Grant Denyer

Grant Craig Denyer

Denyer at Flickerfest in January 2013.
Born 12 September 1977
Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation Television personality, Host/Presenter, reporter and
motor racing driver
Employer Network Ten
Spouse(s) Cheryl Rogers
Children Sailor
Website
Official website

Grant Denyer (born 12 September 1977) is an Australian television presenter and former motor racing driver.

Television career

In 1997, Denyer began his career in the media, he gained a position at Prime Television in Wagga Wagga as a news reporter and journalist.[1] He moved to Sydney to work as V8 Supercar pit reporter for Network Ten, when he caught the eye of television Producer Adam Boland.

Denyer filming a weather segment for Sunrise

Boland saw the potential in Grant and offered him full-time position as the weather presenter on the new look Sunrise program from 2004 until the end of 2006. Denyer left this position in December 2006 due to wanting to spend more time with his family, though he remained as a roving reporter for the breakfast program Sunrise.

Denyer won the fourth series of Dancing with the Stars, and also hosted the celebrity duet singing competition It Takes Two from 2006 to 2008. Denyer has also presented All Time Greatest Aussie Bloopers, Guinness World Records with co-host Shelley Craft, and Australia's Got Talent.

In 2006 Denyer was recognised by voters in the TV Fugly Awards as being Australia's Spunkiest Male TV Personality.[2] Grant has been voted 'sexiest presenter on TV' by a Melbourne Metro magazine poll plus he was voted the most datable male by (Australian) New Woman magazine.[3]

From 2006 to 2011, he was the host of Carols in the Domain in Sydney.[4]

In 2007, his race and television career have seen him both racing and being a part of the team featuring Neil Crompton, Matthew White, Mark Beretta and Daniel Gibson to report on the V8 Supercar Series.

In January 2010, Denyer returned to Sunrise as weather presenter, succeeding Fifi Box who became Entertainment editor. Grant remained weather presenter until he resigned in March 2013 to spend more time with his family.[5][6] He also hosted the short-lived Iron Chef Australia, in 2010.[7]

In late 2013, Denyer hosted Slide Show (TV series). He also has hosted the current series of Million Dollar Minute which first aired on Monday 16 September 2013. On Friday 29 November 2013, Denyer resigned due to 'family reasons' and he was replaced by Weekend Sunrise sports presenter Simon Reeve.[8]

In 2014, Denyer joined Network Ten as the host of a revived version of game show Family Feud.[9] Denyer has described himself as a "Workaholic".[10]

Motor racing

Grant Denyer
Nationality Australian
Born 12 September 1977
Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia
Related to Craig Denyer (father)
Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series
Years active 2005–09
Teams Dick Johnson Racing
Speed FX Racing
MW Motorsport
Starts 75
Wins 4
Best finish 4th in 2009 Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series
Previous series
2008
2006–09
2001–05		 Australian Mini Challenge
V8 Supercars
V8 Utes
Championship titles
2004 V8 Utes Summer Series
Awards
2005 Mike Kable V8 Supercar Rookie of the Year

He drove a Ford Falcon in the Fujitsu V8 Supercar series for Speed FX Racing with Michael Caruso and Daniel Elliot. He debuted with Dick Johnson Racing in 2005. In the same year he was awarded the Mike Kable Rookie of the Year prize finishing his debut season in the top 10 (10th).

In 2006, Grant raced in the Sandown 500 and the prestigious Bathurst 1000 with DJR and with Alex Davison. Denyer and Alex came 9th overall at Bathurst. Denyer also has had success in tarmac rallying, a podium finish in 2007's Suncoast Rally in which he drove the Les Walkden-prepared Subaru Impreza WRX STi. He finished 37.8 seconds behind the Skelta G-Force of Ray Vandersee, and 3.6 seconds clear third place-getter, Matt Close, in his Porsche Turbo. Going into the final stage he trailed Close by 4.7 seconds, and moved ahead of the Porsche to take second place.

"To be second outright and first production car home is a huge highlight," Denyer said. "To do that in my first full rally is a dream come true."

"It came down to that last stage and Dale (co-driver Dale Moscatt) and I decided that we wanted second really badly. So we pulled everything out, threw caution to the wind and we finished up winning the stage. That was a great way to finish."

"We were up against some really elite machines across the weekend so to be on the podium, to finish second in a production car, was great."

In October, 2005 he finished sixth place in the Mini Challenge World Title Championship, held at Italy's Santa Monica race track.

In 2002 Denyer competed in the Bathurst 24-hour Endurance Event, he drove a Nissan 200SX. In 2003 he competed in the same event, this time driving a Porsche 996 GT3 finishing second in his class, sixth overall.

Denyer won his first ever V8 Supercar race in the Development Series at Sandown on 7 June 2008 in the second race of the weekend. More wins came and Denyer had his best season in 2009, finishing fourth in the 2009 Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series.

