“I know this sounds like a packaged answer, but it’s not. I hope it’s just as much fun as the rest of my career has been,” he said.

The GOLD Central Victoria disc jockey planned to hit the airwaves for the final time on Friday morning after 38 years in radio.

Thirty of those years had been spent working in Bendigo.

Whether broadcasting from the Easter Festival or an RAAF plane over Horsham, Mr Lees said so many of his career highlights had been out of the office.

“You get out there and it’s seat-of-your-pants radio,” he said.

“(Former co-host) Wayne Gregson and I did a broadcast from the (Bendigo) Swap Meet just last November and it was great fun.

“The characters you meet, the conversations that go on, the enthusiasms that radiates through, it’s just a wonderful thing to get their message out.”

LastWhack: GOLD FM co-host and Addy writer Wayne Gregson delivers his final Bushwhacked column

Over the years Mr Lees had developed a strong bond with his audience, many of whom had been leaving messages since Tuesday when his retirement announcement was made.

“You do develop a great rapport with people. Some of them, along with advertisers, end up being friends,” he said.

Mr Lees loved everything about radio. He had dabbled in every facet of it. He had been a technician, spent time with the ABC, worked in sales and in management.

“I joke that the only thing I don’t do is clean the gutters, though I’ve done that too,” he said.

Mr Lees did not know exactly what the station had planned for his final The Wake Up Call show, though he knew it had invited well-wishers to ring in.

The show would include Mr Lees’ interview with Senator Stirling Griff, the man who first “dragged” him, “kicking and screaming” into radio.

That interview would be a chance for Mr Lees to thank the senator for helping an insurance clerk find his calling.

GOLD FM was still to announce who would replace Mr Lees on The Wake Up Call. Allie Mac would fill in from Monday.

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