Richard Madeley

Richard Madeley

Madeley (left) in 2012
Born Richard Holt Madeley
(1956-05-13) 13 May 1956
Romford, Essex, England
Nationality British
Occupation Broadcaster, writer
Years active 1988–present
Television This Morning (1988–2001)
Richard and Judy (2001–09)
The Wright Stuff (2012–)
Spouse(s) Lynda Hooley (1977-1983)
Judy Finnigan (m. 21 November 1986)
Children Chloe Madeley (b. 1987)
Jack Madeley
Website Official Website

Richard Holt Madeley (born 13 May 1956) is a British television presenter, journalist, columnist and novelist. With his wife Judy Finnigan, Madeley has presented This Morning and later the weekday chat show Richard & Judy. Solo projects of Madeley's include the ITV show Fortune: Million Pound Giveaway and standing in on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show for BBC Radio 2. Since 2012 he has been the main relief presenter of Channel 5s The Wright Stuff.

Life and career

Madeley was born in Romford, Greater London on 13 May 1956, the son of Mary C. (MacEwan) and Christopher Holt Madeley.[1] His mother was Canadian. His sister, Liz Lawrence, was a teacher at The Anglo European School in Ingatestone. He attended the Coopers' Company School in Bow, now relocated to Upminster, Greater London. When he was about 14, he transferred to Shenfield High School in Brentwood.[2]

Madeley began his media career in local newspapers, before moving to BBC Radio Carlisle at the age of 19 as a news producer and presenter. He soon moved to nearby Border Television as a reporter on the Lookaround local news slot, before fronting its equivalent Calendar with Richard Whiteley on Yorkshire TV, and then on to Granada Reports in the early 1980s. Here he met Judy Finnigan who was assigned to assist him on his first day.

This Morning

Main article: This Morning

Richard Madeley and his wife Judy Finnigan presented This Morning from its inception in October 1988 until July 2001. The series, a mix of celebrity interviews, household tips, cookery and phone-ins, lasted approximately two hours each weekday morning on ITV, broadcast from the Albert Dock in Liverpool. Production moved to London in 1996. The couple were so closely associated with the show, that many people referred to the programme as Richard and Judy, rather than This Morning.

Since leaving the show, Madeley has been featured as a guest, publicising his autobiography. The couple joined the show's subsequent presenters, Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, in October 2009, to celebrate its twenty first birthday.

Richard and Judy returned to This Morning in October 2013, to celebrate 25 years of the programme live from the show's original home at the Albert Dock in Liverpool.

Richard & Judy

Main article: Richard & Judy

The couple quit This Morning in 2001, having been approached by Channel 4 to host a similar show, called Richard & Judy, shown for an hour in the early evenings. The show was produced by Cactus TV, run by Jonathan Ross's brother Simon and his wife Amanda.

In February 2007, Madeley and Finnigan apologised live on air due to the discovery of a TV quiz phone scam regarding the daily phone in You Say We Pay. Madeley and Finnigan took the decision to suspend the daily quiz until further notice. Later that week, the news media confirmed that police investigations would be pursued, meaning the couple could be subject to a police interview. Channel 4 have admitted the scam may have been in force for two series of the show. Whilst Madeley and Finnigan urged callers to continue entering, it was confirmed that winners were picked in the first ten minutes of the show. The couple both deny being involved in the scam. This scam was revealed by the Mail on Sunday newspaper[3] after it was sold the story through media publicist Jonathan Hartley.

The TV show also launched two successful "clubs", the Richard & Judy Book Club and the Richard & Judy Wine Club, both of which are similar in style to those used by Oprah Winfrey. The book club featured literature by new and unknown writers. One book was reviewed each week and the winner, named "Read of the Year," was announced at an awards ceremony. After seven years in production, the show ended in August 2008

Move to Watch

The couple transferred to new primetime show on UKTV's new channel, Watch. Their new show still contained popular features such as the "Book Club" and "Summer Read". From 7 October 2008, "Richard and Judy's New Position" showed weeknights from 8pm. The show attracted very low viewing figures, with only 200,000 people for the first episode, and 53,000 for the second. Viewing figures since had consistently fallen, reaching new lows of just 11,000 viewers; their Channel 4 programme would see figures as high as 2.5 million.[4] Consequentially, on 8 May 2009 it was announced that the show would end in July, the presenters claiming in a statement that viewers "simply couldn't find us".[5]

Other work

Whilst working on their daytime show, the pair have had time for other projects. Madeley presented several series of a TV version of the classic board game Cluedo, game show Connections, the daytime quiz Runway as well as a series on the world's wildest weather, Eye of the Storm. He hosted the ITV1 show Fortune: Million Pound Giveaway, and was presenter for the unaired pilot of the home video show You've Been Framed.