In early 2010 Denyer stated he would no longer be pursuing full season drives in motorsport,[5][11] however in 2011 Denyer was announced as the lead driver of Shannons-Mars Racing, a V8 Supercar team formed for the purposes of a TV show, the Shannons Supercar Showdown. Denyer's Bathurst 1000 co-driver was Cameron Waters winning the competition beating runner-up British racing driver Andrew Jordan.

Personal life

Denyer presenting the weather from Cootamundra.

Grant was born in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales.[12] Since 1996, Grant has been the official face of The Spastic Centre's Technology Department. When not travelling around Australia, he actively works to raise awareness for children and adults with cerebral palsy and the importance technology plays in their lives.

Grant has been a passionate spokesperson on drought and its devastating effects on Australian Families. In March 2003, Grant revealed his own private battle to save his family's 100-year-old farm. Since then, he has continued his quest to lobby and encourage more assistance and backing for drought-stricken families and communities.

He is married to TV producer Cheryl Rogers, and they have one daughter born 9 May 2011.[13][14] In April 2015, the couple announced they were expecting their second child.[15]

2008 injury

On 17 September 2008, Denyer injured his back by participating in a monster truck promotional event resulting in a compressed fracture of the lower vertebrae.[1] Grant was taken by ambulance to the Wollongong Hospital.[16]

The accident occurred while Denyer was in training for the Monster Truck Championships, driving a monster truck at Dapto Showground.[16] After practicing a jump over five cars in the monster truck, Grant removed his foot too soon from the accelerator which caused the vehicle to land heavily leaving him with a compressed fracture to his lower vertebrae, broken in eight places. He was moved to a Sydney hospital and his recovery took months. He is famously reported as saying that his injury has reduced his rather short size by 1 cm.[16][17]

Denyer was then moved into intensive care but there were no sign of any nerve damage issues and he was back on the air to host Australia's Got Talent in 2009; however, he did not return to It Takes Two in May.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huntsdale, Justin (27 September 2010). "The rise (and crash) and rise of Grant Denyer". ABC Western Plains. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  2. ↑ "2006 Fuglies", Fugly Awards, retrieved 2006
  3. ↑ Grant Denyer Resume
  4. ↑ (JANUARY 16, 2015) "Family Feud host Grant Denyer in talks with Channel 10 to do an extra prime time TV show"
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Clune, Richard (24 January 2010). "Denyer granted new Sunrise". The Sunday Telegraph. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  6. ↑ Halliwell, Elle (28 March 2013). "Grant Denyer quits Seven breakfast show Sunrise". Adelaide Now. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  7. ↑ Grant Denyer to host Iron Chef Australia | The Age 10 September 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2013
  8. ↑ Grant Denyer quits Million Dollar Minute. Simon Reeve to host, TV Tonight, 29 November 2013
  9. ↑ "Under pressure: can Grant Denyer's Family Feud revive Ten's fortunes?", Sydney Morning Herald (Australia), 27 June 2014.
  10. ↑ "Grant Denyer on Sunrise role: ‘I thought I was invincible and I f***ed up’" (January 15, 2014)
  11. ↑ Bannon, John (27 January – 2 February 2010). "Denyer gives it away". Auto Action (Sydney: ACP Magazines) (1375): 7.
  12. ↑ Normoyle, Steve, ed. (2007). "The Great Race" 26 (2006 ed.). Chevron Publishing Group. p. 251. ISSN 1031-6124. |chapter= ignored (help)
  13. ↑ "Sun rises on a perfect wedding for Grant Denyer". Herald Sun. 26 February 2010. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  14. ↑ Mills, Amy (22 November 2010). "Grant Denyer's baby surprise". New Idea. Retrieved 30 December 2010.
  15. ↑ "Grant Denyer set to be a father again". The Daily Telegraph. 16 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Devlyn, Darren (2008-09-18). "Grant Denyer hurt as stunt misfires". Herald Sun. Retrieved 2008-09-19.
  17. ↑ Field, Katherine (2008-09-18). "Denyer's recovery to take months". The Australian. Retrieved 2008-09-19.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Grant Denyer.
Preceded by
originator
Fifi Box		 Sunrise
Weather Presenter
2004–2006
January 2010 - March 2013 		Succeeded by
Monique Wright
Edwina Bartholomew
Preceded by
Ada Nicodemou & Aric Yegudkin		 Dancing with the Stars (Australia) winner
Season 4 (Early 2006 with Amanda Garner) 		Succeeded by
Anthony Koutoufides & Natalie Lowe
Preceded by
program started		 Million Dollar Minute
Host
2013 		Succeeded by
Simon Reeve
Preceded by
John Deeks		 Family Feud
Host
2014 		Succeeded by
incumbent