from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7288269.stm:

Lyttelton to end radio jazz show 

Lyttelton is also a cartoonist, calligrapher and author Veteran jazzman Humphrey Lyttelton is to present his last episode of BBC Radio 2's The Best Of Jazz - after 40 years in the hot seat.
Trumpet player Lyttelton, 86, who will present his last show on Monday, says he is retiring "to clear a space for some of my other ambitions".

In his last show, Lyttelton will play 10 of his favourite tracks that "hold memories and represent landmarks".

In 1993, "Humph" received a Sony Gold Award for services to broadcasting.

"I have had a great relationship with Radio 2 and my Best Of Jazz listeners and will perhaps pop in to make further contribution as the occasions arise," he said.

Hundreds of thousands of listeners have been introduced to the delights and difficulties of jazz through The Best Of Jazz.

Radio 2 controller Lesley Douglas said: "Humphrey Lyttelton is not only a giant in the world of jazz, but has also remained a giant of music broadcasting for the past 40 years.

"His listeners will miss him on Radio 2 and the world of music broadcasting will be the poorer without his weekly show."

Lyttelton, described by Louis Armstrong as "that cat in England who swings his ass off", is also a presenter of Radio 4's I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue, and is a cartoonist, calligrapher and author.

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from
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/03/11/nhumph111.xml:


Humphrey Lyttelton retires from BBC show By Sophie Borland Last Updated: 9:40am GMT 11/03/2008

Humphrey Lyttelton, the veteran musician and broadcaster, is to retire from BBC Radio 2's The Best Of Jazz after more than 40 years presenting the show.

Have your say: Pay tribute to Humphrey Lyttelton Lyttelton, 86, who also presents Radio 4's I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue, will make his final broadcast on Monday night after announcing he is leaving "to clear a space for some of my other ambitions".

The presenter said he will play 10 of his favourite tracks that "hold memories and represent landmarks".

Since he first started on the show in 1967 he has introduced thousands of listeners to jazz and taught them to appreciate the different styles of music.

He presented The Best of Jazz most weeks on BBC Radio 2 until April 2007 but he then decided to reduce this to two quarterly seasons per year in order to spend more time on other projects.

In 1972 he was chosen to be the chairman on the comedy panel game I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue on BBC Radio 4.

He has since become famous amongst listeners for his dead-pan and slightly bemused tone of voice.

In 1993, Lyttelton, who is also affectionately known as "Humph", received a Sony Gold Award for services to broadcasting.

Lesley Douglas, Radio 2 controller, said: "Humphrey Lyttelton is not only a giant in the world of jazz, but has also remained a giant of music broadcasting for the past 40 years.

"His listeners will miss him on Radio 2 and the world of music broadcasting will be the poorer without his weekly show."

Before beginning his career in radio he was a professional jazz trumpet player and had a hit with "Bad Penny Blues", which was in the UK Singles Chart for six weeks.

He still plays in his eight piece band, the Humphrey Lyttleton band, which performs sell-out shows around the country.

Lyttelton is also a cartoonist, having previously worked for the Daily Mail, calligrapher, and President of The Society for Italic Handwriting.