Amanda Holden | |
|---|---|
 Holden in 2014 | |
| Born | Amanda Louise Holden (1971-02-16)16 February 1971 (age 54) Portsmouth,Hampshire, England |
| Education | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1991–present |
| Employers | |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 |
| Website | officialamandaholden |
Amanda Louise Holden (born 16 February 1971)[1] is an English media personality, actress and singer. Since 2007, she has been a judge on the television talent competition showBritain's Got Talent onITV. She also co-hosts the nationalHeart Breakfast radio show withJamie Theakston on weekday mornings.
Holden grew up inBishop's Waltham and took an interest in acting andmusical theatre while at school. She played the title role in the musical stage showThoroughly Modern Millie in 2004, for which she was nominated for aLaurence Olivier Award. Her acting credits on television includeThe Grimleys (1998–2001),Kiss Me Kate (1999–2001),Cutting It (2002–2004),Wild at Heart (2006–2008), andBig Top (2009). Holden has also presented various television shows for ITV, includingThe Sun Military Awards (2009–2014),Superstar (2012),This Morning (2014–2015, 2017),Text Santa (2015), andGive a Pet a Home (2015).
In 2013, Holden released her autobiography,No Holding Back, which became aSunday Times bestseller.[2] In 2020, she released her debut studio album,Songs from My Heart, which reached the top 5 on theUK Albums Chart.[3]
Holden was born inPortsmouth,Hampshire,[4] and spent much of her childhood inBishop's Waltham, and aged nine she joined Bishop's Waltham Little Theatre Company.
She attended the secondary community schoolSwanmore College. At age 16, she relocated toBournemouth,[5][6] before moving to South London to attendMountview Academy of Theatre Arts.[7]
Holden's first television appearance was as a contestant on the game showBlind Date in 1991. From 2006 to 2008, Holden appeared as Sarah Trevanian in three series of ITV'sWild at Heart co-starringStephen Tompkinson.[8]
In 1997, she was a cast member of the Channel 5 sketch show, "We Know Where You Live" alongsideSimon Pegg,Fiona Allen andSanjeev Bhaskar.[9]
Holden's other TV credits include three series of the comedyKiss Me Kate withCaroline Quentin andChris Langham, three series of ITV'sThe Grimleys, one series ofMad About Alice,Celeb withHarry Enfield, BBC seriesHearts and Bones withDamian Lewis, theJonathan Creek episode "The Problem at Gallowes Gate", and aBoxing Day specialAgatha Christie's Marple episode "4.50 From Paddington" oppositeGeraldine McEwan andJohn Hannah. She co-starred withBill Nighy andTom Courtenay inReady When You Are, Mr. McGill, a comedy drama byJack Rosenthal. Holden is a judge onBritain's Got Talent along withSimon Cowell,Bruno Tonioli, andAlesha Dixon. She joined the show in 2007.
She has appeared on British series such asSmack the Pony,EastEnders,Hearts and Bones, andCutting It.[10]
In 2009, Holden appeared as Lizzie, the Ring Mistress, in the BBC circus sitcomBig Top. In April 2009 it was reported the US network CBS had offered Holden a job as one-time guest presenter onThe Early Show, a daytime talk show. On 1 June 2009 she appeared with regular presentersHarry Smith andMaggie Rodriguez. Holden has since signed with CBS as a British correspondent forThe Early Show.
From 2009 until 2014 Holden co-presentedA Night of Heroes: The Sun Military Awards annually on ITV withPhillip Schofield. In January 2010 she presented her own three-part series,Amanda Holden's Fantasy Lives, in which she tried out three of her dream jobs.[11]
In 2010, Holden co-presentedThe Door withChris Tarrant. In 2011, Holden narrated the documentaryThe Nation's Favourite Bee Gees Song on ITV. On 6 July 2012 Holden guest presented an episode ofLorraine, standing in forLorraine Kelly. She returned to guest present six further episodes of the show from 4 to 8 April and on 4 July 2016.
In 2012, Holden presented talent showSuperstar on ITV. On 24 March 2014 she hosted an episode of theChannel 4 showDispatches about the treatment for stillbirths and miscarriages.
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From 22 September to 18 December 2014, Holden filled in as a co-host onThis Morning withPhillip Schofield duringHolly Willoughby's maternity leave. She took a short break in January and February 2015 to record theBritain's Got Talent auditions.Christine Lampard stood in for Holden during this time, before the latter returned to the show from 2 March until 17 July 2015.[12] She returned toThis Morning in 2017, to co-present numerous episodes withBen Shephard.
