Bill Turnbull
Encyclopedia
William Robert "Bill" Turnbull (born 25 January 1956) is an English
journalist
and presenter
, currently employed by the BBC
and best known for presenting BBC Breakfast
. He is the main male presenter of Breakfast broadcast on BBC One
and BBC News, presenting alongside Sian Williams each Monday-Thursday.
, South East England
to an English
father of Scottish
ancestry and an English
mother. He was educated at Eton College
in Berkshire
, followed by the University of Edinburgh
, where he edited the student newspaper.
in 1978, and later he freelanced for a number of years in the USA.
He joined the BBC as a reporter for the Today programme
in 1986 and Breakfast as a reporter in 1988, before becoming a correspondent for BBC News
in 1990. He covered a wide range of domestic and international stories, reporting from over thirty countries including a four-year stint as Washington Correspondent, based in the USA. His producer for a while was Sian Williams. In this role he reported on a whole swathe of major American stories, including the O.J. Simpson murder trial and the Monica Lewinsky
scandal that rocked Bill Clinton
's presidency.
In 1997 Turnbull moved back to the UK and into the studio to become one of the main presenters on BBC News 24
, appearing alongside Valerie Sanderson
. He also presented regular programmes on Radio 5 Live
, including a stint as a presenter on Weekend Breakfast.
He joined the BBC Breakfast team in 2001 as a weekend presenter, presenting alongside Sian Williams initially and then later Sarah Montague
, Mishal Husain
and Susanna Reid
. He also regularly appeared as a relief presenter on the weekday programme with Sophie Raworth
, Natasha Kaplinsky
, Kate Silverton
and Louise Minchin
. In 2008 he became the main weekday presenter of Breakfast rejoining Williams, replacing Dermot Murnaghan
. He was also an occasional relief presenter of News at Six and News at One.
As well as anchoring programmes in the studio, he regularly presents on location. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
, he was sent to New Orleans to report for BBC News, presenting both Breakfast and the News at Six live from Biloxi and Gulfport, Mississippi
. In the aftermath of the 7 July 2005 London bombings
, Bill anchored Breakfast's coverage live from King's Cross railway station. Bill fronted the programme's coverage of the 2008 US Presidential election live from Washington and New York.
In April and May 2010 Turnbull travelled around the UK presenting and reporting for Breakfast on the General Election campaign trail. In June 2010 he presented Breakfast live from Whitehaven in the aftermath of the Cumbria shootings.
, paired with Karen Hardy
. In spite of a serious ankle injury in the second week (which then flared up at various points in the series), he stayed in the competition seven weeks, finishing sixth out of twelve contestants.
In August 2006, he agreed to take part in a polyphasic sleep
experiment presented on BBC One's The One Show
programme. In this experiment he slept for a total of three hours per day, in six thirty-minute bursts, for ten consecutive days. The effect of this sleep pattern on his health was plain to see as he presented Breakfast almost every weekday during the duration of the exercise and became increasingly sleep deprived.
In November 2006, Turnbull performed on screen with the BBC News
presenters for Children in Need
.
Turnbull also appeared in, and won, an episode of the BBC celebrity game show School's Out
broadcast on BBC One, Saturday 11 August 2007.
In September 2007, Bill appeared on the celebrity version of ITV1
gameshow Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
alongside his BBC Breakfast co-presenter Sian Williams. The pair played to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care
.
On 28 October 2007 he made a guest appearance on the children's television show SMart
.
In January 2008 he appeared on Celebrity Mastermind. His specialist subject was Beekeeping
.
In 2009, he took part in the BBC series Around the World in 80 Days with Breakfast colleague Louise Minchin
for Children in Need
, travelling from Mongolia, through Russia and South Korea, before crossing the Pacific on a container ship and landing in California.
In 2011 he also made an appearance on the BBC show Pointless alongside his BBC Breakfast co-presenter Sian Williams, which they won raising money for charity. He also appeared alongside Lee Mack and Louis Spence on the panel quiz show Would I Lie To You?
, and made a guest appearence as himself in "The Wedding of River Song
", the finale of the sixth series of Doctor Who
.
