Bev Turner

Last updated

Bev Turner
Beverley Turner at International Maternity Expo Awards 2019 front.jpg
Turner at the International Maternity Expo Awards 2019
Born
Beverley Turner

(1973-10-21) 21 October 1973 (age 50)
Occupation(s)Television presenter, radio presenter
Spouse
(m. 2002;div. 2019)
Children3
Website www.thebevturner.co.uk

Beverley Turner (born 21 October 1973) is an English television and radio presenter.

Contents

Early life

Turner was born in Prestwich, Lancashire. She has a first class degree in English Literature and Language from the University of Manchester. She is the sister of Olympic swimmer Adrian Turner. [1] [2]

Career

Turner worked for BBC Radio 5 Live, presenting their Bump Club series, following a group of pregnant women through to motherhood. Previously, she spent three years as one of only two female presenters for ITV's Formula One coverage and also presented coverage of the Tour de France. She broke with Formula One racing coverage with a "bridge burning exercise" in the form of her book, The Pits: The Real World of Formula 1 [3] in July 2004, which described widespread sexism in the sport. [4] She spent another three seasons presenting coverage of US National Basketball Association games in the UK. In 2002, she began presenting entertainment sections for Granada's This Morning and, in 2003, travel reporting for the Travel Channel.

She was the sole presenter of sixty-four episodes of Taste , a cooking programme for Sky1 which was shown daily for six years across global Sky channels and became one of the station's most profitable self-made shows. [5] She co-presented Homes Live with Watchdog 's Matt Allwright, a daily, live property show on BBC Two.[ citation needed ]

Turner hosted her own talk show on the radio station LBC from 2015 to 2019, and at the time of her departure was one of two female presenters at the station. [6] She left the station in January 2019 after complaining that the station predominantly employed white men; LBC reported that her contract had expired and was not renewed. [6]

From November 2022, Turner began hosting her own weekday show on GB News, titled Bev Turner Today. She had previously been a stand-in presenter on the channel. [7]

She has written for newspapers The Independent , The Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail .[ citation needed ]

Personal life

Turner married double Olympic Gold medallist rower James Cracknell at Clearwell Castle in Gloucestershire in 2002. They have a son, born in September 2003, and two daughters, born in March 2009 [8] and April 2011. [9] They announced their separation in April 2019, [10] and were granted a decree nisi in their divorce proceedings in July of the same year. [11]


Controversies

On 1 June 2021, Turner clashed with Dermot O'Leary on This Morning over the issue of COVID-19 vaccines, when she said that it was not effective and urged younger people to refuse the vaccine when offered it. She went on to claim: "It does not stop you catching or passing on the virus." Following this, she was banned from appearing on the programme. [12] [13] Controversy continued later on Jeremy Vine , which caused Ofcom to receive hundreds of complaints. She later shared a video of herself crying, claiming she had been "ambushed." [14] On November of the same year she appeared again on the Jeremy Vine programme, in which she clashed with Owen Jones when she compared Austria's lockdown rules for the non-vaccinated to Apartheid. [15] On 7 February 2022, in the hours after Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was encircled by protesters [16] yelling "traitor", with references to Jimmy Savile, amongst other things, Turner tweeted to suggest that Starmer was complicit in the incident and that the event was staged. [17] Turner tweeted: "I'm not at all convinced this is a genuine 'ambush.' It perfectly casts Johnson as a Trumpian agitator. (I'm not condoning his Savile comment. It was stupid). But Starmer does not look scared. Yelling about 'Freemasons' was brainstormed in a board room! Why walk so far?! Staged." Amidst the July 2022 United Kingdom heat wave, in a conversation with BBC's meteorologist John Hammond, she said "I want us to be happy about the weather, and I don’t know if something has happened to meteorologists to make you all a little bit fatalistic and harbingers of doom, but broadcasters – particularly on the BBC – every time I’ve turned on, anyone is talking about the weather and they’re saying there’s going to be tons of fatalities, but haven't we always had hot weather, John?" in a moment that was compared to the film Don't Look Up . [18] [19] On her Twitter account, she has expressed her opinion about the extreme heat warnings, calling them "weather-fear porn" [20] and "climate lockdown." [21] In July 2023, a leading Jewish group criticised Turner for spreading a "dangerous conspiracy theory" after she tweeted that the COVID-19 virus appeared to have been bioengineered to be less dangerous to some Jewish people. [22] in September 2023, when allegations about Russell Brand's abuse and sexual assault of women were made public by Channel 4's Dispatches programme, Turner defended Brand on Twitter and clashed with Andrew Pierce live on GB News. [23] [24] Turner responded to Pierce's branding of her dismissal of the alleged victims' testimonies as "shameful" by claiming she had been in contact with several sources "close to Brand [and] close to The Times " which had led her to believe the allegations to be "flimsy." [25]

