Vernon Kay | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Kay in 2007 | |
| Born | Vernon Charles Kay (1974-04-28)28 April 1974 (age 51) Bolton,Greater Manchester, England |
| Alma mater | Manchester Metropolitan University |
| Occupation |
|
| Years active | 1995–present |
| Employers | |
| Television | T4 (2000–2005) All Star Family Fortunes (2006–2015) Beat the Star (2008–2009) The Whole 19 Yards (2010) Splash! (2013–2014) 1000 Heartbeats (2015–2016) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2[1] |
Vernon Charles Kay (born 28 April 1974)[2] is an English broadcaster and former model. He presentedChannel 4'sT4 (2000–2005) and has presented various television shows forITV andBBC, includingAll Star Family Fortunes (2006–2015),Just the Two of Us (2006–2007),Beat the Star (2008–2009),The Whole 19 Yards (2010),Splash! (2013–2014), and1000 Heartbeats (2015–2016).[3]
Kay presented his ownBBC Radio 1 show between 2004 and 2012, and presented his own show onRadio X between 2015 and 2017. Since the start of the2018–2019 season, he has been the main presenter for the live coverage ofFormula E for English speaking territories/platforms around the world. In 2023, Kay was announced as the new mid-morning host onBBC Radio 2 from May 2023, taking over the slot fromKen Bruce.
In 2020, Kay appeared on thetwentieth series ofI'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!, finishing in third place. He has made a number of cameos, appearing inShaun of the Dead (2004) andKeith Lemon: The Film (2012). He also made an uncredited appearance as a feasting hall guest inHercules (2014).
Vernon Charles Kay was born on Sunday, 28 April 1974 and was brought up inHorwich, the elder son of Norman, a lorry driver, and Gladys; he has a younger brother, Stephen, a primary school teacher.[4] He attendedSt Joseph's RC High School inHorwich, near Bolton and then spent two years atSt John Rigby College, Gathurst Road,Orrell.[5] He then graduated in environmental science atManchester Metropolitan University.[6]
While Kay was working in a DIY shop as a cutter of wooden panels and in his own words "living for the weekend", he was persuaded to attend the BBC Clothes Show Live where he was scouted by a modelling agency after being convinced to do a catwalk by a friend.[7]
Kay was able to use his success in modelling to launch a television career with co-hosting roles on teen-targeted entertainment shows T4 on Channel 4 andThe Mag onChannel 5. Following this, Kay presented the summerCBBC weekend morning showFully Booked (called FBI, Fully Booked Interactive) in 2000, as well asTOTP+ Plus andTOTP@Play. In 2003 he co-hosted the Channel 4 game showBoys and Girls, which was cancelled after one series. The following year Kay hosted the third series ofCelebrities Under Pressure onITV.
From 2006, Kay presented primetime game showAll Star Family Fortunes. In June 2015, it was announced thatITV was to rest the show until 2017, but it did not return.[8] In 2007, he presentedVernon Kay's Gameshow Marathon, after replacingAnt & Dec, who hosted the first series.
From 2008 until 2009, Kay presented two series ofBeat the Star, a programme forITV.[9] The first series averaged 4.05 million viewers and the second averaged 3.46 million.
On 17 April 2010, Kay began co-presenting a game show forITV calledThe Whole 19 Yards withCaroline Flack which lasted for eight episodes and was made atPinewood Studios. The series averaged 4.1 million viewers. In 2010, Kay was the co-host ofSkating with the Stars, a six-part series which was broadcast in theUnited States.
In 2011, Kay was originally going to presentITV game showSing If You Can withStacey Solomon but, after filming the pilot episode, he felt that it would be better hosted by a comedian, and was replaced byKeith Lemon.[10]
In December 2011, Kay presented the ChristmasChannel 4 showHome For the Holidays. In the summer of 2012, Kay presentedITV three episode mini-seriesLet's Get Gold, however the show received poor viewing figures and was axed.[citation needed]
In 2013 and 2014, Kay,Gabby Logan andTom Daley co-presented theITV diving showSplash! The programme was axed after two series.[11]
In 2013, afterChannel 4 regained the NFL rights from theBBC, Kay was announced as a presenter ofThe American Football Show, airing on Saturday mornings.[12][13]
Since 2014, Kay has guest presented five episodes ofThe One Show. In 2015, Kay began presenting daytime quiz show,1000 Heartbeats forITV. The show returned for a second run in November 2015.[14] In 2016, Kay presentedDrive, a five-part entertainment show forITV.[15] He made regular appearances in thesecond series ofThe Keith Lemon Sketch Show onITV2.
