Steve Wright's BBC Radio 2 co-star breaks down while reading listeners' tributes

She added: "Everyone seems to have such fond memories of our Wrighty, because that's how we viewed and that's how we listened to him. He was ours.

"He was our mate, talking to us in our kitchens as we made a brew, in our bedrooms, in the shower, in our cars, taxis, lorries, in our form rooms at school, in our gardens, at work. He was always in our hearts."

After delivering her own tribute, Chapman read some of the many "wonderful" messages that had flooded in from listeners.

One particularly emotional message that Chapman struggled to read came from a man named Fred, who explained he had once co-hosted Wright's show around the time of his 50th birthday, describing the experience as "all my birthdays and Christmases at once."

The message continued: "In person, he was the kind, funny, humble and lovable person I had listened to over the airways all my life."

Later in the show, Chapman said: "I said to myself I wasn't going to cry, and I have done it once. The tears are there but hopefully they are not going to keep falling. Today we are looking at the great, great man himself."

Many of Wright's other former colleagues have also shared emotional tributes on air, including Sara Cox, who opened her show last night by saying: "It's really hard to know what to say about the news of Steve Wright's passing, except we are all absolutely devastated and shocked and blindsided by this news."

She added: "He was witty, he was warm, and he was a huge, huge part of the Radio 2 family, and I know my fellow DJs will all be absolutely shattered too." She also encouraged fans to share their memories of Steve with her.

Meanwhile, Simon Mayo choked up while reading the news to his listeners on Greatest Hits Radio yesterday, saying: "He was one of the true originals of music radio. I loved his shows. I know a lot of you did as well.

"It was a thrill to be on the same radio stations as him. He’ll be much missed."

Wright worked at the BBC for more than four decades and was known for hosting radio shows on BBC Radio 1 and Radio 2, as well as fronting TV shows like Top of the Pops.

He was last on air this past Sunday, presenting a pre-recorded Valentine's Day edition of his Sunday Love Songs programme.