Other interests

Turner's main charity interest is in sexual health and sexual politics, and she is a patron of the Family Planning Association (FPA). [26] She is also an honorary associate of the National Secular Society. [27]

She has been a competitive swimmer, [28] and appeared in FHM 's "Sexiest Women" list at position 43 in 2001. [29] Turner has also studied for a Diploma in Psychotherapy and Hypnotherapy. [30]

Related Research Articles

<i>Newsnight</i> BBC Television current affairs programme

Newsnight is the BBC's news and current affairs programme, providing in-depth investigation and analysis of the stories behind the day's headlines. It is broadcast weeknights at 22:30 on BBC Two and the BBC News channel; it is also available on BBC iPlayer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Angela Rippon</span> English television presenter (born 1944)

Angela May Rippon is an English broadcaster, former newsreader, writer and journalist.

Julia Hartley-Brewer is a conservative British radio presenter, political journalist, and newspaper columnist. She has hosted a radio show on Talkradio simulcast on Talk called Julia Hartley-Brewer on weekdays from 10am.

Anne Margaret Diamond is a British journalist, broadcaster, and children's health campaigner. She presently hosts the weekend breakfast show on GB News with Stephen Dixon as her co-presenter. She hosted Good Morning Britain for TV-am and Good Morning with Anne and Nick for BBC One, with Nick Owen. In 2023, she was made an OBE for her service to children's health and is the first non-medic to hold the Royal College of Paediatrics College Medal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Cracknell</span> British rower

James Edward Cracknell, is a British rowing and endurance athlete, double Olympic gold medalist and winner of six world championship titles. Cracknell was appointed OBE for "services to sport" in the 2005 New Year Honours List.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirsty Gallacher</span> British television presenter and model (born 1976)

Kirsty Jane Gallacher is a British television presenter and model. She began her career at Sky Sports News in 1998 and hosted Kirsty's Home Videos, RI:SE and Simply the Best before returning to Sky Sports News from 2011–2018. From June 2021 until December 2021, Gallacher co-presented The Great British Breakfast on the news channel GB News.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phillip Schofield</span> English television personality (born 1962)

Phillip Bryan Schofield is an English television personality, known for presenting a wide range of high-profile programmes for the BBC and ITV from 1982 to 2023; presenting BBC programmes from 1985 to 1993 and 2001 to 2006 and ITV programmes from 1993 to 2023.

<i>This Morning</i> (TV programme) British daytime television programme

This Morning is a British daytime magazine programme that is broadcast on ITV. It debuted on 3 October 1988 and is broadcast live every weekday from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm across the United Kingdom, and in Ireland by Virgin Media One. The programme features a variety of news, showbiz, fashion, health and beauty, lifestyle, home and garden, food, tech, live phone-ins, and competitions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emily Maitlis</span> British journalist (born 1970)

Emily Maitlis is a British journalist and former newsreader for the BBC. She was the lead anchor of the BBC Two news and current affairs programme Newsnight until the end of 2021. She has since been a presenter of the daily podcast The News Agents on LBC Radio.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James O'Brien (broadcaster)</span> British radio presenter, podcaster, author

James Edward O'Brien is a British radio presenter, podcaster, author, and former tabloid journalist and television presenter. Since 2004, he has hosted a weekday morning phone-in discussion for talk station LBC.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victoria Derbyshire</span> British journalist (born 1968)

