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Zoë Louise Ball (born 23 November 1970 in Blackpool, Lancashire)^[1] is an English television and radio personality, most famous for becoming the first female host of the BBC Radio 1 breakfast show and for her earlier work presenting the 1990s children's show, Live & Kicking.

TV career[link]

The daughter of the children's TV presenter Johnny Ball and his wife Julia (née Anderson, divorced when Zoë was two)^[2][3], Ball was educated at Heston Junior School in West London between 1975 and 1978. Her family then moved to Farnham Common in Buckinghamshire. She attended Farnham Common First School and Farnham Common Middle School before moving to Holy Cross Convent School in Chalfont St Peter and Amersham College of Art and Technology.^[4] She joined the Young Theatre at Beaconsfield where she trained as an actress. Her first TV appearance was as a child in the studio audience of the 1980s Saturday morning children's show, Saturday Superstore, on which her father was appearing as a guest.

She began her television career as a runner at Granada Television and researcher on BSkyB. She worked as a researcher for quiz shows for two years. Her presenting jobs have included hosting The Big Breakfast and The Priory on Channel 4, BBC One's Saturday morning children's programme Live & Kicking and the pre-school programme Playdays. Between 1996 and 1998, she was a regular presenter on Top of the Pops, usually alternating with fellow presenters and DJs Jayne Middlemiss and Jo Whiley. The three only ever presented together once, on Christmas Day 1997.

Between 1999 and 2001, she was a co-host with Jamie Theakston on the Wednesday night chat/music show The Priory, which was commissioned by Chris Evans's then production company Ginger Productions. Despite initial strong ratings, the show failed to capitalise on this despite the demise of TFI Friday (also a Ginger production) and figures slowly dropped. A fourth series was never commissioned. Despite the show's relative failure, fans of the former UK Play spoof interviews show Rock Profile, often recall the creators and future stars of Little Britain, Matt Lucas and David Walliams's, appearance on the show as Danny and Noel from Hear'Say, in which they constantly sang "Monday, Monday" after Theakston asked them a question. As Theakston was the interviewer on Rock Profile, he as a result reprised his role from that show.

Ball co-hosted the 2002 BRIT Awards with Frank Skinner, following which motherhood meant that she took less TV work.

In 2005, after co-hosting the BBC reality show Strictly Dance Fever, Ball became a contestant on series 3 of its sister show Strictly Come Dancing, partnered by Ian Waite. Ball and Waite were ranked in third place; they also scored 38/40 (including two tens) for three dances in the series and one in the Christmas special.

At the end of 2006, Ball co-hosted ITV1's Extinct, with Sir Trevor McDonald.

In January 2007, she presented the second series of ITV1's Soapstar Superstar, taking over from Fern Britton and Ben Shephard, who hosted the first series. In March 2007, she hosted the ITV talent search Grease Is the Word.

She and Theakston presented Channel 5's TV quiz series Britain's Best Brain in 2009.

In 2011, she took over from Claudia Winkleman as the host of Strictly Come Dancing's sister show It Takes Two, airing every week night on BBC Two.

Starting in December 2011, Ball presents the new 3D Test Card, which broadcasts on the Sky 3D channel, alongside a character called Mr 3D. The pair take viewers through a series of easy steps demonstrating how to set up a 3D television to get the optimal viewing experience. In 1994 Zoe Ball Presented SMart with Mark Speight and Jay Burridge until she left in 1996.

Radio career[link]

Although known primarily for her TV work, Ball first became a major British celebrity in radio, after she was recruited to co-host the BBC Radio 1 breakfast show in October 1997 with Kevin Greening. She eventually graduated to become the sole host – the first female DJ to do so. At this time, her hard-drinking, hard-partying antics contributed to the identification of the so-called "ladette culture" of the late 1990s. She later notoriously re-created the naked pose on a backturned chair made famous by Christine Keeler when doing an interview and spread with SKY magazine.

Ball left BBC Radio 1 in March 2000 to bring up a family. Her final breakfast show was on 30 March 2000, and she was succeeded by Sara Cox.

Though regarded as professional, Ball twice received a BBC warning for swearing on the radio – first when she used the word "bastard" while being interviewed by Chris Evans during his stint on the BBC Radio 1 breakfast show (she was publicising her appointment to The Big Breakfast at the time); then, as host of the BBC Radio 1 breakfast show, for using the expression "fucking brilliant" to describe a night out she had.

