Paul Ross | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1956-12-31)31 December 1956 (age 68) |
| Occupations |
|
| Children | 5 |
| Mother | Martha Ross |
| Family | Jonathan Ross (brother) |
John Paul Ross (born 31 December 1956) is an English television and radio presenter, journalist and media personality.
He is the son ofMartha Ross and the elder brother ofJonathan Ross.
Growing up in outer eastLondon, Ross was educated atNorlington School for Boys, and later read English at theUniversity of Kent. Realising he would not be able to follow the academic career he favoured, "an English lecturer at a polytechnic",[1] he commenced training as a journalist at theUniversity of Exeter and subsequently started his career with theWestern Times inExeter in 1982.[2]
Ross became a researcher atLondon Weekend Television before becoming an editor forThe Six O'Clock Show andThe London Programme. He worked as the series editor on series 3 and 4 ofChannel 4's magazine style programmeThe Word, and became executive producer for series 5.[citation needed]
His first job as a TV presenter was on the current affairs showEyewitness, which ran for two years and saw him filming inSicily, the United States,Brazil and Russia. He also fronted the police appeals show Crime Monthly forITV.[3]
His onscreen break came in 1993 withChannel 4'sThe Big Breakfast, on which Ross worked first as a reporter and then as a studio presenter.[4]
In 1995, Ross was chosen as the presenter of the game showJeopardy!, which had been recently taken over bySky One.[5] In the same year, he presented episodes ofThe Big Breakfast, theITV seriesBig City andGood Sex Guide Abroad.[6]
In April 1996, he presented the celebrity-based television showThe Very Famous Paul Ross Show forThe Family Channel, in which he interviewed performersAdam West,Lynne Perrie andCannon and Ball. In September of the same year, he teamed up withSarah Greene to launch aSky One afternoon chat show called1 to 3, aimed primarily at women with a mix of movies, music, celebrities, topical information, lifestyle and entertainment.[7]
In January 1997, Ross presented the first episode ofAll Over the Shop, his celebrity-based panel game show based on consumer issues. The programme, broadcast onBBC One ran for three series until July 1999, by which time 85 episodes had been made. A critic on Gameshow.com gaveAll Over the Shop positive remarks by saying: "For an early morning slot, this was quite a perky little show, a fact that must have been recognised due to its spin-off programmes."[8] That same year Ross frontedEndurance UK, the UK's equivalent of the cult Japanese showZa Gaman for theChallenge TV channel,[9] and it was commissioned for a second series the following year. Ross also presented the game show,Tellystack forUK Gold.[10] In 1997 he presented his late night entertainment programmeThe Paul Ross Show, broadcast onITV, which again saw a second series transmitted in 1998.[citation needed]
In 1999, Ross was again playing quizmaster when he presented the game showsMind The Gap, transmitted onITV,[11]Life's a Punt forLIVE TV,A Slice of the Action forCarlton Food Network,[12] and the celebrity quizIt's Anybody's Guess, which was commissioned for 40 episodes in the Carlton London region.[13]
In 2000, he presented a television game show forLiving TV calledMystic Challenge.[14]
In October 2001, Ross appeared as a guest onBBC Two's comedy panel showNever Mind the Buzzcocks.[15] The following month he returned to his role as presenter withNo Win, No Fee, a new game show forBBC One. The show was broadcast from 29 October 2001 to 29 August 2003, with three series and 70 episodes made.[16]
Ross presentedMost Haunted Live! forLiving TV from the May 2006 live event in Portsmouth untilMost Haunted Live ended on Living TV in March 2010.[17] Ross also hosted on the shopping channelBid TV, where he was one of its original faces when it first launched in October 2000.[18]
Ross appeared regularly as a showbiz correspondent onThis Morning..[19] He also contributes regularly onThe Alan Titchmarsh Show, and occasionally on theChannel 5 showBig Brother's Bit on the Side.[citation needed]
By the late 1990s, Ross had worked as a presenter forGLR,Virgin Radio and, later,Talk Radio.[citation needed]
Ross also presented a radio show forLBC but left in early 2008, to present theBreakfast Show onBBC London 94.9,[20] initially withJoAnne Good till January 2010 when Good was given her own late night showThe Late Show with Joanne Good. From January 2010Gaby Roslin co-presented with Ross till January 2013, when schedule changes took place andPenny Smith, formerGMTV presenter was announced as his new co-presenter. Since they have been presentingBBC London 94.9 Breakfast show, its listenership, according toRAJAR increased by 99,000 in the first quarter of 2014.[21][needs update]
From 2008 to 2011 he also presented a show on Saturday mornings onBBC Sussex andBBC Surrey (formerlyBBC Southern Counties Radio).[22]
In addition to his Breakfast show with Penny Smith on BBC London 94.9, since late 2013 Ross has been presenting the Saturday mid-morning show onBBC Radio Berkshire, 8 am till 11 am.[23][24]
In November 2006, he caused controversy by announcing an upcomingEastEnders Christmas storyline on his LBC show, causing his mother,Martha Ross, who told him the storyline, to besacked from her job as an extra onEastEnders.[25]
Ross broadcast "Paul Ross Full Set Breakfast" from 6–10 am ontalkRADIO, a new talk radio station which launched on 21 March 2016.[citation needed] In January 2018, as part of schedule changes to the station, Ross moved to overnights in the earlier time of 1–5 am. He left talkRADIO in September 2019 to join sister stationTalksport, presenting in the same overnight timeslot. This continued to be simulcast on talkRADIO until the launch of the new schedules in April 2022.[citation needed]
Ross was the first contestant to be eliminated on 2003'sComic Relief Does Fame Academy after his singing failed to impress the public voters.[citation needed]
In 2004, Ross presented a series of DVD programmes focusing on the news and fashions of the three decades before the 1990s. The first,1960's Flashbacks was released on DVD on 16 August.[26]
Ross appeared on a celebrity edition ofMastermind, choosing "The Life and Works ofEzra Pound" as his specialist subject.[2]
He appeared in the filmBridget Jones's Diary as "Mr Sit-up Britain".[citation needed]
He also lost two stone on ITV'sCelebrity Fit Club, won the top prize on an episode ofAll Star Family Fortunes, which was donated to theAlzheimer's Society,[27] and performed asTommy Steele onStars in Their Eyes.[28]
In 2011, he took part in a Celebrity episode ofThe Chase, where he won £25,000 forChildren with Cancer UK.[citation needed]
In January 2014, Ross participated in thesecond series of the celebrity diving showSplash! onITV. He was eliminated in the second heat.[citation needed]
Ross has been married three times and has five children and two grandchildren.[29] He lives nearTring inHertfordshire.[2][29] In 2014, Ross said that he had developed an addiction tomephedrone over the previous year and had an affair with a male English teacher. His wife stood by him.[29]