Victoria Antoinette Derbyshire is a British journalist, newsreader and broadcaster. Her eponymous current affairs and debate programme was broadcast on BBC Two and the BBC News Channel from 2015 until March 2020. She has also presented Newsnight and BBC Panorama. She was one of eight women to appear in ITV's The Real Full Monty: Ladies Night – an entertainment documentary to raise awareness of breast cancer. She previously presented the morning news, current affairs and interview programme on BBC Radio 5 Live between 10 am and 12 noon each weekday. She left at the same time as fellow 5 Live broadcasters Richard Bacon and Shelagh Fogarty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katie Hopkins</span> English media personality (born 1975)

Katie Olivia Hopkins is an English media personality, far-right political commentator, and former columnist and businesswoman. She was a contestant on the third series of the reality television show The Apprentice in 2007; following further appearances in the media, she became a columnist for British national newspapers, including The Sun (2013–2015) and MailOnline (2015–2017). In 2015, Hopkins appeared on the fifteenth series of the reality television show Celebrity Big Brother, in which she finished as runner-up, and hosted her own television talk show, If Katie Hopkins Ruled the World. The following year, she became a presenter for the talk radio station LBC and underwent major brain surgery to treat her epilepsy.

Lucy Beresford is an English broadcaster, presenter, novelist, and psychotherapist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rosie Duffield</span> British politician (born 1971)

Rosemary Clare Duffield is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Canterbury since 2017. After resigning as a member of the Labour Party in September 2024, she sits as an independent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Phillips (TV presenter)</span> British journalist, broadcaster, and former politician (born 1983)

Alexandra Lesley Phillips is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former politician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GB News</span> British television news channel

GB News is a British free-to-air, opinion-orientated television and radio news channel. The channel is available on Freeview, Freesat, Sky, YouView, Virgin Media and via the internet on Samsung TV Plus, Rakuten TV and YouTube. An audio simulcast of the station is also available on DAB+ radio.

Camilla Tominey is a British journalist and broadcaster. She reports on politics and the British royal family as an associate editor of The Daily Telegraph. She also writes a weekly column for the newspaper. Since January 2023, she has presented The Camilla Tominey Show, a Sunday morning politics show on GB News.

On 29 November 2021, Keir Starmer, Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom, carried out a reshuffle of his shadow cabinet. The slimmed down shadow cabinet, was seen to be Starmer creating a top team in his own image.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beergate</span> British political controversy

Beergate was a British political controversy concerning allegations that an event in Durham on 30 April 2021, attended by Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and Deputy Leader Angela Rayner, could have been in breach of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions. Labour and Starmer said, at the time and since, that the event complied with the rules for work gatherings, with a pause for food. The police, after investigating, cleared the Labour attendees, including Starmer and Rayner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liz Truss lettuce</span> Vegetable used as political commentary

On 14 October 2022, the British tabloid newspaper the Daily Star began a livestream of an iceberg lettuce next to a framed photograph of Liz Truss, who was appointed prime minister of the United Kingdom the previous month. This act followed an opinion piece in The Economist that compared the expected brevity of Truss's premiership to the shelf life of a head of lettuce, with the October 2022 United Kingdom government crisis occurring weeks into her tenure and leading many political commentators to opine that Truss's resignation was imminent. She announced her resignation as prime minister on 20 October 2022, before the lettuce had wilted; the Daily Star subsequently declared the lettuce "victorious" over Truss.