She returned to radio in mid-2002 when she joined London rock station XFM, where she presented the weekday drivetime show until December 2003 and then in January 2004 took over a Friday evening music show for the station. She also stood in for Ricky Gervais while he filmed the second series of The Office. She left XFM at the end of 2004.

In September 2007, she celebrated 40 years of Radio 1 by hosting a show with Sara Cox.

Since 2006, she has provided relief presenting duties for BBC Radio 2, fronting specialist documentaries, sitting in for Dermot O'Leary for three weeks in February 2006 and co-presenting, along with Danny Baker, the hastily-conceived replacement for Jonathan Ross' Saturday morning show, in the wake of Ross' suspension due to Sachsgate in 2008.

From 2009, Ball has been the usual relief presenter for Ken Bruce's weekday mid-morning show on BBC Radio 2. She also began hosting the Saturday breakfast show from 6:00 am to 8:00 am on the network from 6 June 2009 as part of a shake up of weekend programming at Radio 2. Zoë left the Saturday breakfast show on Radio 2 and her last show was broadcast on Saturday 28 January 2012. Her replacement in that slot was Anneka Rice. Ball will still continue on Radio 2 as Ken Bruce's cover.^[5]

Personal life[link]

While at BBC Radio 1, Ball began a relationship with DJ and musician Norman Cook (also known as Fatboy Slim). The couple married at Babington House in Somerset^[6] in August 1999. In 2003, the couple split up when Ball revealed that she had an affair with close friend of Cook and fellow DJ, Dan Peppe. They later patched up their relationship.^[7][8]

The couple have a son, Woody (born 15 December 2000), and daughter Nelly May Lois (born 14 January 2010).^[9][10] They live in Hove.^[11][12]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Zoë Ball at the Internet Movie Database

Frank Skinner
Skinner in 2008 at Wembley Stadium
Birth name	Christopher Graham Collins
Born	(1957-01-28) 28 January 1957 (age 55) West Bromwich, West Midlands, England
Medium	Stand-up, Television, Radio
Nationality	British
Years active	1990 to present
Genres	Observational comedy, Musical comedy
Subject(s)	Everyday life, Relationships, Current events
Influenced	Al Murray, Kevin Bridges
Notable works and roles	Packet of Three Blue Heaven Fantasy Football League The Frank Skinner Show Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned Shane Frank Skinner's Opinionated
British Comedy Awards
Best comedy entertainment personality (2001)

Frank Skinner (born Christopher Graham Collins on 28 January 1957 in West Bromwich)^{[citation needed]} is a British writer, comedian and actor. He is best known for his television presenting, often alongside David Baddiel, with whom he also collaborated for the football song "Three Lions."

He is a radio presenter on the Saturday morning slot on Absolute Radio.

Career[link]

Youth and early career (1957-1993)[link]

This biographical section of an article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (June 2010)

Skinner was born at Sandwell General Hospital, and grew up in a council house in neighbouring Oldbury. He was the youngest of four children born to West Cornforth-born former semi-professional footballer John Collins and his wife Doris. He has two older brothers, Keith and Terry, and an older sister, Nora. His father played for Spennymoor United before the Second World War, and met his mother in a local pub after Spennymoor had played West Bromwich Albion in an FA Cup game in 1937. Skinner attended Moat Farm Infant School from 1961 to 1964, St. Hubert's Roman Catholic Junior School from 1964 to 1968, and then Oldbury Technical Secondary School from September 1968.

He passed 2 O-levels in summer 1973 and took A-levels in English Language and Art, along with several O-level re-sits, at Oldbury Technical School Sixth Form. He subsequently took 4 A-levels (including English Language and Literature) at Warley College of Technology and graduated from Birmingham Polytechnic (now Birmingham City University) in 1981 with a degree in English. This was followed by a Masters degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick in Coventry, the following year. After graduating, he spent three and a half years on unemployment benefit before finding work as a lecturer in English at Halesowen College. In 1987 he decided to give stand-up comedy a try on the side, before quitting his job in 1989 to pursue his comedy career full-time.^{[citation needed]} During this period a bout of influenza made him give up drinking, and he remains a high-profile recovering alcoholic.^[1]

Collins took on the pseudonym Frank Skinner when the actors' union Equity told him there was already someone of the same name on their books (their rules do not permit two members with identical names). He took the name from a member of his late father's dominoes team. Skinner had performed his first stand-up gig in 1987 and made his television debut a year later. In 1990 he co-wrote and starred in the comedy variety show Packet Of Three on Channel 4 but continued to see his reputation as a stand-up grow. He won the 1991 Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Fringe, beating Jack Dee and Eddie Izzard.

