Scott Mills, 53, has reportedly gone silent and is not answering calls from concerned friends since his dismissal from BBC Radio 2 this week. The popular presenter was removed from air six days after his final breakfast show last Tuesday.

Link to Past Police Investigation

The decision follows a 2016 police probe into allegations of serious sexual offenses against a teenage boy between 1997 and 2000. Authorities dropped the case around seven years ago due to insufficient evidence, with Scotland Yard confirming the Crown Prosecution Service rejected it and closed the investigation in 2019. The accuser was under 16 at the time.

Sources indicate Mills has withdrawn completely since the announcement. A close friend shared, “The show was his life and he is facing oblivion.” Associates report being caught off guard by both the sacking, announced Monday, and the earlier investigation.

Jeremy Vine Questions the Decision

Jeremy Vine, who hosts a daily Radio 2 show, described the sacking as “unfair” during his Tuesday broadcast, emphasizing “there’s been no crime.” He highlighted shock among staff, noting the news hit Radio 2 just before noon the previous day.

Vine drew parallels to the handling of Huw Edwards, who received a six-month suspended sentence for indecent images charges. “Huw Edwards couldn’t be sacked because he was in a fragile mental state,” Vine stated, adding that reports on Mills point to his history of anxiety and depression without similar consideration.

BBC Media and Culture Editor Katie Razzell pressed executives on whether they knew of the police investigation, which began in 1997 during Mills’ time at Heart FM before he joined Radio 1 in 1998.

Support from Friends and Colleagues

Steve Chalke, founder of Oasis Charitable Trust and a collaborator on Mills’ breakfast show segments, expressed “a sense of grief, of loss, of sadness and shock.” He voiced concern for Mills, any potential victims, and their families, stressing the need to protect mental health.

Vine reiterated, “The whole point is there wasn’t a crime… The Met have been over it and there is no crime.” Chalke added that past unfounded allegations have harmed others’ careers, urging caution.

Senior BBC staff reacted with “total shock,” including audible gasps during an internal email from music director Lorna Clarke. Colleagues describe Mills as “kind and generous,” “hugely popular,” and note the unusually swift action deviates from typical BBC processes.

Speculation on Timing and BBC Response

Insiders suggest rumors swirl at Broadcasting House, with some linking the dismissal to a recent Huw Edwards docu-drama starring Martin Clunes, potentially prompting the complainant to come forward. Former officer and journalist Mark Williams-Thomas confirmed Mills was interviewed by the Met in 2018 as part of a post-Savile Operation Yewtree spin-off but was not charged and continued working.

The BBC attributes the sacking to “personal conduct” issues but offers no further details amid calls to clarify their knowledge of the probe. Mills, who joined the BBC in 1998 after local radio stints, departed after 28 years. Sources claim then-director general Tony Hall was unaware of the allegations.