This isn't exactly breaking news, but I was away for a couple of weeks and didn't get a chance to write about Mike Richards' departure from TSN Radio 1050 when it was announced last Monday. Here's Mike's farewell tweet about the big change.
Don't worry about me. I'm always workin for the next thing! You'll like what comes next! @TSN1050Radio @TSN_Sports pic.twitter.com/eEsKUnckBE— Mike Richards (@MikeRichards01) August 22, 2016
It's being spun as a mutual parting of ways between Mike Richards and TSN Radio. The writing was on the wall in February when Mike Richards was moved from mornings to 1-4pm. When you're making major market morning show money, they won't keep you at 1pm. You can ask Greg Brady about that.
You may recall Mike Richards was recruited back to Toronto from Calgary's Fan 960 (where he was working with Andrew Walker) by TSN when they launched their first radio station at 1050. Desired ratings never materialized and a little over five years later the experiment is over.
On January 13, Mike Richards visited my home for three hours. We recorded the first two hours and then shot the shit off the record for another hour. He seemed incredibly authentic and willing to share all. He told me things during that episode he had never said in public and left me with a completely new level of respect for the man. We've kept in touch ever since.
Here's the episode if you missed it. It's particularly interesting in retrospect.
For whatever reason, Mike Richards never succeeded at TSN Radio, but he's quite the character with personality to spare and I'm sure he'll be just fine. Once he's able to speak freely, I'll be sure to have him back on.
Currently, TSN Radio is listing a show entitled "TSN 1050 Today" at 1pm. I'm sure that's temporary and a new show will be unveiled shortly. Never a dull moment on the Toronto sports media scene. Stay tuned.
