A BBC source said: “If Chris had re-signed, he wouldn’t have received the same salary, due to our need to downscale wages.

“But we can’t reduce the wages too much for an incoming woman, because it may come across as sexist — so Zoe does appreciate she could well make it work very well for her.”

But aside from the money being right, Zoe also has to ensure she is mentally ready.

She has always been incredibly wary of her mental health, even more so since the death of Billy who had struggled with depression for a number of years.

Pals of the star say she does not want to push herself too far — and knows her capacity.

The friend said: “Zoe knows that she’s strong but appreciates she’s not indestructible.

“And she is still very vulnerable following Billy’s suicide.”

Although she had moved on with her new boyfriend, Billy is very much still in her thoughts.

Only last Friday, she posted a touching Instagram post on what would have been his 42nd birthday. She wrote: “Happy Birthday Bface one shining bright up there in the cosmos.

“Hope you can see the shimmers of love that burn ever strong for you, from the daft beings dotted all over this planet down here, who’ll love your face forever & miss you more than ever.”

In March, Zoe opened up about how she still feels guilty about Billy taking his own life.

She said: “Even now I sometimes think, ‘I’m a resourceful woman, I’m a bright woman . . . why could I not save him?’

“And then I have to stop and say, ‘Everyone who loved him knew. None of us found an answer, none of us saved him’. To move forward, you have to accept that. Which is very difficult.”

Despite her vulnerability, Zoe is still expected to take on the job of replacing Evans and become the first woman to host the Radio 1 and Radio 2 breakfast shows — beating Sara Cox, Evans’ choice to replace him, to that accolade.