Julia Hartley Brewer will step down from her flagship morning show on Talk on Thursday 19 November 2026. Alex Phillips will take over the weekday slot from Monday 23 November 2026.
That handover ends more than a decade at Talk, where she joined in March 2016. It also shifts a key morning position inside a station that has been pushing audience growth across broadcast and digital.
March 2016 at Talk
Julia Hartley-Brewer said: "Broadcasting on Talk over the past decade has been a privilege and a pleasure. I am incredibly proud of what we have created together over ten wonderful years. It’s been a rollercoaster ride of news since 2016, starting with Brexit and Trump, through Covid and lockdowns, as well as wars in Westminster and overseas, and I have loved every minute both on and off air."
She added: "I want to thank my brilliant colleagues and all the unsung heroes behind the scenes, but most of all I want to say a huge thank you to our army of loyal listeners and viewers who have tuned in every day to laugh, argue and cut through the spin with me. Talk remains in brilliant hands with a phenomenal production team and I wish the station every success as it moves from strength to strength."
Alex Phillips on weekday mornings
Alex Phillips currently anchors Talk's Friday morning show and will move onto the Monday to Thursday line-up. She will join Jeremy Kyle, Ian Collins and Kevin O’Sullivan on the station’s weekday schedule, giving Talk a familiar internal replacement rather than a gap-filled reset.
Alex Phillips said: "Julia is a genuine broadcasting titan and following in her footsteps is a tremendous honour. Talk has built a unique, vital space for open debate where common sense comes first, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to take the helm at the mid-morning show. The energy and ambition across the station is palpable, and I can’t wait to hold this government - and the whole political class - to proper account."
Talk's 497k audience
Talk recorded 497k weekly listeners in the latest RAJARs and 4.1 million listening hours, alongside 50m views on YouTube in October 2026. Those figures explain why the morning chair matters: this is not a symbolic swap, but a move inside a network that is already trading on reach.
Scott Taunton said: "Julia has been an integral part of Talk’s DNA. Her tenacity, sharp wit, and fearless journalistic instincts helped put the station firmly on the national map. She has consistently set the news agenda and given a powerful voice to her audience. We are deeply grateful for her exceptional contribution to News Broadcasting over the past decade."
He added: "As Talk continues its digital expansion and audience growth, Alex Phillips - a peerless common sense thinker and growing voice in the creator space - will present the weekday morning show. Alex is a razor-sharp, compelling broadcaster who already commands huge respect from our audience. Her appointment reflects our ongoing commitment to investing in top-tier talent delivering bold, unapologetic speech broadcasting across all platforms."
Hartley-Brewer leaves with the station already lined up to carry the slot forward, and the open question is not the replacement but the next phase: she will write opinion pieces for The Sun while Talk keeps its morning schedule intact.