1994-2005[link]

He often works with best friend and ex-flatmate David Baddiel, notably on the popular late night entertainment show Fantasy Football League, from 1994 to 2004 and on Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned from 2000 to 2005.

The duo also co-wrote and performed the football song "Three Lions" with the Lightning Seeds and the England national football team for Euro 96, and re-released it for the 1998 World Cup. The song reached #1 in the UK charts both times. In 2001, he released his autobiography "Frank Skinner by Frank Skinner", which became a bestseller. The accompanying TV show, "Frank Skinner on Frank Skinner", in which Skinner showed where he lived as a child and interviews with Skinner, his friends and family members, was recorded and shown on ITV in 2001.

In 1998, he took part in a documentary entitled A Little Bit Of Elvis. He paid over £11,000 at auction, for a shirt which he believed was worn by Elvis Presley at his famous 1956 Tupelo concert. Skinner visited the USA to find out if the shirt was the genuine article. After a slightly awkward conversation with Dave Hebler, Presley's bodyguard, it appeared the shirt did once belong to Presley, but it was not worn at the concert.

From 1995 to 1998 Skinner had his own chat show on BBC One, ending when the BBC refused to meet pay demands of a reported £20 million.^[2] After a short break the show found a new home at ITV in 1999, where it ran until late 2005. He has appeared in a number of self-written sitcoms, including Blue Heaven (1994) and Shane (2004).

In 2003, he was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy.^{[citation needed]}

2006-present[link]

In 2005, Skinner announced he was going to leave behind his television work in favour of returning to the stand-up comedy circuit. A second series of Shane had been made, but not shown.

In February 2006, he received an honorary degree from the University of Central England, (now Birmingham City University).^[3] Skinner and David Baddiel covered the 2006 FIFA World Cup by podcast for The Times. The podcasts received a nomination for the 2007 Sony Radio Academy Awards.

In 2007, he performed a new live stand-up tour, his first for 10 years, starting at a warm-up gig at the Swindon Arts Centre, continuing through to the Edinburgh Festival for 2 weeks at The Pleasance, the venue where he won the Perrier Award, and a 69 date national tour including three sold out homecoming performances at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham in the Autumn.

In 2007, he ran a course at Osho Leela, a meditation and growth centre in Dorset.^{[citation needed]}

In November 2008 and in the light of senior broadcasting figures such as ITV boss Michael Grade and Sir Terry Wogan calling for TV to clean up its act regarding use of swear words, Skinner decided to experiment with removing swear words altogether from his stand up live act although stated that it would be a shame if 'clever swearing' was lost.^[4] He also stood in for an ill Paul Merton as a team captain on the 21 November edition of Have I Got News for You.^[5]

From March 2009, Skinner started to present the Saturday Morning Breakfast Show on Absolute Radio with his co-hosts Emily Dean and Gareth Richards who was replaced by Alun Cochrane in June 2011. The show is produced by Avalon Television. After an initial 12-week stint proved very popular with the listeners, Skinner's contract was extended until summer 2010.^[6]

Skinner was a guest on Radio 4's Desert Island Discs on 11 June 2010.

He is the host of Frank Skinner's Opinionated, broadcast on BBC 2 on Friday evenings.

Starting in late 2010, Skinner has a regular column in the newspaper The Times.

Skinner can play the Banjo ukulele and in 2010, he contributed Ukulele parts to a song by Fairport Convention called Ukulele Central which featured on their album Festival Bell. He is the host of a BBC4 Documentary, Frank Skinner on George Formby, which aired on 27 October at 9pm, in part of the show Frank visits ukulele pupils as well as visiting a George Formby convention in Blackpool.

Since January 2012 Skinner has been host of BBC show Room 101.

Personal life[link]

Skinner is a supporter of the Labour Party,^[7] and is a practising Catholic, fan of post punk group The Fall and supporter of West Bromwich Albion Football Club with an "all-consuming passion".^[8]

Skinner was a victim of the credit crunch after investing in AIG, losing millions of pounds as a result.^[9]

In September 2009 Skinner was awarded his second honorary degree, from the University of Wolverhampton.