Holden presented a six-part factual series for ITV calledGive a Pet a Home, which worked alongside theRSPCA finding homes for animals. The series aired in April and May 2015.[13]
On 18 December 2015 Holden was part of the presenting team for ITV's Christmas telethonText Santa. In 2016 she presentedI've Got Something To Tell You, a factual series for theW television channel.[14][15] She appeared as Miss Pentangle inCBBC'sThe Worst Witch in 2017. Holden made a guest appearance in the Australian soap operaNeighbours asHarriet Wallace in 2022. She began filming for the show in London during October 2021.[16]
In 2021, she started appearing in a new comedy mockumentary series fromBo' Selecta! creatorLeigh Francis. The programme was calledThe Holden Girls: Mandy & Myrtle and featured Francis in drag with heavy make-up as Amanda's nan Myrtle. The show launched on the E4 channel with 601,938 viewers and was repeated on Channel 4. The show was axed after one series.[17]
Holden has appeared in several stage musicals, and in 2004 was nominated for theLaurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance in theWest End production ofThoroughly Modern Millie,[10] which closed earlier than expected in June 2004.[18][19]
Holden finished playing the rolePrincess Fiona in the original West End production ofShrek The Musical, which began on 6 May 2011. The show opened at theTheatre Royal, Drury Lane on 14 June 2011.[20] She starred withNigel Lindsay,Richard Blackwood, andNigel Harman. Holden departed the show on 3 October 2011, ten weeks earlier than planned, to focus on her unborn child and was replaced byGirls Aloud singerKimberley Walsh. For this role, Holden won theWhatsOnStage.com Theatregoers' Choice Award for Best Actress in a Musical.[21] In 2016 Holden starred in a West End revival ofStepping Out[22] and reprised her role when it opened at theVaudeville Theatre in March 2017.[23]
In 1996, Holden played Pamela inIntimate Relations. In 1999 she appeared as a shoe-shop assistant inVirtual Sexuality. She was uncredited in the 2013 filmOne Chance.
In April 2019, it was announced Holden would replaceEmma Bunton as co-host ofHeart Breakfast withJamie Theakston, at the same time as it went national on 3 June.[24]
In 2019, Holden signed a recording contract withVirgin EMI Records.[25] In 2020 she released her debut studio album,Songs from My Heart, throughUniversal Music.[26] It reached number four on theUK Albums Chart.
In July 2009, Holden became a gossip columnist for theNews of the World.[27]
From 2010 until 2012 Holden appeared in television commercial adverts for supermarket chainTesco. Since 2012 she has appeared in television commercials forDanone Oykos low-fat yoghurt.
In October 2013, Amanda released her autobiography,No Holding Back,[28] which became aSunday Times best seller.[29]
In 2015, she was the new face of theAlpen Brighter Morning Challenge.[30]
In 2021, she was the British spokesperson for theEurovision Song Contest. She awarded UK's 12 jury points to France.
Holden fronted the breast cancer awareness campaign ofEverton F.C..[31] She is a patron of the football club's charity.[32] In September 2011 Holden was sponsored to bake a cake for every child in theGreat Ormond Street Hospital.[33]
On 13 April 2008 Holden ran theLondon Marathon in four hours and thirteen minutes for theBorn Free Foundation.[34] Since 2013 she has presented theRoyal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) Animal Hero Awards. Holden has raised money forJeans for Genes andSSAFA via The Big Brew Up.[35][36]
In 2013 she became a celebrity ambassador forBattersea Dogs & Cats Home following her work withPedigree Petfoods campaign that she and fellow ambassadorPaul O'Grady supported together.[37]
In June 2018 Holden was photographed underwater by Zena Holloway.[38] She posed as a mermaid in an awareness campaign forPeople for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to highlight the "disgusting treatment" oforca atSeaWorld. Holden has also posed nude for PETA in a campaign to promotevegetarianism.[39]
In 2020 Holden raised money for theNational Health Service (NHS) during theCOVID-19 pandemic.[40]
