Jay Blades | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Jason Blades 21 February 1970 |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | Furniture restorer •television personality |
| Years active | 2017– |
| Known for | The Repair Shop Money for Nothing Jay Blades' Home Fix |
| Spouse(s) | Jade (divorced)Lisa Zbozen (m. 2022;sep. 2024) |
| Children | 3 [2] |
Jason Blades MBE (born 21 February 1970) [3] [4] is an English furniture restorer and television presenter. [5] [6]
Blades was born in Brent, North London [7] and raised in Hackney, East London with his mother and maternal half-brother. [8] [6] As an adult, he learned that his father had 25 other children, from different mothers, in a number of countries. [6] He has dyslexia, which was not diagnosed at school. [6] He says that he experienced racism at school and from the police. [6] In September 2022 Blades appeared on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs and said that his childhood had been "blighted by racism and violence". [9] [10]
As a young man, he worked as a labourer and in factories. [6]
He enrolled in Buckinghamshire New University as a mature student to study criminology. [6] [11] It was only then, aged 31, that he was diagnosed with the reading ability of an 11-year old. [12]
During the early 2010s, roughly between 2012 and 2013, Blades was involved in the running of a children's club known as "Men Behaving Dadly", [13] a weekend playgroup aimed at young children and their fathers. It took place at Bedfont [14] and Chiswick [15] children's centres.
Blades and his then wife, Jade, [16] set up a charity based in High Wycombe, Out of the Dark, to train disadvantaged young people in furniture restoration. [6] The charity lost funding, their marriage broke down, and he became homeless. [6] He was supported by friends and by the Caribbean community. [6] Around the same time, television producers saw a short film about the charity which led to his work as a presenter. [6] He moved to Wolverhampton and established Jay & Co, a social enterprise to support disadvantaged and disengaged groups. [17]
In 2021, Blades became trustee of a charity founded by singer Leigh-Anne Pinnock, The Black Fund. They had met years previously when Blades ran a youth club and choir which Pinnock, then 14 years old, joined. [12]
He also released a memoir in that year, entitled Making It: How Love, Kindness and Community Helped Me Repair My Life, published by Pan Macmillan UK. [18]
Blades was appointed co-chair of the Heritage Crafts Association in August 2022. [19]
Blades is best known for presenting The Repair Shop , Money for Nothing and Jay Blades' Home Fix, and co-presenting Jay and Dom's Home Fix. [20] [21]
He has also appeared on Would I Lie to You? , Celebrity Masterchef , Richard Osman's House of Games , Michael McIntyre's The Wheel , and The Graham Norton Show . [22] [23]
In August 2021, Blades filmed a documentary programme for BBC One, Jay Blades: Learning to Read at 51, depicting his recent attempts, with the support of the charity Read Easy UK, to improve his literacy. [12] He danced with Luba Mushtuk in the 2021 Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special. In May 2022 he appeared in a three-part series on Channel 5 revisiting the area he grew up in, and interviewing childhood friends, experts, and witnesses to history. Jay Blades: No Place Like Home featured locations such as Ridley Road Market (the history of anti-fascist action in the 1940s), Newington Green Unitarian Church (slavery and abolitionism), the Pellici cafe (the Kray twins and gangsterism), and the site of the First World War bombing by airship.
In October 2022, Blades was the lead presenter for the edition of The Repair Shop which featured King Charles III. [24] [25]
In June 2023, Channel 4 commissioned Britain’s Best Beach Huts, which Blades co-presented with Laura Jackson. [26] The series aired during June and July 2023. [27] Also in June 2023, Blades presented Jay Blades' East End Through Time; a three-part documentary series shown on Channel 5, [28] which was followed by The Midlands Through Time in October. [29]
During early 2024, Blades and Sir David Jason presented David & Jay's Touring Toolshed; a fifteen-part restoration series on BBC2. [30] During June 2024, Channel 5 aired Jay Blades: The West End Through Time; a sequel to Jay Blades' East End Through Time. [31] In July 2024, it was reported that Blades was to present Jay Blades: A Country House Through Time (working title), an upcoming four-part Channel 5 documentary series. [32] In August 2024, Blades featured with Dame Judi Dench in a Channel 4 programme called Dame Judi and Jay: The Odd Couple. [33]
Blades lives in Claverley, Shropshire, [34] having previously lived in Ironbridge. [17] He has a daughter from his first marriage and two sons from previous relationships. Blades married his second wife, Lisa Zbozen, in Barbados in November 2022. [16] [6] [11] [35] [36] In May 2024, the couple separated. [37]
In September 2024, Blades was charged with controlling and coercive behaviour against Zbozen, including physical and emotional abuse. [38] Blades revealed, shortly before, that his uncle Richard Brathwaite had been killed. In a post to his fans, Blades said his uncle's death had "really affected" him and announced a break from social media. He told The Independent he was planning to seek counselling. [39] Blades appeared at Worcester Crown Court on 11 October 2024 and entered a "not guilty" plea. The judge confirmed that an exclusion zone regarding Blades' wife would remain in force. [40] A trial was expected to take place in May 2025. [41]
Blades was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2021 Birthday Honours, for services to craft. [42] [43]
In May 2022, it was announced that Blades would be appointed as the first Chancellor of Buckinghamshire New University. [44] [45] At his formal investiture in March 2023, the university awarded him an honorary degree "for his significant contribution to furniture-making and crafts and community work". [46] [47] Blades resigned from the position in September 2024. [48]
Sir David John White, known professionally as David Jason, is an English actor. He has played Derek "Del Boy" Trotter in the BBC sitcom Only Fools and Horses, Detective Inspector Jack Frost in A Touch of Frost, Granville in Open All Hours and Still Open All Hours, and Pop Larkin in The Darling Buds of May, as well as voicing several cartoon characters, including Mr. Toad in The Wind in the Willows, the BFG in the 1989 film, and the title characters of Danger Mouse and Count Duckula.
