Nine Entertainment must now fill a Ray Hadley-sized hole in its radio line-up.

That’s no small challenge when you consider the 2GB presenter, who announced on Thursday he was stepping down, is its most consistent and reliable asset, delivering 160 consecutive survey wins in the crucial Sydney morning slot.

Ray Hadley announces his retirement from his eponymous 2GB morning show on Thursday.Credit: Kate Geraghty

It’s a move Nine may not be ready for but may have considered given the broadcaster is now 70 and has spent more than four decades in radio. He leaves in December with two lucrative years on his contract, rumoured to be in the region of $7 million as Nine’s top-paid star.

The early word from inside the Nine camp is there is no immediate or obvious replacement lying in wait, which wasn’t the case when controversial shock jock Alan Jones stepped down in late 2020.

A more commercially palatable Ben Fordham was an easy choice to replace Jones after a decade in the drive slot familiarising himself with the station’s audience and consistently topping the ratings.

Nine’s radio boss Tom Malone doesn’t have the Fordham lever to pull again this........

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