Veteran broadcaster and Daily Express columnist James Whale spoke of his pride last night after being handed a gong in the New Year Honours.
The TalkRadio and TalkTV host has been made an MBE for services to broadcasting and charity.
James, who is terminally ill with cancer, founded the James Whale Fund for Kidney Cancer, now part of Kidney Cancer UK, in 2006 after beating the disease first time round.
The charity has since raised more than £4million to support kidney cancer patients.
Sadly, the illness returned in 2020, and has now spread to his spine and brain.
James has spoken and written movingly about his struggle and how he may have celebrated his last Christmas.
He said: “This is such a proud moment, particularly for someone who never got any qualifications – not even the 11-plus.
“Republicans have never liked me, and this will grind their gears even more. I’m a huge fan of the Royal Family and I couldn’t be more proud being included in the King’s New Year’s Honours List.”
James, 72, began his long broadcasting career as the in-house DJ at Topshop’s flagship central London store, before moving to Metro Radio in Newcastle in 1974.
He later joined BBC Radio Derby, where he pioneered his argumentative style of broadcasting, taking calls from listeners and sometimes cutting them off.
In the late 1980s, James joined Radio Aire in Leeds where his evening show was broadcast simultaneously on Yorkshire Television as The James Whale Radio Show. A ratings success, it soon became an ITV hit.
He joined the Daily Express as a weekly columnist in 2021.
James said: “My thanks go out to all those people who’ve employed me over the years and helped me achieve this. Especially to the guys at Kidney Cancer UK.”
