It was all there as usual: the voice like a double Baileys; the naughty, sometimes downright mucky sense of humour; but above all the love for – and occasional frustration with – the oddities of the British way of life.

And then, at 9.30am yesterday, his voice wobbling with emotion, Terry Wogan said "thank you for being my friend" and that was it. His last show was over.

It was sentimental in places, but after 27 years presenting the country’s most popular breakfast show, who could blame him? The playlist was full of soppy ballads by the likes of Eva Cassidy and Dolly Parton, and there were piles of tributes from friends, fans, and even the Prime Minister. Sir Terry, said Gordon Brown, had shaped the popular imagination of his viewers and listeners.

All the other popular ingredients of his Radio 2 show, which attracts about eight million listeners a day, were present and correct, including a final episode of the Janet and John story, which is always so sweet and innocent (unless you have a filthy mind, of course). Another crucial part of the show has always been the fans, the Togs (Terry’s Old Gals and Geezers) and they were out in force, sending in tributes, poems and despatches of the absurd.

A group of Togs gathered outside the BBC studios to see the 71-year-old Togmeister off, including some from Scotland. Lesley Brown, from Grantown-on-Spey, took the overnight train to London, was waiting for Terry when he finished the show and managed to get a hug from him.

Mrs Brown, 59, is so dedicated (every Tog has a nickname and hers is Lucy Quipment) that she will not even allow her husband to speak while Sir Terry is on the radio. "I like Terry because he talks to you like a friend," she said. "He’s very natural on the radio and he doesn’t take himself too seriously. But he’s also not afraid to have an opinion.

"He can be grumpy, of course, because that’s what the rest of us are like. But until we all became so politically correct, we were all like Terry, we all said what we thought."

Mrs Brown said she would be giving Sir Terry’s successor Chris Evans a try and might even become a Cog, but is worried that yesterday’s departure is another sign that radio is becoming too youth-focused.

"The radio seems to be aimed now more at the 30s age group, but they are ignoring the fact they have a wider audience. They need older presenters like Terry. If Terry is old-fashioned, then I’m old-fashioned."

Fellow Radio 2 DJ Johnnie Walker will fill in until Evans takes over the show on January 11. Sir Terry said he was pleased Evans – once an enfant terrible but now regarded as a more mature, if still provocative broadcaster – would be his successor.

The Prime Minister paid his tribute during the 8am news, calling Sir Terry’s presenting stint a towering achievement.

"I wanted to let you know how very dearly you’ll be missed," he said, "and how delighted we all are you’ll be returning with another venture before too long."

In response to the broadcast of Mr Brown’s comments, Sir Terry said: "How dare you slip that across me. Are you all trying to make me cry?"

Throughout the show,
he read out cards and emails from listeners wishing him well. "I’m surrounded by farewell poems," he said. "I wish I could reply to all of you personally because I feel as if we’ve met."

Later, as the tributes piled up, he joked: "I am having my obituaries while I’m still alive".

Sir Terry will begin hosting a new Sunday show from February and no doubt his fans will move with him.

"I will miss him," said Lesley Brown yesterday as she joined other Togs for a hot chocolate near the studios. "But at least I will be able to take a shower whenever I want to, not just when the news is on."

She will certainly be listening to Sir Terry’s new show. As will millions of others. A legend does not disappear that easily.