Phil Spencer (television personality)

Last updated

Phil Spencer
Phil Spencer.jpg
Spencer filming in Stoke-on-Trent, July 2007
Born
Philip John Edward Spencer

Littlebourne, Kent, England
Occupation(s)TV presenter
businessman
journalist
Years active2000-present
Employer Channel 4
Notable credit(s) Location, Location, Location
Relocation, Relocation
Phil Spencer: Secret Agent
Love It or List It
SpouseFiona Spencer
Children2
Website https://www.moveiq.co.uk

Philip John Edward Spencer is an English media personality, television presenter, and journalist, best known as the co-presenter of Channel 4 property show Location, Location, Location along with its spin-off Relocation, Relocation between 2004 and 2011 alongside Kirstie Allsopp.

Contents

Early life and education

Philip John Edward Spencer [1] grew up in Littlebourne, Kent, son of (Richard) David Edward Spencer and Anne, née Saville-Peck, of Garrington Farm, Littlebourne. His father had studied engineering at Loughborough University, and his mother, daughter of a GP, was a teacher. [2] [3] His grandfather was the bank manager and first-class cricketer Harry Spencer. [4] [5] He was educated at Uppingham School, [6] a co-educational independent school in the small market town of Uppingham, Rutland, in the Midlands, where he was Head Boy. [7]

Business career

Having studied as a surveyor in the early 1990s, Spencer decided that there was a lack of professional support available for buyers, and set himself up as a home finder. [8] He founded property search company Garrington Home Finders Ltd in 1996. [8] He describes himself as not the first to see this opportunity, "but I was probably second or third, and Kirstie [Allsopp] was the fourth." [8] The company entered into administration in early 2009.

Spencer remains an active property investor and landlord. [9] [10] He launched the website Move iQ in 2018 [11] to support buyers and renters in the UK property market, [12] and tenants in the UK. [13]

Media career

Spencer was co-presenter of Channel 4 property show Location, Location, Location along with its spin-off Relocation, Relocation between 2004 and 2011, alongside Kirstie Allsopp. [14]

In early 2010, Spencer partnered with co-host Allsop and launched a new independent production company called Raise the Roof with colleagues from IWC Media. [15] Spencer is a director and shareholder. [16]

In April 2010, his book Adding Value to Your Home was published. [17]

In 2013, Spencer hosted the daytime game show The Common Denominator , on Channel 4. [18]

Personal life

Spencer lives in Hampshire with his Australian wife Fiona and their two sons. [8] [19]

He is an ambassador for SOS Children's Villages. [20] He is also a patron of St Mungo's, a London homelessness charity, [21] [22] and a supporter of the Countryside Alliance. [23]

In August 2014, Spencer was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian opposing Scottish independence in the run-up to the 2014 referendum on that issue. [24]

In August 2023, Spencer's parents were killed in a car accident in Kent; [25] their estate of £18 million was left to their four children. [26]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

The National Childbirth Trust (NCT) is the UK's largest charity offering information and support in pregnancy, childbirth and early parenthood Since 1956 it has supported millions of parents through birth of their children and through early parenthood while bringing about advances in professional practice and public policy. The charity's mission is to support parents through the first 1,000 days: from the beginning of pregnancy through to the child's second birthday.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kirstie Allsopp</span> British television presenter (born 1971)

Kirstie Mary Allsopp is a British television presenter, best known as co-presenter of Channel 4 property shows including Location, Location, Location, Love It or List It UK, Relocation, Relocation and Location Revisited.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Affordability of housing in the United Kingdom</span> Housing affordability in the UK

The affordability of housing in the UK reflects the ability to rent or buy property. There are various ways to determine or estimate housing affordability. One commonly used metric is the median housing affordability ratio; this compares the median price paid for residential property to the median gross annual earnings for full-time workers. According to official government statistics, housing affordability worsened between 2020 and 2021, and since 1997 housing affordability has worsened overall, especially in London. The most affordable local authorities in 2021 were in the North West, Wales, Yorkshire and The Humber, West Midlands and North East.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landsec</span> British real estate investment trust

Land Securities Group plc, trading as Landsec, is the largest commercial property development and investment company in the United Kingdom. The firm became a real estate investment trust (REIT) when REITs were introduced in the United Kingdom in January 2007. It is headquartered in London, England, and traded on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.

Vistry Group, formerly Bovis Homes Group, is a British home construction company based in Kings Hill, England. Bovis Homes completed a deal to acquire Galliford Try's housing arm in January 2020, renaming the combined business Vistry. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. It is one of the biggest housebuilders in the UK.

Location, Location, Location is a British reality property programme that has aired on Channel 4 since 17 May 2000 and is presented by Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer. The show follows Allsopp and Spencer as they try to find the perfect home for a different set of buyers each week.

Sophia Atherley "Sofie" Allsopp is a British television presenter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacqueline Gold</span> British businesswoman (1960–2023)

Jacqueline Gold was a British businesswoman who was the executive chair of Gold Group International, Ann Summers, and Knickerbox.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Travelodge (British company)</span> British budget hotel chain

Travelodge Hotels Limited, trading as Travelodge, is a private company operating in the hotels and hospitality industry throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain.

Buying agents or purchasing agents are people or companies that offer to buy goods or property on behalf of another party. Indent agents or indenting agents are alternative terms for buying agents. An indent is an order for goods under specified conditions of sale.

Don't let Devon go to waste is an recycling and waste-awareness campaign, based in the county of Devon. The campaign was created in 2002.

