Maggie Philbin
Encyclopedia
Maggie Philbin is an English
radio and television presenter whose credits include Tomorrow's World
and Multi-Coloured Swap Shop
.
As a child she became interested in science through wanting to become a vet
.
After studying English and Drama at the University of Manchester
with classmates including Adrian Edmondson
, Ben Elton
and Rik Mayall
, she responded to an advertisement in The Stage
and was offered the job of co-presenter on Multi-Coloured Swap Shop
. She is best remembered by many for her time on Tomorrow's World
.
Maggie famously flew upside down in a Hawker Hunter
as part of the Tomorrow's World at Large series, and drove a Top Fuel dragster
, earning her International Racing Licence. She decided not to race the car, which then spun out of control after a tyre exploded with top driver Dennis Priddle at the wheel.
She married her co-presenter Keith Chegwin
in 1982. The couple had a daughter, Rose - named after the editor who gave her the job with Swap Shop, but divorced in 1993. With Noel Edmonds
, they formed the one-hit wonder
band Brown Sauce
and had a No. 15 hit with "I Wanna Be A Winner" in 1981.
She returned to television on BBC One
's flagship science and technology programme Tomorrow's World
where she stayed for eight years. Since then, she has presented a variety of television and radio programmes, including Hospital Watch, Bodymatters Roadshow, QED
, and BBC Two
's women's documentary series The Doll’s House. She has worked as a medical and consumer reporter for ITV1
's This Morning
and presented film reports for BBC’s current affairs programme 4x4, as well as a series of 20 programmes called Heartland for Channel Health. In October 2003 she spearheaded the BBC's Talking Teenagers project across television and radio. She has also presented 40 editions of the science programme Wideworld for Five.
She is a patron of the National Osteoporosis Society
and was invited by the IOF
to sit on the Women leaders panel in Brussels in 2008. She is also a patron of the Daphne Jackson Trust helping scientists, engineers and technologists return to work after a career break, she sits on the board of Swanswell Charitable Trust and she is a panel member of the New Engineering Foundation
.
In 2008 she created TeenTech an interactive science and engineering event for teenagers. In 2010 it was awarded Best Engineering Event by the British Science Association.
She reunited with her former Swap Shop colleagues (including her ex-husband) for a special programme celebrating the 30th anniversary of the programme, It Started With Swap Shop, in December 2006.
BBC News announced that she would be their face of technology on television, radio and online from 2007. She has launched the Helping Hand Campaign
, encouraging digital switchover help for the elderly. She is a regular reporter on Inside Out
and a presenter for BBC Radio Berkshire
.
On 25 July 2010, she featured as guest presenter in Episode 3 of the LadyGeek App Show.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
radio and television presenter whose credits include Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World was a long-running BBC television series, showcasing new developments in the world of science and technology. First aired on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003.- Content :...
and Multi-Coloured Swap Shop
Multi-Coloured Swap Shop
Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, more commonly known simply as Swap Shop, is a UK children's television programme. It was broadcast on Saturday mornings on BBC1 for 146 episodes in six series between 1976 and 1982...
.
As a child she became interested in science through wanting to become a vet
Veterinarian
A veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
.
After studying English and Drama at the University of Manchester
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
with classmates including Adrian Edmondson
Adrian Edmondson
Adrian Charles "Ade" Edmondson is an English comedian. He is probably best known for his comedic roles in the television series The Young Ones and Bottom , for which he also wrote together with his long-time collaboration partner Rik Mayall.-Early life:Edmondson, the second of four children, was...
, Ben Elton
Ben Elton
Benjamin Charles "Ben" Elton is an English comedian, author, playwright and director. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement of the 1980s, as a writer on such cult series as The Young Ones and Blackadder, as well as also a successful stand-up comedian on stage and TV....
and Rik Mayall
Rik Mayall
Richard Michael "Rik" Mayall is an English comedian, writer, and actor. He is known for his comedy partnership with Ade Edmondson, his over-the-top, energetic portrayal of characters, and as a pioneer of alternative comedy in the early 1980s...
, she responded to an advertisement in The Stage
The Stage
The Stage is a weekly British newspaper founded in 1880, available nationally and published on Thursdays. Covering all areas of the entertainment industry but focused primarily on theatre, it contains news, reviews, opinion, features and other items of interest, mainly to those who work within the...
and was offered the job of co-presenter on Multi-Coloured Swap Shop
Multi-Coloured Swap Shop
Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, more commonly known simply as Swap Shop, is a UK children's television programme. It was broadcast on Saturday mornings on BBC1 for 146 episodes in six series between 1976 and 1982...
. She is best remembered by many for her time on Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World was a long-running BBC television series, showcasing new developments in the world of science and technology. First aired on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003.- Content :...
.
Maggie famously flew upside down in a Hawker Hunter
Hawker Hunter
The Hawker Hunter is a subsonic British jet aircraft developed in the 1950s. The single-seat Hunter entered service as a manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, and later operated in fighter-bomber and reconnaissance roles in numerous conflicts. Two-seat variants remained in use for training and secondary...
as part of the Tomorrow's World at Large series, and drove a Top Fuel dragster
Top Fuel
Top Fuel racing is a class of drag racing in which the cars are run on a mix of approximately 90% nitromethane and 10% methanol rather than gasoline or simply methanol. The cars are purpose-built for drag racing, with an exaggerated layout that in some ways resembles open-wheel circuit racing...
