Roman Kemp shares the heartbreaking reason he decided to leave his Capital Breakfast show

Roman Kemp has opened up about leaving his Capital Breakfast show after a decade at the station – and revealed his decision was motivated by his friend’s tragic death.

The 31-year-old, who announced in February that he was stepping down from the station, said he's been “living that same day over and over again” after pal Joe Lyons, who worked on the show as a producer, committed suicide in August 2020.

The radio presenter said he needed to take time out for himself in a bid to heal from the death of his friend.

He told the Mirror: “I need this time for myself. I've been at that company (Global) for 10 years, on that show for seven now. I've tried to spin the plates and tried to do everything and I've realised it's getting in the way of my life. You can't enjoy your own life.

“If you think of a radio show, every day you've got to go out in front of the public and dance and every now and then you've got to give yourself a rest and I've not been doing that for myself.

“It came to that point of ‘I need to leave this behind now’.”

Explaining how his best friend Lyons was related to his decision to leave, he added: “It's to do what happened for me. That sounds wild but I mean it, it's not normal, imagine a tragedy happened in your house you're going to want to move.”

On Thursday, Kemp was left in tears as he thanked Captial listeners for “saving my life” as he concluded his final Breakfast show..

During his 10-year stint on the station, the presenter bravely opened up about his mental health issues in a bid to raise awareness and break the taboo of suicide in young males.

The One Show presenter, who has been living with depression since he was 15, became emotional as he expressed gratitude to his millions of listeners for bringing joy and laughter into his professional life, even though his personal life often faced challenges.

The radio star tearfully began: “I know that there is a lot of people listening right now, and I wanted to take the time to say thank you. I was more nervous about saying I was leaving than actually leaving this show.

“This show is run by so many people behind the scenes who try so hard to give you that bit of energy in the morning and to try and get you up and feeling good, but I think what I want to get across is just how much fun I've had on this station in the past ten years.

“It has changed my life in so many ways and I have grown up in this place, and that's because of all of you listening. You have been able to be there for me through things that I never imagined would even happen.

“I've had moments on this show where my whole life outside of work is completely down the pan.

“There were times where I didn't want to be here anymore. There have been moments where my life outside of this room has been the worst thing ever. I know a great life, but in my head that's how it felt.

“I knew that all I had in my life were these four hours in my day where I could come to work and in those four hours I knew that I was going to laugh and have fun and be surrounded by people that get me and those four hours and those people that I'm talking about include you - the listeners.

“You have no idea how much you have helped me."

If you're struggling and need to talk, the Samaritans operate a free helpline open 24/7 on 116 123. Alternatively, you can email jo@samaritans.org or visit their site to find your local branch