Ironbridge is a riverside village in the borough of Telford and Wrekin in Shropshire, England. Located on the bank of the River Severn, at the heart of the Ironbridge Gorge, it lies in the civil parish of The Gorge. Ironbridge developed beside, and takes its name from, The Iron Bridge, a 100-foot (30 m) cast iron bridge that was built in 1779.
Zoe Louise Ball is a British broadcaster and presenter. She was the first female host of the Radio 1 and Radio 2 breakfast shows for the BBC, and in 2024 was confirmed as the second-highest paid BBC presenter after Gary Lineker.
Gabrielle Nicole Logan is a Welsh television and radio presenter, and a former rhythmic gymnast who represented Wales and Great Britain. She hosted Final Score for BBC Sport from 2009 until 2013. She has also presented live sports events for the BBC, including a revived episode of Superstars in December 2012 and the London Marathon since 2015. Since 2013, she has co-hosted Sports Personality of the Year for the BBC and she presented the second series of The Edge in 2015.
Nicholas Corbishley Owen is an English television presenter and newsreader, best known for presenting the ITV breakfast programme Good Morning Britain, Good Morning with Anne and Nick, ITV Sport, and the BBC's regional news show Midlands Today since 1997. He was also the chairman of Luton Town Football Club between 2008 and 2017.
Matthew James Baker is a British television presenter. He co-presented the children's television show Blue Peter from 1999 until 2006, BBC One's Countryfile since 2009 and The One Show from 2011 to 2020, with Alex Jones.
Buckinghamshire New University (BNU) is a public university in Buckinghamshire, England, with campuses in High Wycombe, Aylesbury, Uxbridge and Great Missenden. The institution dates from 1891, when it was founded as the School of Science and Art, and has since then has variously been known as Wycombe Technical Institute, High Wycombe College of Technology and Art and the Buckinghamshire College of Higher Education. It was a university college from 1999 until 2007, when its application for university status was accepted.
Nicholas Simon Augustine Knowles is an English television presenter, writer and musician. He has hosted several television programmes including Real Rescues (2007–2013), Who Dares Wins (2007–2019), Break the Safe (2013–2014), 5-Star Family Reunion (2015–2016), and DIY SOS (1999–present).
Adedoyin Olayiwola "Ade" Adepitan is a Nigerian-born British television presenter and wheelchair basketball player. As a presenter, he has hosted a range of travel documentaries and sports programmes for BBC television. Adepitan is a disability advocate and one of the first physically disabled television presenters in the UK, with a career of over 20 years.
Anita Rani Nazran, better known as Anita Rani, is a British radio and television presenter.
Gregg Allan Wallace is an English broadcaster, entrepreneur and writer. He is known for co-presenting MasterChef, Celebrity MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals on BBC One and BBC Two. He has written for Good Food, Now and Olive. Wallace left MasterChef after allegations of sexual harassment surfaced in 2024.
Ruth Elizabeth Dodsworth is a British broadcaster, journalist and weather presenter, best known for her work at ITV Cymru Wales.
Clive Augustus Myrie is a British journalist, newsreader and presenter who works for the BBC. He is one of the BBC's chief news presenters and correspondents, as well as their election results presenter. Since August 2021 he has been the host of the long-running BBC quiz shows Mastermind and Celebrity Mastermind.
Anna Clare Richardson is an English television presenter, writer and journalist. She has presented various television shows for Channel 4, including Supersize vs Superskinny (2008–2009), The Sex Education Show (2008–2011), Secret Eaters (2012–2014), Supershoppers (2016–2019), Naked Attraction (2016–present) and Changing Rooms (2021–present).
Rachel Annabelle Riley is an English television presenter. She co-presents the Channel 4 daytime puzzle show Countdown and its comedy spin-off 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown. She is a mathematics graduate.
Claverley is a village and civil parish in east Shropshire, England. The parish also includes the hamlets of Beobridge, Hopstone, Upper Aston, Ludstone, Heathton and a number of other small settlements.
Thomas Scott is an English YouTuber and web developer. On his self-titled YouTube channel, Scott creates educational videos across a range of topics including history, geography, linguistics, science, and technology. As of August 2024, his five YouTube channels have collectively gained over 7.8 million subscribers and 1.87 billion views.
Stephanie Rose McGovern is an English journalist and television presenter. She hosted Steph's Packed Lunch on Channel 4 from 2020 to 2023. She worked for the BBC as the main business presenter for BBC Breakfast, often co-hosting the entire programme.
The Repair Shop is a British daytime and primetime television show made by production company Ricochet that aired on BBC Two for series 1 to 3 and on BBC One for series 4 onwards, in which family heirlooms are restored for their owners by numerous experts with a broad range of specialisms. Furniture restorer Jay Blades acted as the foreman until 2024.
William Kirk is a British furniture restorer primarily known for his work on BBC's restoration programme The Repair Shop. He is an Ambassador of the Heritage Crafts Association.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
