'It's time to go': ABC presenter James Valentine announces retirement

James Valentine has confirmed he will not return to ABC Radio following his latest round of cancer treatment, formally ending a 25-year run on 702 ABC Radio Sydney’s Afternoons program.

Valentine, 64, announced his decision during a brief return to the program today, revealing that health concerns mean he will not resume regular broadcasting.

“I won’t be coming back this year to the microphone and the Afternoons program,” James said. “It’s time for me to retire.”

“This decision has been hard for me to make, but I need to focus on getting better and being with family and friends and making sure I’m giving my health my best shot.”

He has been off air since June after being diagnosed with omentum cancer affecting a layer of tissue over the stomach and intestines. The diagnosis came after Valentine had already taken time away in 2024 to undergo treatment for oesophageal cancer.

James Valentine.

Farewell broadcast locked in

Valentine will be farewelled with a special two-hour retrospective broadcast this Friday afternoon, marking 25 years of Afternoons.

“This coming Friday, Jen Fleming, long-time producer of the program, and I want to present a retrospective, the best of Afternoons, to capture what we’ve made in those 25 years,” James said as he announced the program on Monday.

Across the week, listeners are being invited to share their favourite moments via the 702 ABC Radio Sydney Facebook page, with memories and stories set to be reflected during the broadcast.

The James Valentine Afternoons: Retrospective special will air on 702 ABC Radio Sydney at 12.30pm AEDT on Friday 6 February, and across NSW at 1.30pm.

ABC tribute

Hugh Marks, Managing Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, said Valentine’s contribution to the network had been “remarkable and enduring”.

“James is one of the great creative forces in Australian broadcasting.

“He has an extraordinary gift for turning everyday moments into joyful, smart and surprising radio, and the connection he has built with his audience over decades simply cannot be overstated.

“We’re proud to celebrate everything he has brought to the ABC, and we wish him strength and support as he focuses on his health.”

A career built inside the ABC

Valentine began his media career in the mid-1980s, hosting cartoons on ABC TV’s The Afternoon Show, before working across a range of television programs and later moving into radio at 666 ABC Radio Canberra.

He went on to host Mornings in Sydney before finding what he has described as his “true home” in 2001 when he began presenting Afternoons on 702 ABC Radio Sydney, then known as 2BL.

Aside from a brief detour to Breakfast in 2022 and 2023, Valentine has held the Afternoons role for more than two decades.

He will also step away from his ABC Jazz program Upbeat, where he has shared his passion for jazz since the show launched in 2020.

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