Madeley hosted the popular news quiz Have I Got News for You on 14 December 2007, and then featured as a guest panellist in May 2011. He sat in for Richard Bacon on BBC Radio 5 Live. Madeley also covered for Dawn Patrol presenter Sarah Kennedy during the week of 27–30 April 2009, for Zoë Ball for two months until 27 February, and on numerous occasions for Chris Evans' Breakfast Show, all on BBC Radio 2. He appeared on Piers Morgan's Life Stories in April 2009 and was a guest on BBC Question Time in January 2010. In 2011, Madeley was featured in the eighth season of Who Do You Think You Are?, tracing his mother's ancestors to Canada and the United States. In April 2013, he appeared as a Dictionary Corner guest on Countdown for 5 shows.

Madeley presents his own show on Radio 2, Madeley on Sunday (previously Made on Sunday), covering for Terry Wogan's Weekend Wogan over Wogan's holidays. Wogan died in January 2016; and Madeley's show became a semi-permanent replacement. Beginning in April 2016 the slot will be shared between Madeley and Michael Ball, with Madeley presenting for approximately 10 weeks a year and Ball taking the remaining ca. 40.

In 2002, the couple co-wrote their autobiography, Richard and Judy: The Autobiography, published by Hodder & Stoughton. In 2008, Madeley wrote the book Fathers and Sons, which charts his family history; it was published by Simon & Schuster.

Richard is the author of three novels: Some Day I'll Find You (2013), The Way You Look Tonight (2014) and The Night Book (2016).

Richard, and his wife, Judy Finnigan, were the subjects of This Is Your Life in 1997 when they were surprised by Michael Aspel live on air while broadcasting This Morning.

Personal life

Madeley's first marriage, at age 21, lasted five years before the couple were divorced. Madeley has stated that he believes the marriage was a mistake, and he had ten affairs during that time. Nine days after Madeley's marriage began, his father died at the age of 49.[6]

Madeley met Judy Finnigan in 1982 when they worked on separate programmes for Granada TV. At the time each was in their first marriage. The pair married in 1986 in Manchester. They have two children together, both born in Manchester: Jack Christopher (born 1986) and Chloe Susannah (born 1987). They have a second home at Polperro in Cornwall having been on holiday together there before their marriage.[7]

In 1990, Madeley was arrested for failing to pay for items, including champagne, on two separate occasions at a Tesco supermarket in Manchester. He was later acquitted of all shoplifting charges after citing lapses of memory.[8]

In October 2011, Madeley received an honorary Doctor of Arts degree from Anglia Ruskin University in honour of his contribution to television, reading, entertainment and media.[9]

Political views

Madeley has expressed strong support for the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and applauded the Iraq War, claiming international law on the issue was "incredibly complicated".[10] He has been described as a neocon,[11] Blair’s “self-appointed apologist”, and Blair’s “yapping Pekingese”.[12] During the Labour Party leadership elections of 2015, Madeley condemned the anti-war candidate, Jeremy Corbyn.[13][14]

In an interview, Madeley named Cuban leader Fidel Castro as the person he most despises.[15]

Notes

  1. ↑ http://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/treeview/tree_view.php?&&tree_id=3118
  2. ↑ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2074421/Richard-Madeley-remembers-threatened-knives-big-break.html#ixzz4QmVc6pty
  3. ↑ Gallagher, Ian (18 February 2007). "EXCLUSIVE: Richard and Judy quiz scam". London: The Mail Online. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  4. ↑ "Turning off Richard and Judy". London: The Independent. 30 November 2008.
  5. ↑ "Early exit for Richard and Judy". BBC News. 8 May 2009.
  6. ↑ Presenter: Piers Morgan (5 April 2009). "Richard Madeley". Piers Morgan's Life Stories. ITV. ITV1.
  7. ↑ Madeley, Richard (14 February 2010). "Richard Madeley's heaven on earth: Polperro, Cornwall". Telegraph; Travel. Retrieved 26 November 2012.
  8. ↑ Osley, Richard (22 June 2008). "Sex, lies... and the curse of 'This Morning' presenters". The Independent. London.
  9. ↑ Anglia Ruskin website, accessed 5 May 2012
  10. ↑ “Richard Madeley on Tony Blair going to war in Iraq - TV presenter Richard Madeley on why he thinks Tony Blair was right to go to war in Iraq.” - BBC
  11. ↑ “Richard Madeley: neocon - Hilarious intervention on Iraq from Mr Judy Finnegan” - Mehdi Hasan, 4 February, 2010
  12. ↑ “Richard Madeley is nothing but a lapdog for Tony Blair” - The Mirror - 5 February 2010
  13. ↑ The Labour lemmings take a leap Richard and Judy, Sunday Express, Mon, Aug 17, 2015, updated Mon, Aug 17, 2015
  14. ↑ Labour is so long past its sell-by date - Richard and Judy - The Express - Friday 21 August 2015
  15. ↑ Rosanna Greenstreet (16 December 2006). "Q&A – Richard Madeley & Judy Finnigan". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 27 August 2007.

References

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