References

  1. "110mb.com – Want to start a website?". magazinecelebs.110mb.com. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2008.
  2. "Who is Beverley Turner? James Cracknell's wife, radio presenter and mum - Cambridgeshire Live". 6 April 2019.
  3. Turner, Beverley (2004). The Pits: The Real World of Formula One. Atlantic Books. ISBN   978-1-84354-237-7 . Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  4. Turner, Beverley (8 July 2004). "Exposed: the rampant sexism that defines the world of Formula One". independent.co.uk . Archived from the original on 21 March 2009. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
  5. "Book Beverley Turner, Speaker, Host & Facilitator - TSA".
  6. 1 2 "Beverley Turner leaves LBC". Radio Today. January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  7. "GB News axes to the Point". 3 November 2022.
  8. "James & Bev Have Baby Daughter". MTC News. Archived from the original on 29 May 2009.
  9. "Congratulations!!!". James Cracknell. 4 June 2011. Archived from the original on 28 September 2013. Retrieved 26 September 2013.
  10. "James Cracknell and Wife Beverley Turner Separate".
  11. "Judge signals end of rower James Cracknell's marriage to Beverley Turner". The Herald. 8 July 2019. Retrieved 7 February 2024.
  12. Needham, Lucy (6 June 2021). "Beverley Turner 'blocked' from This Morning after anti-Covid vaccine row". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  13. Jamie Roberts, Chloe Burrell (June 2021). "TV presenter Dermot O'Leary involved in heated debate with anti-vaxxer guest on This Morning". Daily Record (published 1 June 2021). Retrieved 19 July 2022. [Includes video]
  14. Samuel Osborne (17 June 2021). "Hundreds complain about Covid rant on Jeremy Vine show". The Independent (published 17 June 2021). Retrieved 18 July 2022. Ofcom has said that the majority of the 125 complaints about the show concerned her comments.
    Ms. Turner told the panel: "Less than one percent of deaths are down to Covid-19.
    "This has to be taken by a decision-by-decision basis because this is a clinical trial until 2023."
  15. Kyle Farrell (15 November 2021). "Owen Jones in heated row over Beverley Turner's Covid comparison 'Apartheid was murderous'". Express (published 15 November 2021). Retrieved 19 July 2022. [Includes video]
  16. "Keir Starmer: Two arrested after protesters surround Labour leader". BBC News. 8 February 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  17. Turner, Beverly [@beverleyturner] (7 February 2022). "I'm not at all convinced this is a genuine 'ambush.' It perfectly casts Johnson as a Trumpian agitator. (I'm not condoning his Savile comment. It was stupid). But Starmer does not look scared. Yelling about 'Freemasons' was brainstormed in a board room! Why walk so far?! Staged. https://t.co/A3cc5OmQWq" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 8 February 2022. Retrieved 12 February 2022 via Twitter.
  18. Kate Nicholson (15 July 2022). "GB News Anchor Makes Don't Look Up A Reality With Her Reaction To 'Lethal Weather'". HuffPost (published 15 July 2022). Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  19. Alistair McGeorge (15 July 2022). "GB News reporter shuts down reports of 'lethal weather' and it's literally like scenes from Don't Look Up". Metro (published 15 July 2022). Retrieved 19 July 2022. [Includes video]
  20. @beverleyturner (17 July 2022). "I wonder how many summer fetes, such as this one I was at today, had low numbers buying drinks, food and ice cream, because of the msm weather fear-porn?..
    Small businesses are really struggling & need footfall, unless the plan is to close them down, in which case, good work..."
    (Tweet) via Twitter.
  21. @beverleyturner (18 July 2022). "This is what a climate lockdown looks like. They didn't even have to INSTRUCT people to stay at home. They did it willingly, forgetting they used to be capable of doing their own risk assessment on a sunny day. Businesses empty. I'm furious. Wake the f*** up people!!!" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  22. Walker, Peter (18 July 2023). "Jewish group criticises GB News host over 'dangerous conspiracy theory'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  23. "Hosts Go to War Over 'Shameful' Defense of Russell Brand Live on TV". Daily Beast. 18 September 2023.
  24. ""Shame On You": GB News Presenters Angrily Clash Live On Air Over Russell Brand Allegations". Deadline. 18 September 2023.
  25. GB News Hosts In On-Air Bust-Up Over Russell Brand , retrieved 18 September 2023
  26. "Book Beverly Turner | Speaker Agent". 2 October 2023.
  27. "National Secular Society Honorary Associates". National Secular Society. Retrieved 27 July 2019
  28. "Video: Redisover your love of swimming with SwimFit pool sessions". 15 August 2013.
  29. Glendenning, Barry (2 July 2009). "James Cracknell | Rowing". The Guardian.
  30. Turner, Beverley (15 February 2010). "Tapping therapy: curing physical and mental problems". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 18 February 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2013.