Former BBC Radio 1 breakfast DJ Kevin Greening has died at the age of 44.
His agent Chris North said he had died "peacefully" in his sleep on Saturday, but no further details were available.
Greening joined Radio 1 from Virgin in 1994 and hosted the breakfast show with Zoe Ball from 1997 to 1998. He was most recently at London's Smooth Radio.
BBC Radio 5 Live's Simon Mayo, a former Radio 1 presenter, said Greening was a "naturally gifted" presenter who was sometimes embarrassed by his fame.
He said Greening had "a great brain and a very dry sense of humour".
"He was quite shy - sometimes a bit embarrassed about achieving the level of fame he had," Mayo said.
"The work that he put in to his programmes was fantastic. He was very meticulous. He was just a fantastic example and naturally gifted."
Trevor Dann, who was Greening's boss at Radio 1 for five years and gave him his big break 20 years ago at the BBC's local station for London - then known as GLR - said the DJ regarded radio as "his life".
Greening would have become more famous "if he had been a lot more pushy", Dann said.
"He was a really nice, modest, quiet bloke, whereas some other people with half his talent had twice his arrogance. Subsequently they got on and became very famous."
Radio 5 Live broadcaster Nick Wallis said he had been "thrilled" to work with Greening at the radio industry's annual Sony Awards.
"His job was akin to that of Terry Wogan's at Eurovision - commentating on the madness unfolding beneath him with wit and charm," Wallis said.
"Kevin read and ad-libbed his way through a four-hour broadcast with immense professionalism, and it was a delight to see him at work."
Greening was held in very high regard by the entire industry, Wallis added.
John Myers, chief executive of Smooth Radio's parent company GMG Radio, said: "He was a talented broadcaster and we were privileged to have him as our afternoon presenter.
"He was passionate about radio and all kinds of music and will be sadly missed not only by his colleagues at Smooth, but by millions of listeners.
"It's a terrible loss to broadcasting."
Greening was part of the launch line-up of Virgin Radio in 1993, but had joined Radio 1 within a year.
He hosted a number of weekend shows, and was a regular stand-in on daytime slots, before moving to the breakfast show.
After leaving Radio 1, Greening was heard on BBC Radio 5 Live and the BBC World Service.
He was also heard on London stations including Jazz FM and Heart 106.2, before taking on the mid-morning show at indie broadcasters XFM.
His agent Chris North said he had died "peacefully" in his sleep on Saturday, but no further details were available.
Greening joined Radio 1 from Virgin in 1994 and hosted the breakfast show with Zoe Ball from 1997 to 1998. He was most recently at London's Smooth Radio.
BBC Radio 5 Live's Simon Mayo, a former Radio 1 presenter, said Greening was a "naturally gifted" presenter who was sometimes embarrassed by his fame.
He said Greening had "a great brain and a very dry sense of humour".
"He was quite shy - sometimes a bit embarrassed about achieving the level of fame he had," Mayo said.
"The work that he put in to his programmes was fantastic. He was very meticulous. He was just a fantastic example and naturally gifted."
Trevor Dann, who was Greening's boss at Radio 1 for five years and gave him his big break 20 years ago at the BBC's local station for London - then known as GLR - said the DJ regarded radio as "his life".
Greening would have become more famous "if he had been a lot more pushy", Dann said.
"He was a really nice, modest, quiet bloke, whereas some other people with half his talent had twice his arrogance. Subsequently they got on and became very famous."
Radio 5 Live broadcaster Nick Wallis said he had been "thrilled" to work with Greening at the radio industry's annual Sony Awards.
"His job was akin to that of Terry Wogan's at Eurovision - commentating on the madness unfolding beneath him with wit and charm," Wallis said.
"Kevin read and ad-libbed his way through a four-hour broadcast with immense professionalism, and it was a delight to see him at work."
Greening was held in very high regard by the entire industry, Wallis added.
John Myers, chief executive of Smooth Radio's parent company GMG Radio, said: "He was a talented broadcaster and we were privileged to have him as our afternoon presenter.
"He was passionate about radio and all kinds of music and will be sadly missed not only by his colleagues at Smooth, but by millions of listeners.
"It's a terrible loss to broadcasting."
Greening was part of the launch line-up of Virgin Radio in 1993, but had joined Radio 1 within a year.
He hosted a number of weekend shows, and was a regular stand-in on daytime slots, before moving to the breakfast show.
After leaving Radio 1, Greening was heard on BBC Radio 5 Live and the BBC World Service.
He was also heard on London stations including Jazz FM and Heart 106.2, before taking on the mid-morning show at indie broadcasters XFM.
what a bloody shame