. The couple have two sons, Henry and Will (born October 1988 and October 1989), and a daughter Flora (born August 1991). The family live in Buckinghamshire
.
Turnbull is a fan of Wycombe Wanderers football club where he commentates on home games for online listeners. His hobbies include beekeeping
, he also keeps chickens. In addition Bill enjoys long distance running, having competed in the London Marathon
on a number of occasions, and the Great North Run
on 5 October 2008. On 8 September 2009, Bill was made an honorary doctor at Bucks New University in recognition of his charity work within the Buckinghamshire community.
In May 2010, he published "The Bad Beekeepers Club", a humorous book about the ups and downs of beekeeping.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and presenter
Presenter
A presenter, or host , is a person or organization responsible for running an event. A museum or university, for example, may be the presenter or host of an exhibit. Likewise, a master of ceremonies is a person that hosts or presents a show...
, currently employed by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and best known for presenting BBC Breakfast
BBC Breakfast
BBC Breakfast is the morning television news programme simulcast on BBC One and the BBC News channel. It is presented live from BBC Television Centre in White City, West London, and contains a mixture of news, sport, weather, business and feature items...
. He is the main male presenter of Breakfast broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
and BBC News, presenting alongside Sian Williams each Monday-Thursday.
Early life
Turnbull was born in SurreySurrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, South East England
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
to an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
father of Scottish
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
ancestry and an English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
mother. He was educated at Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
in Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
, followed by the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, where he edited the student newspaper.
Career history
Bill Turnbull's career began at Scottish local station Radio ClydeRadio Clyde
Radio Clyde is a division of Bauer Radio based in Glasgow, Scotland. They currently operate an FM station and an AM station from studios in Clydebank West Dunbartonshire.- History :...
in 1978, and later he freelanced for a number of years in the USA.
He joined the BBC as a reporter for the Today programme
Today programme
Today is BBC Radio 4's long-running early morning news and current affairs programme, now broadcast from 6.00 am to 9.00 am Monday to Friday, and 7.00 am to 9.00 am on Saturdays. It is also the most popular programme on Radio 4 and one of the BBC's most popular programmes across its radio networks...
in 1986 and Breakfast as a reporter in 1988, before becoming a correspondent for BBC News
BBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
in 1990. He covered a wide range of domestic and international stories, reporting from over thirty countries including a four-year stint as Washington Correspondent, based in the USA. His producer for a while was Sian Williams. In this role he reported on a whole swathe of major American stories, including the O.J. Simpson murder trial and the Monica Lewinsky
Monica Lewinsky
Monica Samille Lewinsky is an American woman with whom United States President Bill Clinton admitted to having had an "improper relationship" while she worked at the White House in 1995 and 1996...
scandal that rocked Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
's presidency.
In 1997 Turnbull moved back to the UK and into the studio to become one of the main presenters on BBC News 24
BBC News 24
BBC News is the BBC's 24-hour rolling news television network in the United Kingdom. The channel launched as BBC News 24 on 9 November 1997 at 17:30 as part of the BBC's foray into digital domestic television channels, becoming the first competitor to Sky News, which had been running since 1989...
, appearing alongside Valerie Sanderson
Valerie Sanderson
Valerie Sanderson was one of the original presenters on BBC News 24 when it launched in 1997.-Early life:She studied at St Andrews University, then did a postgraduate degree at the Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.-BBC:...
. He also presented regular programmes on Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
, including a stint as a presenter on Weekend Breakfast.
He joined the BBC Breakfast team in 2001 as a weekend presenter, presenting alongside Sian Williams initially and then later Sarah Montague
Sarah Montague
Sarah Montague is a British Journalist, best known for her work on BBC Radio 4 as one of the regular presenters of the Today programme.-Early life:...
, Mishal Husain
Mishal Husain
Mishal Husain is a television news presenter for the BBC's international news channel, BBC World News, presenting Impact between 1400 and 1600 GMT every Monday to Thursday as well as presenting the Sunday evening editions of the BBC Weekend News on BBC One...
and Susanna Reid
Susanna Reid
Susanna Reid is an English journalist and presenter, best known for presenting BBC Breakfast.-Early life:The youngest of three children, Reid was born in Croydon, London to an English father who worked as a management consultant, of Scottish ancestry, and an English mother who worked as a nurse...
