Popular morning show "The Tommy Show" was abruptly canceled after their Tuesday morning airing, leaving both the fans and The Tommy Show team stunned.
For the past seven years, Tommy McFly, Jen Richer, and Kelly Collis have been a huge part of morning radio and many Washingtonians’ daily commutes as "The Tommy Show," which aired from 6 to 10 a.m. every weekday morning on 94.7 WIAD.
But this past Tuesday morning, nobody knew -- not even Tommy or the crew -- that it was to be their last broadcast. The team was told after they completed their show that they’d been canceled and that The Tommy Show had aired for the last time that morning.
The Fans' Reaction
Fans of the show were understandably shocked, angry, and upset. An outpouring of support for the radio team quickly spread on social media after the news broke. Tommy, Jen, and Kelly weren’t just radio personalities -- they were like family to their listeners. They participated in community events, concerts, and sporting events, and interacted with their fans on a daily basis. They’ve become friends with many people in the community as a result.
And, they are a huge part of the Washington community as a whole. Tommy, Jen, and Kelly still plan on participating in the festivities on Wednesday night for the Capitals season opener and banner ceremony, as part of NBC News, so be on the lookout for them!
As a service, the show's team has organized "cupcake drops," where they’ve delivered Georgetown Cupcakes to thousands of teachers all over the DMV in the past seven years. After they found out they’d been canceled on Tuesday, Tommy, Jen, and Kelly drove to Mark Twain Middle School in Fairfax County to deliver 120 cupcakes to their teachers.
It’s nearly impossible to list all of the great things Tommy and his crew have done and continue to do for this community, but one of the biggest things is their support of the Best Buddies program.
The Best Buddies program helps kids with intellectual and developmental disabilities make positive connections by pairing them with another student as their buddy. Tommy has helped raise a lot of money for this organization by going out in the community and raising awareness. Last year, he helped with their bake sale at Tyson’s Corner Mall. He even a team participating in the Best Buddies Friendship Walk on Saturday, October 20. If you’d like to support Tommy's team, you can make a donation here.
Future Plans for Tommy McFly and The Tommy Show?
Tommy and his crew all deserved better than what the station did to them. They didn’t even get to say goodbye on the air to their listeners -- or "The Tommy Show Family," as he calls them.
Courtesy of Tommy McFly and The Tommy Show
But Tommy tweeted that he’d be on NBC Washington’s News4Today on Wednesday morning to explain, and he got the chance to thank his Tommy Show family for the overwhelming support they showed yesterday, as well as for the last seven years. And, he promised that they are staying in Washington and that he’d keep everyone updated through his website.
“Our station is changing, we are not.”
As far as we know, Tommy and crew weren’t fired. There are rumors that the WIAD station is changing formats and that The Tommy Show just wasn’t a fit for the new programming. The station will be announcing the new changes this week.
You can sign up for updates on the new Tommy Show website and also stay in touch on Facebook.
I can’t wait to see what’s next for our friends Tommy, Jen, and Kelly. I know they're going to continue to do great things. We’ll just have to wait and see what that looks like for The Tommy Show in the near future.
What was your reaction when you heard they canceled The Tommy Show? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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