Skinner stated in 2010 that he had not drunk alcohol since 1986.^[10]

During his radio show on 28 January 2012, Skinner announced that he was to become a father for the first time with his long term girlfriend Cath Mason.^[11] His son Buzz was born in May of 2012.^[12]

Publications[link]

Books[link]

In October 2001, Skinner's autobiography, Frank Skinner by Frank Skinner, was published.^[13]

In August 2009, he released a book centred on his comedy career - Frank Skinner on the Road: Love, Stand-up Comedy and the Queen of the Night.^[14]

In September 2011, The Collected Wisdom of Frank Skinner; Dispatches from the Sofa was published.^[15] It consists of his weekly columns for The Times, written from 2009-2011.

Stand-up VHS and DVDs[link]

• Live (5 October 1992)
• Live at the Apollo (1994)
• Live at the Palladium (14 October 1996)
• Live in Birmingham (16 November 1998)
• Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned - Live from London's West End (12 November 2001)
• Stand-Up! Live from Birmingham's National Indoor Arena (10 November 2008)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Website

• Audio and transcript of conversation with Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams

• Frank Skinner at the Internet Movie Database

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Antony Cotton
Born	Antony Dunn (1975-08-05) 5 August 1975 (age 36) Bury, Greater Manchester, England, UK
Occupation	Actor, Entertainer
Television	Coronation Street

Antony Cotton (born Antony Dunn; 5 August 1975, Bury, Greater Manchester) is an English actor best known for his roles in Coronation Street and the original UK version of Queer as Folk.

Early and personal life[link]

Cotton was born Antony Dunn in Bury, Greater Manchester, the son of actress Enid Dunn.^[1] He attended Woodhey High School at Holcombe Brook, Ramsbottom, and the Oldham Theatre Workshop.^[2] He has an elder brother, Andrew. Cotton supports the Terrence Higgins Trust and is a patron of the LGF^[3] The Albert Kennedy Trust and the Queer Up North festival. In August 2009, it was reported in Digital Spy that Cotton is "openly gay".^[4] and in March 2010 the Daily Mirror reported that Cotton had exchanged rings with his partner, Peter Eccleston.^[5] In January 2012, footballer Michael Ball was fined by the Football Association for a homophobic rant on Twitter about Cotton.^[6]

Career[link]

Television[link]

Cotton currently plays barman and factory worker Sean Tully in Coronation Street.^[7] Cotton played "Alexander" in the original UK version of Queer as Folk. He has also appeared in episodes of Absolutely Fabulous as "Damon". On 13 January 2007, Cotton won the second series of ITV's Soapstar Superstar. He donated his winning money, £200,000, to the Elton John Aids Foundation. In July 2007, it was announced that Cotton would be fronting his own teatime chat show on ITV. The show, That Antony Cotton Show, was filmed with a live studio audience at Granada Television studios in Manchester, and combined celebrity chat with topical humour. It was first broadcast on Monday 13 August 2007 at 5 pm on ITV; however, following the end of the first series, ITV announced that the show would not return for a second.^[8] He appeared on Family Fortunes on 20 September 2008 winning £10,000 for his chosen charity. In December 2008, he appeared with co-star Suranne Jones on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. He also took part in the eleventh series of I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! which began airing on 13 November 2011. He left on 2 December 2011, after 21 days. Cotton also starred in an episode of Mad Mad World on ITV1 in Spring 2012.

Film[link]

Cotton made his film debut opposite Daniel Craig and Derek Jacobi in the 1998 film Love Is the Devil: Study for a Portrait of Francis Bacon.^[9] He also appeared in the 1998 film, The Wisdom of Crocodiles.

Theatre[link]

Cotton has appeared in several shows at the Oldham Coliseum, including The Fifteen Streets and The Hobbit at Manchester's Palace Theatre and Opera House. He appeared in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs^{[disambiguation needed ]} in the Middlesbrough Theatre.

Awards and recognition[link]

In 2005, Cotton won the Most Popular Newcomer category at the National Television Awards for his role in Coronation Street.^[10] Cotton won the 2005 Inside Soap Awards for Best Newcomer and Funniest Performance. 2006 he won (again) the award for Funniest Performance. At the 2007 British Soap Awards, Cotton was awarded the Best Actor award, which was voted for by the public. Also in 2007 he won Best Actor at the Inside Soap Awards.

Selected stage and screen credits[link]

Television[link]

• The Big Breakfast
• The Cops
• Queer as Folk (1999–2000)
• Having It Off
• Coronation Street (2003, 2004–present)
• Absolutely Fabulous
• Soapstar Superstar
• Burn It
• That Antony Cotton Show (2007)
• I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! (2011)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Antony Cotton at the Internet Movie Database.
• That Antony Cotton Show at itv.com
• Antony Cotton's CV