David Stafford is a writer, broadcaster and occasional musician born 1949 in Birmingham, England.
Stafford began his career in fringe and community theatre in the 1970s. In the early eighties, he collaborated and toured with Alexei Sayle, which resulted in two series for Capital Radio, two plays for TV, a book, Great Bus Journeys of the World, and various songs and recordings including Doctor Marten's Boots. At the same time he was a presenter on the Channel 4 consumer programme 4 What It’s Worth, contributed to many arts programmes and documentaries including The Media Show (Channel 4) and extensively to The Late Show (BBC2). His TV plays include Dread Poets Society (BBC2) co-written with the poet Benjamin Zephaniah. For ten years he also wrote a weekly column for the Saturday Guardian, eventually called Staffordshire Bull.
During the nineties he presented Tracks for BBC2, Going Places for BBC Radio 4 and was a regular panellist on Radio 4’s literary parody game, Booked. More recently he has collaborated with his wife Caroline, writing comedies and dramas, mostly for radio, including Man of Soup, The Brothers, Hazelbeach,[1] The True and Inspirational Life Of St Nicholas,[2]The Day The Planes Came and Norman Birkett and the Case of the Coleford Poisoner. They are currently collaborating on a biography of Lionel Bart. He took over from Pete McCarthy as host of the Radio 4 panel game X Marks the Spot, and frequently stood in for John Peel as the presenter of Home Truths. After Peel's death he became first one of the pool of presenters and later sole presenter of the programme. He is regular presenter on BBC West's Inside Out.
He lives in North London with his wife Caroline and their three children.