Bazil Ashmawy

Baz Ashmawy
Born Bazil Ashmawy
9 April 1975
Libya
Occupation Presenter of radio and television
Employer Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ)
Known for How Low Can You Go?
Fáilte Towers
Baz's Culture Clash
Baz's Extreme Worlds
Weekend Breakfast with Baz & Lucy
50 Ways To Kill Your Mammy
Partner(s) Tanya Evans
Children Hannah Ashmawy
Mahy Ashmawy
Parent(s) Nancy Ashmawy

Bazil Ashmawy , commonly known as Baz Ashmawy,[1] is an Irish radio and television personality who co-hosts Weekend Breakfast with Baz & Lucy on RTÉ 2fm. He was a co-host of the 2008 reality show Fáilte Towers on RTÉ One.[2][3][4][5]

Early life

According to an article in the Carlow Nationalist, Ashmawy's mother Nancy is from Ballycoogue, Avoca in County Wicklow[6] though Ashmawy was born in Libya and is part-Egyptian.[1] He moved to Ireland at age eight and grew up in the suburb of Rathfarnham on the Southside of Dublin. He was educated in County Dublin, attending CUS Leeson Street for a period of time.

He began by co presenting the cult comedy travel show How Low Can You Go? with Michael Hayes and Mark O'Neil. After doing this for five years he went on to manage Ballymanus GAA club in the hit RTÉ One series Celebrity Banisteoir. He also appeared in Jason Byrne's award-winning prank series Anonymous. He later appeared numerous times on RTÉ One's flagship travel show No Frontiers before venturing into his own solo project Baz's Culture Clash on RTÉ Two. The series saw him travelling. His next project Baz's Extreme Worlds aired on 10 May 2010. In 2014 “50 ways to kill your Mammy” first aired on Sky 1. The show is based on Baz inserting his 71 year old mother Nancy into various dare-devil situations, and filming her typical Irish mammy reactions to the situations. [7]

From January 2015 the series, with the slightly different title of “50 Ways to Kill Your Mother” has been aired on Discovery Channel in the USA. [8]

Career

Ashmawy is 'best known for his antics'[3] on the popular RTÉ Two travel show, How Low Can You Go?[9] where he appeared with co-presenters Mark O'Neill and Michael Hayes. In remarking on this experiences with that show, Ashmawy said that he loved Las Vegas where he received a lap dance from (as he describes) 'a former hooker who looked like she was in her late 50s' and said of his experiences on the set of a porn movie in California that 'We saw things there that will be in our minds for a very long time.'[2]

Ashmawy is a sports fan who tried his skill at GAA management on the RTÉ show[1] Celebrity Bainisteoir.[3][10][11] According to The Irish Times, Ashmawy managed managing his team while wearing 'nicely polished footwear'.[12] When asked in an RTÉ Sport interview who he would like to see win the 2007 Rugby World Cup, Ashmawy joked that he was 'not going for the patriotic 'Go Ireland' I'd have to say New Zealand...typical. How boring is that. Think I've made myself feel a little sick there saying that. I'm going back....'GO IRELAND!'[13]

Ashmawy has opined 'Most TV critics hate us' and has also said '...maybe RTÉ will get sick of us as well.'[2] Indeed, an article in the Evening Herald (subtitled '...Bellowing Baz just seems to have taken off for another planet') complained about Ashmawy's 'unnerving' personal style on Fáilte Towers and said that he 'seems to be addressing a completely different audience in a completely different programme on a completely different planet, somewhere inside the universe of his own head.'[8]

A later article by the same publication said that professionalism was something Ashmawy 'has a distinct lack thereof.'[14]

In addition to appearing on as television host, Ashmawy is an actor who has appeared in television dramas and other programmes.[4] He has also appeared in a plays and short films.[3] Although he says that comedy comes naturally to him, his dramaturgical background has led him to productions of classical theatre and the works of Shakespeare.[2]

On 4 March 2011, Ashmawy's employer, Raidió Teilifís Éireann, suspended Mr. Ashmawy for a period of one month following a drink driving incident the previous weekend.[15]

In 2014 “50 ways to kill your Mammy” first aired on SKY 1. The show is based on Baz inserting his 71 year old mother Nancy into various dare-devil situations, and documenting her typical Irish mammy reactions to the situations. [16]

From January 2015 the series, with the slightly different title of “50 Ways to Kill Your Mother” has been aired on Discovery Channel in the USA. [17]

In April 2015, Ashmawy began to host the Sky 1 quiz show "Fanatics" where fanatics of various things (e.g. Doctor Who) are tested on their knowledge of these things [18]

Personal life

He has a daughter, Hannah, and son Mahy with Tanya Evans. One of his lungs collapsed on a transatlantic flight and he underwent double-lung surgery.[19]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Wicklow People
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Irish Independent Saturday, 12 April 2008
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 RTÉ One: Fáilte Towers
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 IMDb: Bazil Ashawmy
  5. ↑ Wyatt Hotel Press Release
  6. ↑ Carlow Nationalist (Wednesday, 9 January 2008)
  7. ↑ "From Dublin to Hollywood! Baz Ashmawy's 50 Ways to Kill Your Mammy hits American shores". evoke.ie. 16 January 2014.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Evening Herald (Wednesday 6 August 2008)
  9. ↑ Horse Racing Ireland
  10. ↑ An Phoblacht (17 April 2008)
  11. ↑ The Once a Week Show
  12. ↑ The Irish Times (Saturday, 5 April 2008) Back to a familiar future
  13. ↑ RTÉ Sport Quick Tap: Baz Ashmawy
  14. ↑ Evening Herald (Sunday 10 August 2008)
  15. ↑ Irish Times (Friday 4 March 2011)
  16. ↑ sky (Saturday 27 september 2014)
  17. ↑ "From Dublin to Hollywood! Baz Ashmawy's 50 Ways to Kill Your Mammy hits American shores". evoke.ie. 16 January 2014.
  18. ↑ "Sky" (02 October 2014)
  19. ↑ Evening Herald (Wednesday 12 January 2012)