Vernon Kay has been forced to address a listener’s complaints that he is “rude” and “disrespectful” to his BBC Radio 2 colleague.
During a segment in which he reads out letters from members of the public, Kay was accused by a listener, Jack from Bolton, of giving Maya-Smith an insulting nickname.
Reading out the letter, Kay said: “‘Hi Vernon’s team. Well, I’m very unhappy at Janice-Janine’s additional name. I don’t think adding thingy at the end is respectful at all.
“She’s a great person and comes across beautifully on the radio. Rude. Just rude. Please cease forthwith,’ says Jack in Bolton.”
Vernon Kay was accused of being ‘rude’ to his Radio 2 colleague
BBC
Kay explained that the nickname Janice-Janine Thingy sprung up from an event the trio of hosts had attended in Scotland, where they met a group of fans.
“Well, Jack, there’s a story behind it. OK. There was a group of young ladies in Stirling. They were from, can you remember where they were from, Janice-Janine thingy?” he asked.
Maya-Smith chimed in: “The Shetlands.”
Kay went on: “The Shetlands, and they were introduced to Pmac [McGarvey]. They knew Pmac’s name, they were very excited and they knew your name, but it didn’t come out as Janice-Janine.”
Maya-Smith said: “They were a bit excited.”
Kay agreed: “They were very excited. They said, ‘Oh, it’s Pmac and… thingy!’ So that’s where it comes from.”
He continued: “And you’ve got to remember the reason why we called Janine Janice is because Jeremy, who you’ve worked with for more than 25 years, actually forgot your name. So that’s why you have the moniker Janice-Janine, and now, thingy.”
Kay with Phil McGarvey and Janine Maya-Smith in the studio
He spilled the beans while sharing his excitement about the radio gang getting to party at BBC Radio 2 in the Park in Stirling, where stars like Chaka Khan, The Script, Emeli Sandé, Simple Minds and Lulu performed.
When asked by BBC Breakfast hosts Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt what the atmosphere is like with his colleagues at the festival, he said: "It's so much fun. We've all grown up career wise together.
“It feels like a school trip when you actually feel like yourself rather than being trussed up in a school tie.”
Munchetty asked: "Who's the mischief maker?" to which Kay immediately replied: "Rylan [Clark].”
Munchetty then probed: "Is the teacher Jeremy Vine?"
Kay insisted:"No, no, no, Vine is the one back of class flicking wet tissue at the teacher.
"He's the mischievous one. He's the naughty boy but he's great fun. He's the current affairs person at BBC Radio 2 but he absolutely isn't that guy in real life. So funny."