In 1992 while they were both appearing inThe Sound of Music Holden datedGeorge Asprey.[41] She married the comedianLes Dennis in June 1995. The couple separated temporarily in 2000 after Holden's affair with actorNeil Morrissey.[42] Holden and Dennis separated permanently in December 2002 and divorced in 2003. Around this time, she alleged that she was sexually assaulted by an "unnamed famous comedian" at a public event.[43]
In 2006, Holden gave birth to her first child conceived with her then fiancé, record producer Chris Hughes.[44] She married Hughes atBabington House,[45] Somerset, on 10 December 2008 with formerFormula One racing driverDavid Coulthard acting as best man. After a miscarriage in 2010, she suffered the stillbirth of their son at seven months in 2011.[46] In 2012, despite medical complications, she gave birth to their third child.[47]
Holden and Hughes reside inPetersham.[48][49] Holden also owns a cottage inChipping Norton,Oxfordshire which she has been renovating since 2017.[50][51][52]
In December 2016, Holden's ancestry was the subject of a BBC programme in theWho Do You Think You Are? series.[53] The investigation discovered that herCornish 5x great-grandfather, Collin Thomas, served a year's imprisonment after breaking his apprenticeship as acordwainer by enlisting in theRoyal Navy and leaving theUnited Kingdom aged 15. Ten years later, while serving in theBritish Army after thePeninsular War, he met and married aFrench woman and began a family nearBordeaux, France, then moved his wife and eldest children back to Great Britain.[54] Holden also learned that her grandfather Frank Holden was aboard theRMS Lancastria when it was bombed by theWehrmacht in June 1940 outside the port ofSaint-Nazaire.[55]
In 2010, Holden campaigned to keep aSainsbury's supermarket out ofBishop's Waltham. Residents of her hometown then accused her of adouble standard in November 2010 when she signed a deal to appear in advertisements forTesco, another UK supermarket chain.[56]
Holden is a fan of English Premier League football clubEverton F.C., attending home and away games when her schedule allows.[57] She is apescetarian.[58]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | In Suspicious Circumstances | Alice Meadows | 1 episode |
| 1994 | EastEnders | Carmen | 4 episodes |
| 1996 | Intimate Relations | Pamela | Supporting role |
| 1997 | We Know Where You Live | Various | 12 episodes |
| The Bill | Jane | 1 episode | |
| Thief Takers | Camilla Barker | ||
| 1998 | Goodness Gracious Me | Various | 5 episodes |
| Jonathan Creek | Petra | 1 episode: "The Problem at Gallows Gate" | |
| Hale and Pace | Girl 2 | 1 episode | |
| 1998–2001 | Kiss Me Kate | Mel | 22 episodes |
| 1999 | Don't Go Breaking My Heart | Nurse | |
| Smack the Pony | Various | ||
| Virtual Sexuality | Shoe Shop Assistant | ||
| The Nearly Complete and Utter History of Everything | Geordie's Girlfriend | ||
| 1999–2001 | The Grimleys | Geraldine Titley | |
| 2000 | Happy Birthday Shakespeare | Alice | TV movie |
| 2000–2001 | Hearts and Bones | Louise Stanley | 13 episodes |
| 2001 | The Hunt | Sarah Campbell | TV movie |
| Now You See Her | Jessica | ||
| 2002 | Celebs | Debs Bloke | 6 episodes |
| 2002–2004 | Cutting It | Mia Bevan | 13 episodes |
| 2003 | Ready When You Are, Mr. McGill | Police Officer | TV movie |
| 2004 | Mad About Alice | Alice | 6 episodes |
| French and Saunders | Cordelia Lear | 1 episode | |
| Marple | Lucy Eyelesbarrow | 1 episode: "4.50 From Paddington" | |
| 2006–2008 | Wild at Heart | Sarah Trevanion | 23 episodes |
| 2009 | Big Top | Lizzie | 6 episodes |
| 2013 | One Chance | Amanda Holden | Uncredited |
| 2014 | Pudsey the Dog: The Movie | Sally the Dog (voice) | |
| 2017–2018 | The Worst Witch | Miss Pentangle | 2 episodes |
| 2018 | The Keith and Paddy Picture Show | Shop Assistant | 1 episode |
| 2019 | Plebs | Rufina | |
| 2021 | The Holden Girls: Mandy and Myrtle | Amanda Holden | 1 series |
| 2022 | Neighbours | Harriet Wallace | 3 episodes |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Blind Date | Contestant | 1 episode |
| 1998 | Wish You Were Here...? | Guest Presenter | |
| 2000 | It's Only TV...but I Like It | Guest | |
| 2000–2020 | Loose Women | 5 episodes | |
| 2001 | SMTV | Guest Presenter | 1 episode |
| 2001–2007 | Richard & Judy | Guest | 4 episodes |
| 2002 | This Is Your Life | 1 episode | |
| 2002–2003 | Top of the Pops | Guest Presenter | 5 episodes |
