Gyles Brandreth

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Gyles Daubeney Brandreth (born March 8, 1948 at a British Forces Hospital in Germany). He is a celebrity, author and former Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom.

Contents 1 Career 2 Personal life 3 Trivia 4 Selected bibliography 5 External links

[edit] Career

After having moved to London with his parents aged three, Brandreth was educated at the Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle, Bedales School and New College, Oxford. He rose to the Presidency of the Oxford Union in 1970, also editing the University magazine, Isis. He went on to become a publisher before turning TV presenter. Brandreth is best-known for his appearances on Countdown and TV AM. He has also presented programmes on London's LBC radio at various times since 1973. He was renowned for his seemingly endless collection of jumpers, though many of the more outrageous examples were sold in a charity auction in 1993 and he has since displayed somewhat more restraint in his dress sense.

In the 1980s Brandreth wrote scripts for Dear Ladies, the television programme featuring Hinge and Bracket. Brandreth is also the creator of a stage show called Zipp! which enjoyed success at the Edinburgh Festival and had a short run in London's West End. He is in great demand as an after-dinner speaker, and he holds the world record for the longest continuous after-dinner speech, at eighteen hours, for a charity stunt.

He served as a Conservative MP, representing the City of Chester, from 1992 to 1997. He also served as a whip in John Major's government. He published a book of his diaries from his time as a whip, Breaking the Code. After his parliamentary career, he broadcast some of his reminiscenses on BBC radio as Brandreth on Office and The Brandreth Rules in 2001, 2003 and 2005.

He has stated an opposition to the UK's honours system, and said he will never accept one himself.

In September 2004, Brandreth's book on the marriage of Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh was published. He had previously written an authorised biography of John Gielgud, the actor, and many joke, comedy and children's books.

In August 2005, he appeared in a production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night at the Edinburgh Festival. In 2006, Brandreth appeared in the BBC Radio 4 comedy programme Living with the Enemy which he co-wrote with Nick Revell, in which he appears as a former Conservative government minister.

He is also a former European Monopoly champion[1] and President of the Association of British Scrabble Players, having organised the first UK National Scrabble Championship in 1972.

Other interests include boggle, jenga and twister

[edit] Personal life

Brandreth has been married to Michele Brown since 8 June 1973, and the couple have three children. They are also the founders of the Teddy Bear museum in Stratford-upon-Avon

[edit] Trivia

• Claims to be related to Jeremiah Brandreth, one of the leaders of the Pentrich Rising of 1817
• Met his wife Michelle at Oxford University, where she was at St Anne's College. She was on a dormitory corridor with three other women - Edwina Currie, Mary Archer and Ann Widdecombe

[edit] Selected bibliography

• The Joy of Lex: How to Have Fun With 860,341,500 Words (1980). ISBN 0-688-01397-X
• The Scrabble Brand Puzzle Book (1984). ISBN 0-671-50536-X
• A Guide to Playing the Scrabble Brand Crossword Game (1985). ISBN 0-671-50652-8
• The Great Book of Optical Illusions (1985). ISBN 0-8069-6258-5
• The Scrabble Companion (1988). ISBN 0-09-172698-0 (with Darryl Francis)
• World Championship Scrabble (1992). ISBN 0-550-19028-7 (with Darryl Francis)
• Under the Jumper: Autobiographical Excursions (1993). ISBN 0-86051-894-9
• Venice Midnight (1999). ISBN 0-7515-2658-4
• Breaking the Code: Westminster Diaries, 1992-97 (1999). ISBN 0-297-64311-8
• Brief Encounters: Meetings With Remarkable People (2001). ISBN 1-902301-95-1
• John Gielgud: An Actor's Life (2001). ISBN 0-7509-2690-2
• The Biggest Kids Joke Book Ever! (2002). ISBN 0-233-05062-0
• The Joy of Lex: An Amazing and Amusing Z to A and A to Z of Words (2002). ISBN 1-86105-399-1
• The Word Book (2002). ISBN 1-86105-398-3
• Philip and Elizabeth: Portrait of a Marriage (2004). ISBN 0-7126-6103-4

[edit] External links

• Gyles Brandreth at the Internet Movie Database
• Listen to The Brandreth Rules
• Gyles Brandreth's Official Website
• The Teddy Bear Museum

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by: Peter Morrison	Member of Parliament for the City of Chester 1992–1997	Succeeded by: Christine Russell