Sara Cox's rise from Bolton barmaid to one of BBC's biggest names - as she insists 'I'm not nervous, I know I'll do a good job' ahead of replacing Scott Mills on Radio 2

Growing up living above the pub The Pineapple in Bolton, Sara Cox never imagined that she would soon be one of the 's most sought-after stars. 

Yet fast forward five decades and now Sara is preparing to take on one of the most coveted jobs to date - fronting the Radio 2 Breakfast Show. 

Monday will see her take on the job after she was announced as Scott Mills' replacement, following his axing over a historical allegation of serious sexual offences. 

Yet despite the gravitas surrounding the position, Sara isn't overthinking her new role, declaring: 'It's huge, but I'm ready. I'm not nervous because I know I can do a good job. 

'I don't want to sound arrogant, but I've been doing radio for 28 years now.' 

Indeed, Sara has earned her stripes in the radio world, and one of the most recognisable voices in Britain after spending decades in the nation's homes via the airwaves. 

Yet Sara's life could have turned out very differently, given she came to radio via an accidental modelling career. 

Post A-levels, Sara headed to Paris to see a bit of the world, where she was approached by a modelling scout. This led to her working with an agency in Manchester. 

They printed her name wrong on her card – her real name is Sarah, which her family and friends still use – but the public identity of Sara Cox stuck.

A few years of modelling followed, including three months in New York, a month in Milan and five months in Seoul. 

It wasn’t exactly glamorous – the flatshare in South Korea had so many cockroaches she had to crush them with shampoo bottles – but the nightlife made up for it.

While modelling, Sara also supported herself working as a barmaid at the Bolton pub, before eventually relocating to London after model bookers realised she was also blessed with an infectious personality and scored her first TV job presenting The Girlie Show on Channel 4 in 1996. 

As she became a known face on the party scene, Sara soon adopted the 'ladette' label, described by the Cambridge Dictionary as 'a young woman who drinks a lot of alcohol, uses rude language, and behaves in a noisy way'.

She led the British ladettes brigade, completed by Zoe Ball, Gail Porter, Sarah Cawood, Donna Air, Claire Gorham, Rachel Williams and Jayne Middlemiss, yet has always said she hated the title, because 'they just extended the word "lad"'. 

More TV gigs followed for Sara, including hosting The Big Breakfast, before she was snapped up by BBC Radio 1 in 1999 to host The Surgery with Mark Hamilton as well as the Saturday lunchtime show with Emma B.

Blown away by her talents, BBC bosses announced just three months later that Sara would replace Zoe Ball as presenter of Radio 1 Breakfast.