<i>Love It or List It</i> Canadian-American television series

Love It or List It is a home design TV show starring Hilary Farr and David Visentin broadcast since 2008 on HGTV, W Network, and OWN Canada. It is the original show in the Love it or List It franchise.

Octavius Orlando Irvine Casati Black is a British businessman and founder of the company The Mind Gym.

Charlie Luxton is an architectural designer and television presenter who writes and speaks about the environment and sustainable architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Help to Buy</span>

Help to Buy is a government programme in the United Kingdom that aims to help first time buyers, and those looking to move home, purchase residential property. It was announced in Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne's 2013 budget speech, and was described as "the biggest government intervention in the housing market since the Right to Buy scheme" of the 1980s. It is an extension of a previous programme called FirstBuy that was aimed solely at first-time buyers. Help to Buy has itself been expanded and extended.

Charles Henry Allsopp, 6th Baron Hindlip, was a British hereditary peer and businessman, a member of the House of Lords from 1993 until 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Quays Shopping Centre</span> Shopping mall in County Down, Northern Ireland

The Quays Shopping Centre is a major retail and leisure centre situated in Newry, County Armagh and is one of Northern Ireland's top shopping destinations with its anchor tenants being Sainsbury's and Marks & Spencer. The centre also contains a 10 screen cinema operated by Omniplex Cinemas, a 24 hour gym operated by PureGym and over 1,000 car parking spaces.

Max McMurdo is a British designer, upcycler, entrepreneur and TV presenter.He studied at Sandy Secondary school for a few years. McMurdo established Reestore Ltd in 2003 when he became uneasy at the consumption-focused ways of the traditional design world.In 2007, McMurdo appeared in episode 4 of BBC2's Dragon's Den, he has since worked with George Clarke on George Clarke's Amazing Spaces and with Kirstie Allsopp on Kirstie's Fill Your House For Free, both for Channel 4 television. Max also, occasionally, appears alongside fellow presenter Henry Cole on Find it, Fix it, Flog it, also for Channel 4 television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HGTV (British and Irish TV channel)</span> Television channel about homes and gardens

HGTV is a British free-to-air interior home and garden-orientated lifestyle television channel broadcasting in the United Kingdom and Ireland, currently owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel originally launched on 1 November 1997 as UK Style and then was rebranded to Home on 30 April 2009 and was rebranded to its current form on 21 January 2020. HGTV is broadcast 24 hours a day on Sky. UK Style was transmitted by terrestrial provider ITV Digital 24 hours a day until the company's collapse in 2002. After a slight rebrand to UKTV Style, the channel made a return to terrestrial screens for a time in the mid-2000s as part of the now-defunct Top Up TV system. Before 2016, HGTV was a pay channel. Home became available as a free-to-air linear service on Freeview from 1 March 2016.

Black Cow is a brand of vodka manufactured in West Dorset, United Kingdom. It was created by Jason Barber, a dairy farmer from West Dorset. The vodka is made using whey, a byproduct of cheesemaking.

References

  1. "Spotlight On... Phil Spencer". Western Mail . 24 January 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  2. https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/phil-spencer-location-star-parents-cause-deaths-drowning-car-overturned/
  3. Froebel Journal, collected issues 7-21, 1967, p. 42
  4. Property Market (29 July 2009). "Phil Spencer: from boom to bust". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 27 February 2010. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  5. https://www.express.co.uk/celebrity-news/1805118/phil-spencer-parents-accident-death-farm
  6. School details – Uppingham Archived 7 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine Guide to Independent Schools
  7. "Phil Spencer". TVLives. Archived from the original on 27 August 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Property Market (29 July 2009). "Phil Spencer: from boom to bust". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 27 February 2010. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  9. "Phil Spencer: What the terms confusing first time buyers actually mean". iNews. 8 October 2019.
  10. "Phil Spencer's guide to negotiating thousands of pounds off the price of your dream home". Telegraph. 14 October 2019.
  11. Scott, Caroline. "Property guru Phil Spencer's top tips for buying and selling". www.thetimes.co.uk.
  12. Smith, Sophie (12 December 2018). "Phil Spencer: 10 ways to get around untrustworthy estate agents when buying a home". The Telegraph. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  13. "Phil Spencer launches new podcast for rental sector and buyers". www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  14. Latest. "Phil Spencer's biography". Channel4.com. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  15. Deans, Jason (15 March 2010). "Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer set up independent production company". guardian.co.uk.
  16. "About us - Raise The Roof Productions - Raise the Roof" . Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  17. Markosky, Cheryl (12 April 2010). "Phil Spencer: how to add value to your home". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 14 April 2010.
  18. "Channel 4 Commissions The Common Denominator". Endemol Distribution News. Retrieved 28 November 2012.
  19. Dalton, Nia (25 October 2023). "Phil Spencer lives a low-key life away from the cameras with his family-of-four". Mirror.
  20. "SOS Children's Celebrity Supporters". SOS Children's Villages. Archived from the original on 8 October 2010. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
  21. No tenant? What about the homeless? The Independent, 17 October 2010
  22. Real Lettings, Real Lives Archived 13 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine Broadway Homelessness and Support, 13 October 2010
  23. Countryside Alliance Update Countryside Alliance, autumn 2010
  24. "Celebrities' open letter to Scotland – full text and list of signatories". The Guardian. 7 August 2014. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  25. "Location, Location, Location star Phil Spencer's parents killed in car crash". The Guardian . 19 August 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
  26. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/phil-spencer-inheritance-parents-car-crash-location-b2655371.html