, earning her International Racing Licence. She decided not to race the car, which then spun out of control after a tyre exploded with top driver Dennis Priddle at the wheel.
She married her co-presenter Keith Chegwin
Keith Chegwin
Keith Chegwin is an English television presenter, former child actor and singer.-Early career:Chegwin's early roles were in works of the Children's Film Foundation, appearing as Egghead Wentworth in The Troublesome Double Egghead's Robot . He also appeared as a stowaway in Doomwatch episode...
in 1982. The couple had a daughter, Rose - named after the editor who gave her the job with Swap Shop, but divorced in 1993. With Noel Edmonds
Noel Edmonds
Noel Ernest Edmonds, is an English broadcaster and executive, who made his name as a DJ on BBC Radio 1 in the UK. He has presented many light entertainment television programmes, including Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, Top of the Pops, The Late, Late Breakfast Show, Telly Addicts, Noel's Saturday...
, they formed the one-hit wonder
One-hit wonder
A one-hit wonder is a person or act known mainly for only a single success. The term is most often used to describe music performers with only one hit single.-Characteristics:...
band Brown Sauce
Brown Sauce (band)
Brown Sauce was a pop band, made up of presenters from the television programme, Multi-Coloured Swap Shop. These were Keith Chegwin, Maggie Philbin and Noel Edmonds. They formed for a one-off single in late 1981 called "I Wanna Be a Winner"...
and had a No. 15 hit with "I Wanna Be A Winner" in 1981.
She returned to television 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...
's flagship science and technology programme Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World
Tomorrow's World was a long-running BBC television series, showcasing new developments in the world of science and technology. First aired on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003.- Content :...
where she stayed for eight years. Since then, she has presented a variety of television and radio programmes, including Hospital Watch, Bodymatters Roadshow, QED
Q.E.D. (TV series)
Q.E.D. was a 1982 short-lived adventure series set in Edwardian England, starring Sam Waterston as Professor Quentin Everett Deverill . The Professor was a scientific detective in the mold of Sherlock Holmes, and the series had a smattering of what would later be known as steampunk...
, and BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
's women's documentary series The Doll’s House. She has worked as a medical and consumer reporter for 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...
's This Morning
This Morning (TV series)
This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...
and presented film reports for BBC’s current affairs programme 4x4, as well as a series of 20 programmes called Heartland for Channel Health. In October 2003 she spearheaded the BBC's Talking Teenagers project across television and radio. She has also presented 40 editions of the science programme Wideworld for Five.
She is a patron of the National Osteoporosis Society
National Osteoporosis Society
The National Osteoporosis Society, established in 1986, is the only UK-wide charity dedicated to improving the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. It is based in Camerton, Somerset, England. The income of the charity was about £3.5 million in 2010...
and was invited by the IOF
International Osteoporosis Foundation
The International Osteoporosis Foundation , headquartered in Nyon, Switzerland, is a non-governmental organization founded in 1998. It was formed from the merger of the European Foundation for Osteoporosis, founded in 1987, and the International Federation of Societies on Skeletal Diseases...
to sit on the Women leaders panel in Brussels in 2008. She is also a patron of the Daphne Jackson Trust helping scientists, engineers and technologists return to work after a career break, she sits on the board of Swanswell Charitable Trust and she is a panel member of the New Engineering Foundation
New Engineering Foundation
The New Engineering Foundation is a UK-based not for profit registered charity and think tank founded in 2004 by Prof. Sa'ad Medhat, which focuses on developing vocational education...
.
In 2008 she created TeenTech an interactive science and engineering event for teenagers. In 2010 it was awarded Best Engineering Event by the British Science Association.
She reunited with her former Swap Shop colleagues (including her ex-husband) for a special programme celebrating the 30th anniversary of the programme, It Started With Swap Shop, in December 2006.
BBC News announced that she would be their face of technology on television, radio and online from 2007. She has launched the Helping Hand Campaign
Digital Switchover Help Scheme
The Switchover Help Scheme is part of the digital television switchover process in the United Kingdom. Funded by an increase in the TV licence fee, and administered by the BBC on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, it aims to ensure that up to 7 million households meeting its...
, encouraging digital switchover help for the elderly. She is a regular reporter on Inside Out
Inside Out (BBC TV series)
Inside Out is the brand name for a number of regional television programmes in England broadcast on BBC One. Each series, made by a BBC region, focuses on stories from the local area...
and a presenter for BBC Radio Berkshire
BBC Radio Berkshire
BBC Radio Berkshire is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Berkshire, as well as parts of North Hampshire, including Basingstoke. Radio Berkshire broadcasts on 94.6 , 95.4 , 104.1 and 104.4 FM from its studios at Caversham Park near Reading. The 104.1 FM signal is the strongest...
.
On 25 July 2010, she featured as guest presenter in Episode 3 of the LadyGeek App Show.