In July 2017, Kay co-presentedThe Hero Challenge withKirsty Gallacher onSky Sports.[16]
Kay hosted the non-broadcast pilot for a revival ofPlay Your Cards Right, a game show formerly hosted byBruce Forsyth, but was not commissioned for a series. In September 2015, he hosted a pilot for a newITV game showHome Win, made atFountain Studios in Wembley.[17]
In November 2017, it was announced that Kay would hostChannel 5's coverage of the 2017–18Formula E motor racing season.[18] He co-presents theFIA's coverage of the 2018–19 season.
In November 2020, it was announced that Kay would be taking part in thetwentieth series ofI'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here.[19] Kay reached the final and finished in third place on 4 December 2020.[20]
It was announced in March 2021 that Kay would host the British version of new gameshowGame of Talents.[21] In March 2022, Kay was a last-minute replacement forJoel Dommett as co-host ofRed Nose Day'sThe Great Comic Relief Prizeathon.[22]
In January 2004, Kay joinedBBC Radio 1 and presented an entertainment show every Sunday. In April 2004, he was given the 10 am - 1 pm weekend slot, which was previously hosted byColin Murray andEdith Bowman and previously broadcast on both Saturdays and Sundays on the popular radio network. From October 2007 Dick and Dom took over Sunday mornings; Kay's show then ran between 10 am to 1 pm on Saturday. In 2008, he was one of a team of DJs who filled in forEdith Bowman while she was onmaternity leave, along withFearne Cotton andNihal.
On 11 February 2009, it was announced that Kay would fill in forChris Moyles while he climbedMount Kilimanjaro forComic Relief, an act he repeated on 13 July 2009 when Moyles took a day off. He also filled-in forPete Tong'sEssential Selection on Radio 1 on 10 April 2008. That same year, Kay filled in again for Chris Moyles from 10 August to 15 August when he was on holiday. From 30 November 2009 Kay, again, covered for Chris Moyles on breakfast for a whole week as Moyles andAled Haydn Jones were away inUganda handing out malaria nets and seeing how the money raised from the Mount Kilimanjaro climb for Comic Relief was being spent.
On 9 November 2012, it was announced that Kay would leaveBBC Radio 1 to spend more time with his family. He presented his final show on 22 December and was replaced byMatt Edmondson.[23]
Three years after his departure from Radio 1, Kay returned to radio on the newly launchedRadio X network. In September 2015, Kay began presenting the weekday morning show from 10 am to 1 pm.[24]He left the station on Friday 17 March 2017.
Kay returned to BBC Radio after nine years away, to cover forRylan Clark on hisBBC Radio 2 showRylan On Saturday on 6 and 13 February 2021 and again on the 12 and 26 June as well as 3 July. He stood in for Steve Wright onSteve Wright in the Afternoon during the week of the 24–28 May 2021. Kay stood in for Dermot O'Leary on 21 August 2021.[25] He was scheduled to fill in for Wright again from 26 August to 1 September 2021 but only presented on the 26 and 27 August before he began isolating after testing positive forCOVID-19 and was replaced byGethin Jones. He sat in again from 13–15 October 2021 and from 25 November - 1 December 2021 whilst Wright had an illness. From March 2022, Kay became the regular cover forZoe Ball onThe Zoe Ball Breakfast Show.
In August 2022 Kay started broadcasting a weekly show on BBC Radio 2Vernon Kay's Dance Sounds of the 90s,[26] featuring "dance, electronica, techno, trance and drum n' bass hits from the 90s". In 2024, Kay took the show on tour, DJing for audiences in a number of UK venues.[27]
On 24 February 2023, Kay was announced as the new host of BBC Radio 2's mid-morning show from May, replacingKen Bruce.[28] He began his show on 15 May 2023.
Kay has made a number of cameos, appearing inShaun of the Dead (2004) andKeith Lemon: The Film (2012). He also made an uncredited appearance as a feasting hall guest inHercules (2014).
