Rhodri Williams
Encyclopedia
Rhodri Williams is a Welsh
sports journalist from Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales
.
He was a main anchor
for Sky channel Sky Sports News
and was one of Sky's main rugby
presenters - hosting the Heineken Cup
and Southern Hemisphere
rugby including the Tri Nations, the NPC
in New Zealand
and the Currie Cup
in South Africa
. He presented Animal Hospital
with Rolf Harris
and was the first presenter on L!VE TV
(Britain
's first 24 hour cable channel). He was part of the launch of Channel 5 in the UK as one of the presenters on the Channel's afternoon entertainment show '5's Company' with Nick Knowles and John Barrowman. He has presented numerous programmes for Welsh language
channel S4C
. He continues to present radio shows for BBC Radio Wales
and Radio Cymru.
In 1997 Rhodri was the quizmaster on the now defunct L!VE TV
's football quiz "A Game of Two Scarves" featuring fans and glamour models. He also hosted the station's talent show, Spanish Archer
.
The Welsh anchorman’s clean-cut image was tarnished in 2006 and his contract with Sky Sports was ‘terminated with immediate effect’ after a Sunday newspaper claimed it had footage of him and the disgraced former Blue Peter
presenter John Leslie
romping with a naked woman.
In the past he has been a presenter on national radio sports station talkSPORT
, presenting the Kick-off programme on Thursday from 7.00 to 10.00 pm and The Sunday Session. He was also the main rugby anchor for Setanta Sports
. The Sunday Session has now been axed and Kick-Off was presented every day by Danny Kelly, with Stan Collymore
as an assistant on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Away from the media he owns 3 successful businesses in Cardiff
. He hosted various shows on Setanta Sports News
in his spare time, mostly weekend evenings, the channel has now ceased broadcasting.
Rhodri presented both talkSPORT
's and ITV Wales
' coverage of the Rugby World Cup
2007.
He has now moved on to anchor football programmes with Al Jazeera Sports
with whom he also covered the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
He is the son of famed Welsh TV (S4C) presenter/weather girl Jenny Ogwen
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
sports journalist from Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
.
He was a main anchor
Anchor
An anchor is a device, normally made of metal, that is used to connect a vessel to the bed of a body of water to prevent the vessel from drifting due to wind or current. The word derives from Latin ancora, which itself comes from the Greek ἄγκυρα .Anchors can either be temporary or permanent...
for Sky channel Sky Sports News
Sky Sports News
Sky Sports News is a 24-hour sports news channel in the United Kingdom. It is run by BSkyB whose sports channels include Sky Sports 1, 2, 3 and 4, as well as Sky Sports HD1, HD2, HD3 and HD4....
and was one of Sky's main rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
presenters - hosting the Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
and Southern Hemisphere
Southern Hemisphere
The Southern Hemisphere is the part of Earth that lies south of the equator. The word hemisphere literally means 'half ball' or "half sphere"...
rugby including the Tri Nations, the NPC
National Provincial Championship
The National Provincial Championship, or NPC, is the major domestic rugby competition in New Zealand. The NPC has seen many alterations to its format and brand. Since 2006 the National Championship has been split into 2 competitions, the ITM Cup and the Heartland Championship...
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and the Currie Cup
Currie Cup
The Currie Cup tournament is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring , featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces...
in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. He presented Animal Hospital
Animal Hospital
Animal Hospital was a television show starring Rolf Harris that ran on the BBC from 1994 until 2004. The story showed animal welfare stories from RSPCA hospitals.-Location:...
with Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris
Rolf Harris, CBE, AM is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, composer, painter and television personality.Born in Perth, Western Australia, Harris was a champion swimmer before studying art. He moved to England in 1952, where he started to appear on television programmes on which he drew the...
and was the first presenter on L!VE TV
L!VE TV
L!VE TV was a British television station that was operated by MGN on cable television from 15 August 1995 - 31 October 1999. It was later revived for Sky Digital from 2003...
(Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
's first 24 hour cable channel). He was part of the launch of Channel 5 in the UK as one of the presenters on the Channel's afternoon entertainment show '5's Company' with Nick Knowles and John Barrowman. He has presented numerous programmes for Welsh language
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
channel S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
. He continues to present radio shows for BBC Radio Wales
BBC Radio Wales
BBC Radio Wales is the BBC's national radio station broadcasting to Wales in the English language. Operated by BBC Wales, it began broadcasting on 12 November 1978 following the demise of the old "Radio 4 Wales" when BBC Radio 4 became a national network and moved from medium wave to long wave...
and Radio Cymru.
In 1997 Rhodri was the quizmaster on the now defunct L!VE TV
L!VE TV
L!VE TV was a British television station that was operated by MGN on cable television from 15 August 1995 - 31 October 1999. It was later revived for Sky Digital from 2003...
's football quiz "A Game of Two Scarves" featuring fans and glamour models. He also hosted the station's talent show, Spanish Archer
Spanish Archer
Spanish Archer was a talent show hosted by Rhodri Williams and occasionally Ruth Madoc. It was produced by L!VE TV and filmed at the station's headquarters at Canary Wharf in London....
.
The Welsh anchorman’s clean-cut image was tarnished in 2006 and his contract with Sky Sports was ‘terminated with immediate effect’ after a Sunday newspaper claimed it had footage of him and the disgraced former Blue Peter
Blue Peter
Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...
presenter John Leslie
John Leslie (television presenter)
John Leslie is a Scottish former television presenter. He has presented BBC One's Blue Peter and ITV's This Morning and the ITV gameshow Wheel of Fortune. He was also the roving reporter for the first series of the UK version of Survivor...
romping with a naked woman.
In the past he has been a presenter on national radio sports station talkSPORT
TalkSPORT
Talksport , owned by UTV radio, is one of the United Kingdom's three terrestrial analogue Independent National Radio broadcasters, offering a sports and talk radio service broadcast from London to the United Kingdom....
, presenting the Kick-off programme on Thursday from 7.00 to 10.00 pm and The Sunday Session. He was also the main rugby anchor for Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports
Setanta Sports is an international sports broadcaster based in Dublin, Ireland. Setanta Sports was formed in 1990 to facilitate the broadcasting of Irish sporting events...
. The Sunday Session has now been axed and Kick-Off was presented every day by Danny Kelly, with Stan Collymore
Stan Collymore
Stanley Victor "Stan" Collymore is an English football pundit and former footballer, who played from 1990 until 2001. He held the British transfer record when he moved from Nottingham Forest to Liverpool for £8.5 million in 1995 and was capped three times at senior level by the England...
as an assistant on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Away from the media he owns 3 successful businesses in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
. He hosted various shows on Setanta Sports News
Setanta Sports News
Setanta Sports News was a television channel from Virgin Media Television and Setanta Sports. The channel launched on 29 November 2007. as a rolling 24-hour sports news channel using the strength of the Setanta Sports brand across the United Kingdom and Ireland . It was available to all Virgin...
in his spare time, mostly weekend evenings, the channel has now ceased broadcasting.
Rhodri presented both talkSPORT
TalkSPORT
Talksport , owned by UTV radio, is one of the United Kingdom's three terrestrial analogue Independent National Radio broadcasters, offering a sports and talk radio service broadcast from London to the United Kingdom....
's and ITV Wales
HTV
HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...
' coverage of the Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
2007.
He has now moved on to anchor football programmes with Al Jazeera Sports
Al Jazeera Sports
Al Jazeera Sports is a popular Arabic-language sports channel launched in November 2003 by the well-known Al Jazeera network.Al Jazeera Sports also owns the exclusive broadcasting rights in the Middle East for major football leagues, such as the Spanish La Liga, the French Ligue 1 and the Italian...
with whom he also covered the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
He is the son of famed Welsh TV (S4C) presenter/weather girl Jenny Ogwen