Gritter named after Zoe Ball as BBC presenter declares she’s ‘made up’

Radio 2 presenter Zoe Ball proclaimed “I’ve made it!” after being surprised live on air with the news that a gritter in Hertfordshire has been named after her.

The Breakfast Show presenter has developed an obsession with the naming of gritters in the UK, with listeners getting in touch to relay the pun-inspired names for the grit dispensing vehicles they have seen, such as Taylor Drift and Gritney Spears.

And on Tuesday morning Ball was surprised by traffic and travel reporter Richie Anderson, who was in Stevenage with the Hertfordshire County Council’s Highways Team to break the news that one of their gritters had been named Snowy Ball in her honour.

Ball said: “I am absolutely speechless. I can’t really believe it. Honestly, mum, dad… I’ve made it! I’ve got a gritter named after me.

“Do you know what? I want to go to Stevenage and ride in Snowy Ball. Chris, all of you up there, that is amazing. Kerry, our listener, I’m completely flummoxed, I don’t even know what to say.

“Unbelievable scenes! See, who needs an honorary degree when you can have a gritter named after you? I’m absolutely made up.”

Snowy Ball will be driven by some of the county’s 140 drivers, keeping the local roads clear.

“Look out for Snowy Ball on the roads of Hertfordshire over the next few months,” Ball posted on X.

Meanwhile, Anderson was not forgotten, with the Highways Team revealing they had named a smaller gritter Gritchie Anderson for him.

He said: “I know how people must feel when they get MBEs! I can’t believe my name, it’s not in lights, but it’s in black paint on the side of a van. And I love it!”