. He also regularly appeared as a relief presenter on the weekday programme with Sophie Raworth
Sophie Raworth
Sophie Jane Raworth is an English newsreader and journalist who works for British broadcaster the BBC. She is the main presenter of the BBC News at One, presenting Tuesday to Friday, and regularly appears on the BBC News at Six and occasionally on BBC News at Ten.-Early life:Born in Surrey to a...
, Natasha Kaplinsky
Natasha Kaplinsky
Natasha Margaret Kaplinsky is a British newsreader and television presenter, currently employed by ITV having previously worked for Channel 5, Sky News and the BBC...
, Kate Silverton
Kate Silverton
Kate Silverton is an English journalist, currently employed by the BBC.- Early life and education :Silverton was born in Essex, England, the daughter of English parents; Terry Silverton, a black-cab driver turned registered hypnotherapist and Patricia Silverton, who now heads her daughter's...
and Louise Minchin
Louise Minchin
Louise Minchin is an English journalist and presenter. She is currently a regular presenter on the BBC News channel, as well as being the main relief presenter for the BBC News at One and BBC Breakfast and a guest presenter on The One Show.-Early life:Born Louise Grayson in 1968 in Hong Kong , to...
. In 2008 he became the main weekday presenter of Breakfast rejoining Williams, replacing Dermot Murnaghan
Dermot Murnaghan
Dermot Murnaghan is a British journalist and television presenter.He is well known for his work as a presenter of ITV and BBC News as well as the shows Eggheads and Treasure Hunt . He co-presented BBC Breakfast from Monday to Thursday as well as regularly fronting national BBC news bulletins...
. He was also an occasional relief presenter of News at Six and News at One.
As well as anchoring programmes in the studio, he regularly presents on location. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
, he was sent to New Orleans to report for BBC News, presenting both Breakfast and the News at Six live from Biloxi and Gulfport, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. In the aftermath of the 7 July 2005 London bombings
7 July 2005 London bombings
The 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of co-ordinated suicide attacks in the United Kingdom, targeting civilians using London's public transport system during the morning rush hour....
, Bill anchored Breakfast's coverage live from King's Cross railway station. Bill fronted the programme's coverage of the 2008 US Presidential election live from Washington and New York.
In April and May 2010 Turnbull travelled around the UK presenting and reporting for Breakfast on the General Election campaign trail. In June 2010 he presented Breakfast live from Whitehaven in the aftermath of the Cumbria shootings.
Other TV appearances
In 2005, he was a contestant in the third series of the BBC dancing competition Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
, paired with Karen Hardy
Karen Hardy
Karen Hardy is a professional ballroom dancer, coach, teacher and adjudicator. In 1998 she won the professional International Latin American Dance Championship with Bryan Watson. She also won the United Kingdom Open, British National, European and World Masters championships...
. In spite of a serious ankle injury in the second week (which then flared up at various points in the series), he stayed in the competition seven weeks, finishing sixth out of twelve contestants.
In August 2006, he agreed to take part in a polyphasic sleep
Polyphasic sleep
Polyphasic sleep, a term coined by early 20th-century psychologist J.S. Szymanski, refers to the practice of sleeping multiple times in a 24-hour period—usually more than two, in contrast to biphasic sleep or monophasic sleep . It does not imply any particular sleep schedule...
experiment presented on BBC One's The One Show
The One Show
The One Show is a topical magazine-style daily television programme broadcast live on BBC One and BBC One HD, hosted by Alex Jones and Matt Baker. Chris Evans joins Jones to present the programme on Friday...
programme. In this experiment he slept for a total of three hours per day, in six thirty-minute bursts, for ten consecutive days. The effect of this sleep pattern on his health was plain to see as he presented Breakfast almost every weekday during the duration of the exercise and became increasingly sleep deprived.
In November 2006, Turnbull performed on screen with the BBC News
BBC News
BBC News is the department of the British Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs. The department is the world's largest broadcast news organisation and generates about 120 hours of radio and television output each day, as well as online...
presenters for Children in Need
Children in Need
Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
.
