Jonathan Ross(I)
- Writer
- Producer
- Actor
Comedian, talk show host, game show host, film critic, radio DJ and
awards show compere, Jonathan Ross is the most successful British
broadcaster of his generation. After attending the School of Slavonic and East European Studies in London and
gaining a Modern European History degree, he worked as a researcher on
Channel Four in the 1980s, becoming a presenter for the first time in
January 1987 on the channel's series
The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross (1987).
Ross made an immediate impression, largely because he didn't base his
presentational style on conventional, comforting and polite British
broadcasters such as Frank Bough,
Michael Parkinson,
Russell Harty,
Alan Whicker and the BBC's main talk show
host of the time, Terry Wogan; his
inspiration was the more fast-witted and irreverent style of American
talk show hosts, in particular
David Letterman.
Although
The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross (1987)
had a short life, it established him as a major draw for Channel
Four and introduced viewers to his trademark irreverent humour and
his distinctive speech impediment, which has been the source of plenty
of jokes over the years, including a few by Ross himself.
The 1990s were a period of growing success for Jonathan Ross. In 1999 he was
chosen by the BBC to replace
Barry Norman as the host of
Film '72 (1971), their long-running
film series on BBC One. The same year he left Virgin Radio to start his
popular Radio 2 show, broadcast on Saturdays. In 2001 he landed his own
chat show on BBC One,
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (2001).
Further evidence of his status came in 2005, when he was chosen
by the BBC to host the corporation's coverage of the
Live 8 (2005) rock concerts. Two
years later, he was the obvious choice to host the similar
Live Earth (2007) for the
BBC.
He has been the winner of numerous awards, with Sony judges praising
him for his "speed of thought, natural wit, and ability to transform
even the most mundane of thoughts into entertaining broadcasting". BBC
Director-General
Mark Thompson has called
him an "outstanding talent", and BBC One Controller
Peter Fincham called him a "uniquely
talented broadcaster at the very top of his game". He was awarded the
OBE for services to broadcasting in 2005.
Ross has not been without his critics. Some have accused him of being
the spearhead for a general decline in British television standards
since the 1980s, epitomised by his regular use of foul language and
blatant sexual references during his late night BBC talk show. He has
been at the centre of a number of controversies due to his irreverent
style, prompting cautions from The Broadcasting Standards Commission
and the BBC's board of governors. Ofcom, the communications regulator,
called him "deliberately provocative". John Beyer, director of TV
watchdog Mediawatch, has called his language "disgraceful and
unacceptable". In 2006, Andrew Neil
likened Ross' style to football hooliganism.
Once the bad boy of Channel Four, Jonathan Ross hadn't moderated his
style but he became the BBC's most valued broadcaster, with a reputed
salary of £6 million a year. In October 2008, Ross caused a major
controversy when he left obscene messages with
Russell Brand on the answerphone of
veteran actor Andrew Sachs while
guesting on Brand's Radio 2 show. He was suspended from the BBC for
three months and also reprimanded by the BBC Trust over his explicit
comments to actress Gwyneth Paltrow on
his talk show earlier in the year. In 2009, it was announced that Ross
was leaving the BBC in 2010 and in July 2010, the same month his last
BBC programme went out, it was announced he had signed a deal to begin
a new talk show on ITV1 in 2011.
awards show compere, Jonathan Ross is the most successful British
broadcaster of his generation. After attending the School of Slavonic and East European Studies in London and
gaining a Modern European History degree, he worked as a researcher on
Channel Four in the 1980s, becoming a presenter for the first time in
January 1987 on the channel's series
The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross (1987).
Ross made an immediate impression, largely because he didn't base his
presentational style on conventional, comforting and polite British
broadcasters such as Frank Bough,
Michael Parkinson,
Russell Harty,
Alan Whicker and the BBC's main talk show
host of the time, Terry Wogan; his
inspiration was the more fast-witted and irreverent style of American
talk show hosts, in particular
David Letterman.
Although
The Last Resort with Jonathan Ross (1987)
had a short life, it established him as a major draw for Channel
Four and introduced viewers to his trademark irreverent humour and
his distinctive speech impediment, which has been the source of plenty
of jokes over the years, including a few by Ross himself.
The 1990s were a period of growing success for Jonathan Ross. In 1999 he was
chosen by the BBC to replace
Barry Norman as the host of
Film '72 (1971), their long-running
film series on BBC One. The same year he left Virgin Radio to start his
popular Radio 2 show, broadcast on Saturdays. In 2001 he landed his own
chat show on BBC One,
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (2001).
Further evidence of his status came in 2005, when he was chosen
by the BBC to host the corporation's coverage of the
Live 8 (2005) rock concerts. Two
years later, he was the obvious choice to host the similar
Live Earth (2007) for the
BBC.
He has been the winner of numerous awards, with Sony judges praising
him for his "speed of thought, natural wit, and ability to transform
even the most mundane of thoughts into entertaining broadcasting". BBC
Director-General
Mark Thompson has called
him an "outstanding talent", and BBC One Controller
Peter Fincham called him a "uniquely
talented broadcaster at the very top of his game". He was awarded the
OBE for services to broadcasting in 2005.
Ross has not been without his critics. Some have accused him of being
the spearhead for a general decline in British television standards
since the 1980s, epitomised by his regular use of foul language and
blatant sexual references during his late night BBC talk show. He has
been at the centre of a number of controversies due to his irreverent
style, prompting cautions from The Broadcasting Standards Commission
and the BBC's board of governors. Ofcom, the communications regulator,
called him "deliberately provocative". John Beyer, director of TV
watchdog Mediawatch, has called his language "disgraceful and
unacceptable". In 2006, Andrew Neil
likened Ross' style to football hooliganism.
Once the bad boy of Channel Four, Jonathan Ross hadn't moderated his
style but he became the BBC's most valued broadcaster, with a reputed
salary of £6 million a year. In October 2008, Ross caused a major
controversy when he left obscene messages with
Russell Brand on the answerphone of
veteran actor Andrew Sachs while
guesting on Brand's Radio 2 show. He was suspended from the BBC for
three months and also reprimanded by the BBC Trust over his explicit
comments to actress Gwyneth Paltrow on
his talk show earlier in the year. In 2009, it was announced that Ross
was leaving the BBC in 2010 and in July 2010, the same month his last
BBC programme went out, it was announced he had signed a deal to begin
a new talk show on ITV1 in 2011.