On 12 September 2003, Kay marriedTess Daly atSt Mary'sRoman Catholic Church inHorwich, nearBolton.[29][30] Together, they have two daughters, born in 2004[31] and 2009,[32] and live inBeaconsfield,Buckinghamshire.[33]
In 2010, Kay was forced to apologise to his wife after it was revealed in the British press that he had been sending sexually explicit text and social media messages to model Rhian Sugden every day for four months. Later on, he admitted to sending similar messages to "four or five" other women at the same time.[34][35][36][37]
Kay received anhonorary doctorate from theUniversity of Bolton on 9 July 2009 for services to entertainment.[38]
Kay supports his hometown'sfootball clubBolton Wanderers.[39][4] He is also a fan of American football, joining the Manchester Allstars at the age of 13 and reuniting the team in 2011 for a one-off match against the Birmingham Lions.[40] In 2011, he signed for theLondon Warriors, for whom he plays in theBAFANL Premier South division as adefensive back.[41]
| Year | Title | Channel | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Hollyoaks | Channel 4 | Extra | First episode |
| 1998–1999 | The Mag | Channel 5 | Co-Presenter | |
| 2000 | Fully Booked | BBC One | Co-Presenter | 1 series (FBi) |
| Top of the Pops Plus | BBC Two | Co-Presenter | ||
| Top of the Pops @ Play | UK Play | Co-Presenter | ||
| 2000–2005 | T4 | Channel 4 | Co-Presenter | |
| 2003 | Boys and Girls | Co-Presenter | 1 series | |
| 2004 | HeadJam | BBC Three | Presenter | 1 series |
| Celebrities Under Pressure | ITV | Presenter | 1 series | |
| 2005 | Hit Me, Baby, One More Time | Presenter | 1 series (UK), 1 series (U.S.) | |
| The Record of the Year | Presenter | |||
| 2006–2015 | All Star Family Fortunes | Presenter | 12 series | |
| 2006, 2007, 2013 | The Paul O'Grady Show | Channel 4 /ITV | Guest Presenter | 3 episodes |
| 2007 | Vernon Kay's Gameshow Marathon | ITV | Presenter | 1 series |
| 2008–2009 | Beat the Star | Presenter | 2 series | |
| 2010 | The Whole 19 Yards | Presenter | 1 series | |
| Skating with the Stars | ABC | Co-Presenter | ||
| 2011 | Home For the Holidays | Channel 4 | Presenter | 1 series |
| Million Dollar Mind Game | ABC | Presenter | 1 series | |
| 2012 | Let's Get Gold | ITV | Presenter | 1 series |
| 2013–2014 | Splash! | Co-Presenter | 2 series | |
| 2013–2015 | The American Football Show | Channel 4 | Presenter | |
| 2014, 2016 | The One Show | BBC One | Guest co-presenter | 4 episodes |
| 2015–2016 | 1000 Heartbeats | ITV | Presenter | 2 series |
| 2016 | The Keith Lemon Sketch Show | Himself | Series regular | |
| Drive | Presenter | 1 series | ||
| Walliams & Friend | BBC One | Presenter,Celebrity Slammer | 3 episodes | |
| 2017 | The Hero Challenge | Sky Sports | Co-presenter | |
| 2017—2018 | Formula E | Channel 5 | Presenter | |
| 2018—2023 | Formula E | YouTube, other streaming platforms | Presenter | |
| 2020 | I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! | ITV | Contestant | Series 20 |
| 2021 | Game of Talents | Presenter | ||
| 2021— | Loose Women | Guest Anchor | Loose Men special, 2 episodes | |
| 2022 | Rock Profile | BBC One | Presenter | Red Nose Day special |
| The Great Comic Relief Prizeathon | Presenter | Co-presenter; withAJ Odudu | ||
| 2024 | M&S: Dress The Nation | ITV | Co-Presenter | AlongsideAJ Odudu[42] |
| Year | Station | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004–2012[46] | BBC Radio 1 | Presenter | Saturdays, 10 am – 1 pm |
| 2015–2017 | Radio X | Presenter | Weekdays, 10 am – 1 pm |
| 2023– | BBC Radio 2 | Presenter | Weekdays, 9.30 am – 12 pm |
| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Keith Lemon: The Film | Himself |
| 2014 | Hercules | Feasting hall guest (uncredited) |
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)| Preceded by | Host ofFamily Fortunes 2006–2015 ("All Star") | Succeeded by |