Turnbull also appeared in, and won, an episode of the BBC celebrity game show School's Out
School's Out (TV series)
School's Out was a BBC television series hosted by Danny Wallace. Based on the premise of school subjects, celebrity contestants are asked questions they would have been asked at school.-Rounds:...
broadcast on BBC One, Saturday 11 August 2007.
In September 2007, Bill appeared on the celebrity version of ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
gameshow Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? (UK game show)
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is a British television quiz show which offers a maximum cash prize of one million pounds for correctly answering successive multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty...
alongside his BBC Breakfast co-presenter Sian Williams. The pair played to raise money for Marie Curie Cancer Care
Marie Curie Cancer Care
Marie Curie Cancer Care is a charitable organisation in the United Kingdom which provides nursing care, free of charge, to terminally ill people, giving them the chance to choose to be cared for at home...
.
On 28 October 2007 he made a guest appearance on the children's television show SMart
SMart
SMart was a British CBBC television programme based on the subject of art, which began in 1994. The programme was recorded at BBC Television Centre in London, previously it had been recorded in Studio A at BBC Pebble Mill in Birmingham. The format is similar to the Tony Hart programmes Take Hart...
.
In January 2008 he appeared on Celebrity Mastermind. His specialist subject was Beekeeping
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
.
In 2009, he took part in the BBC series Around the World in 80 Days with Breakfast colleague Louise Minchin
Louise Minchin
Louise Minchin is an English journalist and presenter. She is currently a regular presenter on the BBC News channel, as well as being the main relief presenter for the BBC News at One and BBC Breakfast and a guest presenter on The One Show.-Early life:Born Louise Grayson in 1968 in Hong Kong , to...
for Children in Need
Children in Need
Children in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
, travelling from Mongolia, through Russia and South Korea, before crossing the Pacific on a container ship and landing in California.
In 2011 he also made an appearance on the BBC show Pointless alongside his BBC Breakfast co-presenter Sian Williams, which they won raising money for charity. He also appeared alongside Lee Mack and Louis Spence on the panel quiz show Would I Lie To You?
Would I Lie to You?
"Would I Lie to You?" is a song recorded by British pop duo Eurythmics. It was written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart. Released in the UK and the U.S. from Eurythmics' fifth album Be Yourself Tonight, the song was the first by the duo to feature their change in musical direction...
, and made a guest appearence as himself in "The Wedding of River Song
The Wedding of River Song
"The Wedding of River Song" is the thirteenth and final episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One, BBC America and Space on 1 October 2011.-Plot:...
", the finale of the sixth series of Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
.
Personal life
Turnbull married Sarah McCombie in March 1988 in the London Borough of HackneyLondon Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
. The couple have two sons, Henry and Will (born October 1988 and October 1989), and a daughter Flora (born August 1991). The family live in Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
.
Turnbull is a fan of Wycombe Wanderers football club where he commentates on home games for online listeners. His hobbies include beekeeping
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
, he also keeps chickens. In addition Bill enjoys long distance running, having competed in the London Marathon
London Marathon
The London Marathon is one of the biggest running events in the world, and one of the five top world marathons that make up the World Marathon Majors competition, which has a $1 million prize purse. It has been held each spring in London since 1981. The race is currently sponsored by Virgin Money,...
on a number of occasions, and the Great North Run
Great North Run
The Bupa Great North Run is the world's largest half marathon, taking place annually each September. Participants run between Newcastle upon Tyne and South Shields in England. The run was devised by former Olympic 10,000 m bronze medallist and BBC Sport commentator Brendan Foster.The first Great...
on 5 October 2008. On 8 September 2009, Bill was made an honorary doctor at Bucks New University in recognition of his charity work within the Buckinghamshire community.
In May 2010, he published "The Bad Beekeepers Club", a humorous book about the ups and downs of beekeeping.
External links
- Bill Turnbull on TwitterTwitterTwitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
- Profile of Bill Turnbull BBC Breakfast
- BBC News
- My life in Media Independent, 14 January 2008
- Bill Turnbull Biography and Information
Video clips
- Dancing with Karen Hardy, YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
- With Kate Silverton, YouTube