Richard Bacon (television presenter)
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Richard Bacon (born 30 November 1975) is an English television and radio presenter, currently hosting the drive-time show on Xfm London between 4-7pm Monday to Thursday and 3-6pm on Fridays.
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[edit] Early Career
Bacon grew up in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire and went to the independent school Worksop College. Contrary to popular belief, Bacon's first job in the media was in radio, as a reporter for BBC Radio Nottingham. In February 1996, Bacon joined L!VE TV as reporter, a risky job which saw him being banned from the State Opening of Parliament.
[edit] Blue Peter
Bacon's first major break was as a presenter on the children's show Blue Peter, which he joined on February 21, 1997. However, he is more famous for being the first ever presenter in that programme's history to have his contract terminated in mid-run, on October 19, 1998, after the tabloid journal News of the World published a report of him taking cocaine; by this time, his tenure had lasted just over 18 months. After his dismissal, the then Head of BBC children's programmes, Lorraine Heggessey, went on air to explain the situation to CBBC viewers.
[edit] After Blue Peter
Amazingly, Bacon's career survived the scandal, and he has since presented such shows as The Big Breakfast (with Amanda Byram), Top of the Pops, and the reality TV show Back To Reality. He was previously a presenter on radio stations BBC Radio Five Live, BBC7, and Capital FM, in addition to presenting the previous shows he had held at Xfm London.
Bacon also hosted ITV's This Morning during the summer of 2005, with Denise van Outen, while regular presenters Philip Schofield and Fern Britton were on their holidays. The enormous irony of his career is that he remains much in demand as a radio and television presenter, across many stations and categories of programming, because of his scandal involving Blue Peter, rather than despite it.
[edit] Trivia
Bacon is also noted for an incident in August 2005, when the band The Magic Numbers walked out of the BBC show Top of the Pops after presenter Bacon made a joke which was perceived to be about the body shape of members of the band; during rehearsals, he referred to the band as a 'big, fat melting pot of talent'[1].
Bacon's most recent television appearances include guest appearances on BBC's Newsnight and Rob Brydon's Annually Retentive.
At the turn of August 2006, Bacon announced that his relationship with Blue Peter co-presenter Konnie Huq had come to an end; it broke down after Bacon started to associate with Chris Evans and Danny Baker. Many audience members feel that they have brought out the worst in Bacon, and that his behaviour has regressed.
On 7th August 2006, Bacon was followed into a toilet at the Garrick Pub in Charing Cross Road, London, and attacked by two men, one of whom was rumoured to be the ex-boyfriend of his present love interest. He suffered a broken nose, black eye and split lip, as a result of the unprovoked attack, and will need surgery to rebuild his nose, once the swelling has gone down. Police are currently investigating the event[2].
Richard Bacon's publicity is handled by Liz Matthews PR.
On his radio show, Richard constantly uses the words "breasts" and "at ease".
[edit] Notes
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/4135380.stm
- ^ http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/showbiz/article-23363764-details/'Mum+thought+drugs+led+to+attack'/article.do
[edit] External links
- Richard Bacon at the Internet Movie Database
- Richard's XFM profile
- BBC Radio Five Live - Richard Bacon
- Richard Bacon's Fictional Scientology God - Kabooboo - MySpace Profile
| Preceded by: Tim Vincent |
Blue Peter Presenter No. 25 1997-98 |
Succeeded by: Simon Thomas |
| Preceded by: Lucio |
XFM Drivetime Presenter 2006- |
Succeeded by: [Ongoing.] |
