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Carol McGiffin | |
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| Born | Carol Deirdre McGiffin (1960-02-18)18 February 1960 (age 65) TiptonWest Midlands , England |
| Occupations | Television and radio presenter |
| Years active | 1988–present |
| Employer | ITV |
| Television | Loose Women (2000–2013, 2018–2023) |
| Spouses | |
Carol Deirdre McGiffin (born 18 February 1960) is an Englishradio andtelevision broadcaster, who appeared on the daytime talk showLoose Women from 2000 until her first departure in 2013 and again from 2018 until 2023. McGiffin appeared on the twelfth series ofCelebrity Big Brother.
Birth and family background
Carol Deirdre McGiffin was born on 18 February 1960 in London and brought up inMaidstone, Kent, to John McGiffin and Heather Barham. She grew up with her two sisters and a brother.[1]
She started her broadcasting career in 1984 as a producer on cable channelMusic Box and moved on to presenting in 1988 as co-host of the Chris Evans shows onGLR. Her style then and characterised today is based on comedic observation of men.[1]
In 1995, McGiffin was a founding member of theTalk Radio UK team, co-presenting the popular weekday evening showThe Rude Awakening with Moz Dee. When the show ended in September 1995 she became the station's music expert for around six months, hosting her own Friday evening review slot and appearing every week onJonathan King's programme. In late 1996 she reappeared onLiberty Radio, co-hosting the breakfast show withRichard Skinner for six months. In 1997 and 1998 she returned to Talk Radio to present the breakfast show alongsidePaul Ross, who had previously presented the breakfast show alone. She also co-presented the station's Saturday afternoon programme withNick Abbot during the summer when the football coverage was being rested.
When Kirsty Young and Bill Overton became hosts of The New Talk Radio Breakfast, Ross and McGiffin moved to weekend breakfast, where they stayed until a consortium led byKelvin MacKenzie bought the station in 1998. McGiffin was sacked byMike Parry, and Ross continued to host the Sunday morning programme on the station alongside new co-hostHelen Gibson.
In 1999, she joined London radio stationLBC teaming up again with Abbot, who left the station after six months. McGiffin continued to host the show on her own with producer/sidekicks, including Marcus Railton and Jonathan Sanchez until 30 September 2000. She co-hosted phone-in shows onBBC London Live. In 2002, she occasionally teamed up with Abbot onReal Radio.
Between February and July 2006 she was the southern presenter ofThe Local Radio Company's night-time talk showNorth South Divided.Mike Elliott was her northern counterpart. In August 2006 McGiffin returned toLBC 97.3 presenting a Sunday morning show. McGiffin's weekly views on the world and travel advice in herTravel Clinic ended on 10 February 2008, when she left the station. Throughout the summer of 2012, she regularly reviewed the daily newspapers onThis Morning. In August 2013, she entered theCelebrity Big Brother house to compete in thetwelfth series, where she finished in fourth place.
In June 2018, it was announced by panellistDenise Welch that McGiffin would be returning toLoose Women after five years away.[citation needed]
In 2020, McGiffin teamed up with LBC Radio presenter Nick Abbot to create a weekly podcast "What's your problem?" with Nick and Carol. The show is released every Monday on Global Player and Apple Podcasts.[2]
That same year, McGiffin said she supportedDonald Trump and would vote for him if she could.[3]
In 2021, she was criticised for voicing support for theJanuary 6 rioters.[4][5][6]In 2023 she felt compelled to resign fromLoose Women.[7]
McGiffin is a survivor of the2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.[8] For several years, she has returned to Maidstone to join members of her family and take part inRace for Life to raise money for the charityCancer Research UK, she does this in memory of her mother.[9]
In 2010, McGiffin released her autobiography,Oh, Carol!.
