Kevin McCloud
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Kevin McCloud (born May 8, 1959) is a British designer, writer and television presenter. He is best known for his work on the Channel 4 series Grand Designs.
He studied History of Art at Cambridge University, worked as a theatre designer, then set up his own practice in interior and lighting design. His work includes the carved and painted rococo-style ceiling in the Food Halls at Harrods. His first book was published in 1990, Kevin McCloud's Decorating Book and remains in print in five languages. The Techniques of Decorating and Kevin McCloud's Lighting Book were published in 1995, and The Complete Decorator in 1996.
As a result of his design work, Kevin was invited to appear as a guest presenter on television, first for Homefront on BBC Two, then Homefront In The Garden. He then went on to write and present Grand Designs, a programme covering unusual architectural projects, produced by Talkback, which is now in its seventh series. He also wrote and presented Grand Designs Europe. In the course of the series, McCloud demonstrated his fluency in French and Italian, occasionally acting as a translator for people who have houses built abroad in places where they don't know the language.
This has led to spin-off work as editor-at-large for Grand Designs magazine, and an associated exhibition "Grand Designs Live" in 2005 and 2006.
Other TV work has included Don't Look Down (examining the construction of tall buildings) on BBC Two in 2000, Demolition on Channel 4 in 2005, The Stirling Prize: Building of the Year (in 2004, 2005 and 2006) and Regeneration: the Castleford Project scheduled for Channel 4 in 2007.
His recent publications include Choosing Colours in 2003 and "Grand Designs Handbook: The Blueprint for Building Your Dream Home" in 2006.
In 2005 he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Design from Oxford Brookes University.
His agent is KBJ Management.