| 2003 | The Kumars at No. 42 | Guest | 1 episode |
| Greasemania | Presenter | TV special | |
| 2003, 2007 | Parkinson | Guest | 2 episodes |
| 2004–2008 | GMTV | 5 episodes | |
| 2005, 2009 | The Paul O'Grady Show | 2 episodes | |
| 2007 | The Dame Edna Treatment | 1 episode | |
| 2007–present | Britain's Got Talent | Judge | |
| 2008 | TV Burp | Guest | 1 episode |
| Celebrity Ding Dong | |||
| Gordon Ramsay: Cookalong Live! | Sous Chef | TV special | |
| 2009 | Celebratingthe Carpenters | Co-presenter | WithRonan Keating |
| Out of My Depth | Presenter | Documentary | |
| Hell's Kitchen | Guest | 2 episodes | |
| Angela and Friends | 1 episode | ||
| Bookaboo | 1 episode: "That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown" | ||
| 2009–2010 | The Early Show | Guest Presenter | 3 episodes |
| 2009–2014 | The Sun Military Awards | Presenter | TV special |
| 2009–2016 | Alan Carr: Chatty Man | Guest | 5 episodes |
| 2009–2020 | The One Show | Guest Presenter | |
| 2010 | Amanda Holden's Fantasy Lives | Presenter | |
| The Door | Co-presenter | WithChris Tarrant | |
| 2010–2015 | The Graham Norton Show | Guest | 4 episodes |
| 2010–2019 | A League of their Own | Presenter | |
| 2011 | The Nation's Favourite Bee Gees Song | TV special | |
| 2012 | Superstar | 1 series | |
| The Talent Show Story | Guest | 4 episodes | |
| 2012–2020 | Lorraine | Guest Presenter | 9 episodes |
| 2013–2017 | Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway | Guest Announcer | 7 episodes |
| 2014 | Deal or No Deal | Celebrity Contestant | Celebrity edition; 1 episode |
| Dispatches: Exposing Hospital Heartache | Presenter | TV documentary | |
| 2014–2015, 2017–2018 | This Morning | Co-presenter | WithPhillip Schofield,Ben Shephard andRylan Clark |
| 2015 | Give a Pet a Home | Presenter | 1 series |
| Text Santa | TV special | ||
| The Dog Rescuers with Alan Davies | Guest | 1 episode | |
| Jamie & Jimmy's Friday Night Feast | |||
| 2016 | Who Do You Think You Are? | TV documentary | |
| I've Got Something To Tell You | Presenter | 1 series | |
| 2018 | Child of Mine | Narrator | TV documentary |
| 2019 | Britain's Got Talent: The Champions | Judge | 1 series |
| Shopping with Keith Lemon | Guest | 1 episode | |
| Blockbusters | Contestant | ||
| Celebrity Juice | Panellist | 3 episodes | |
| 2021 | DNA Journey | Guest | TV documentary |
| Musicals: The Greatest Show | TV special | ||
| Eurovision Song Contest 2021 | UK Spokesperson | Annual programme | |
| 2021–2022 | I Can See Your Voice | Judge | 2 series |
| 2022 | Britain's Got Talent: The Ultimate Magician | TV special | |
| 2023 | Amanda and Alan's Italian Job | Co-presenter | Co-star withAlan Carr |
| Celebrity Hunted | Guest | 1 episode | |
| Sing for the King: The Search for the Coronation Choir[59] | Celebrity Mentor | WithGareth Malone,Motsi Mabuse &Rose Ayling-Ellis | |
| Sex: A Bonkers History[60] | Co-presenter | AlongsideDan Jones | |
| 2024 | RuPaul's Drag Race UK | Guest judge | Series 6, Episode 6: "Snatch Game" |
| 2025 | Amanda & Alan's Spanish Job | Co-presenter | AlongsideAlan Carr[61] |
| TBA | The Inner Circle | Host | Upcoming quiz show[62] |
| Year | Advert | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | PETA | Herself | |
| 2010 | News of the World | ||
| 2010–2012 | Tesco | [63] | |
| 2012–2014 | Danone Oykos | ||
| 2015–2016 | Alpen | [64] | |
| 2021–present | J D Williams |
| Year | Title | Role | Theatre/company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Arsenic and Old Lace | Elaine Harper | Yvonne Arnaud Theatre |
| 1996–1997 | Aladdin | Princess Jasmine | Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield |
| 1998 | The Importance of Being Earnest | Cecily Cardew | UK tour |
| 1999 | The Sound of Music | Liesl Von Trapp | Pavilion Theatre, Bournemouth |
| 2003–2004 | Thoroughly Modern Millie | Millie | Theatre Royal,Drury Lane |
| 2011 | Shrek the Musical | Princess Fiona | |
| 2016 | Stepping Out | Vera | UK tour |
| Cinderella | Fairy Godmother | London Palladium |
| Year | Programme | Channel | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–present | Heart UK Breakfast with Jamie and Amanda | Heart | Weekday mornings |
Born February 16, 1971
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| National | |
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