Bernadette Anne McKenna [1] (born 20 January 1971) [2] also known as Dr. Pixie McKenna, is an Irish doctor and television personality. She currently runs a clinic in Cork, Ireland and is best known for her work on the Channel 4 series Embarrassing Illnesses and its successor series Embarrassing Bodies and BBC Three's Freaky Eaters. [3]
Born in Ireland, McKenna attended medical school at University College Cork, Ireland [4] graduating in 1995.
After qualifying as a general practitioner in 1999, McKenna moved to the UK and practised in Notting Hill, London for three years. She then set up a GP practice in Ireland while continuing sessional work at Harley Street. In the public sector, she acts as a clinical assistant in sexual health and dermatology for the NHS and has worked at a number of London teaching hospitals. [3]
In 2007 McKenna began to appear on Freaky Eaters, a show which helps individuals overcome eating disorders. That same year she went on to co-present Embarrassing Illnesses, a show which highlights common conditions that people are reluctant to discuss with their doctors, and in 2008 co-presented with Christian Jessen its sister series Embarrassing Bodies. This has, on numerous occasions, led her onto The Ray D'Arcy Show on Today FM to discuss the various embarrassing illnesses endured by the programme's listeners.
Davina Lucy Pascale McCall is an English television presenter. She was the presenter of the reality show Big Brother during its run on Channel 4 between 2000 and 2010. She also hosted Channel 4's Streetmate, The Million Pound Drop (2010–2015), Five Minutes to a Fortune (2013), and The Jump (2014–2017), as well as ITV's The Biggest Loser (2011–2012), Long Lost Family (2011–present), and This Time Next Year (2016–2019). McCall was a regular co-presenter of the Comic Relief annual telethons from 2005 to 2015.
Claudia Anne Irena Winkleman is an English television and radio presenter, writer, and journalist. She has presented various television shows for BBC, including Strictly Come Dancing (2010–present), and The Traitors (2022–present). She also hosts the Saturday mid-mornings show on BBC Radio 2, but is due to leave in April 2024.
Green Wing is a British sitcom set in the fictional East Hampton Hospital. It was created by the same team behind the sketch show Smack the Pony – Channel 4 commissioner Caroline Leddy and producer Victoria Pile – and stars Mark Heap, Tamsin Greig, Stephen Mangan and Julian Rhind-Tutt. It focuses on soap opera-style twists and turns in the personal lives of the characters, portrayed in sketch-like scenes and sequences in which the film is slowed down or sped up, often emphasising the body language of the characters. The show had eight writers. Two series were made by the Talkback Thames production company for Channel 4.
Thomas Patrick McKenna was an Irish actor, born in Mullagh, County Cavan. He had an extensive stage and screen career.
Siobhán McKenna was an Irish stage and screen actress.
Rona Munro is a Scottish writer. She has written plays for theatre, radio, and television. Her film work includes Ken Loach's Ladybird, Ladybird (1994), Oranges and Sunshine (2010) for Jim Loach and Aimée & Jaguar (1999), co-authored by German director Max Färberböck. Munro is the second cousin of Scottish author Angus MacVicar.
Ashley Jensen is a Scottish actress best known for her roles as Maggie Jacobs in Extras, Christina McKinney in Ugly Betty (2006–2010), Agatha Raisin in Agatha Raisin (2014–present), and DI Ruth Calder in Shetland (2023–present).
Six were an Irish pop group who formed on the Irish version of the television programme Popstars in 2002. The programme aired on RTÉ One on Sunday nights in the autumn and winter of 2001–02. The band were signed to Simon Cowell under BMG Records UK and managed by Louis Walsh who also appeared as a judge on the show. Their first single, "There's a Whole Lot of Loving Going On", is currently the fastest and third-biggest selling single in Irish history.
Sharon Lorencia Horgan is an Irish actress, writer, director, producer, and comedian. She is best known for creating and starring in the comedy series Pulling (2006–2009), Catastrophe (2015–2019), and Bad Sisters (2022–present). She also created the comedy series Divorce (2016–2019), Motherland (2016–present), and Shining Vale (2022–2023).
Alice May Roberts is an English academic, TV presenter and author. Since 2012 she has been Professor of Public Engagement in Science at the University of Birmingham. She was president of the charity Humanists UK between January 2019 and May 2022. She is now a vice president of the organisation.
Freaky Eaters is a British factual television programme produced by independent television production company betty for BBC Three. Broadcast dates were February–March 2007, February–April 2008, and February–April 2009. Series 1 was narrated by the actress Jill Halfpenny and Series 2 by Sharon Horgan.
Amanda Hamilton is a Scottish businesswoman, broadcaster, and writer in the areas of food, health and nutrition.
Christian Spencer Jessen is an English celebrity doctor, television personality, and writer. He is best known for appearing in the Channel 4 programmes Embarrassing Bodies (2007–2015) and Supersize vs Superskinny (2008–2014).
Charlene Lee McKenna is an Irish actress. She became a household name in Ireland after starring as Jennifer Jackson in the miniseries Pure Mule (2005). She appeared on Irish television in Single-Handed 2 (2008), Whistleblower (2008), and Raw (2008–2013). For Raw, she won Best Actress (Television) at the Irish Film & Television Awards, and for Whistleblower, she won Outstanding Actress in a Mini-Series at the Monte Carlo Television Festival.
Embarrassing Bodies is a British BAFTA Award-winning medical reality television programme broadcast by Channel 4 and made by Maverick Television since 2007. In 2011, an hour-long live show was introduced, "Embarrassing Bodies: Live from the Clinic", which makes use of Skype technology. Various spin-offs have been produced in relation to the programme to target different patients, such as Embarrassing Fat Bodies and Embarrassing Teenage Bodies. The series' basic premise involves members of the public with a wide variety of medical conditions consulting the show's doctors for advice; in some cases, cosmetic or corrective surgery has been offered and undertaken to treat patients with more severe or noticeable ailments.
Ginni Mansberg is a General Practitioner and television presenter in Australia. She is best known for her frequent appearances on Channel Seven's morning TV shows Sunrise and The Morning Show, and as the co-host of Embarrassing Bodies Down Under, which was broadcast in 2013.
Radha Modgil is a medical doctor and media personality.
Dawn Caroline Harper, known professionally as Dr Dawn Harper, is an English doctor, media personality and television presenter known for co-presenting the Channel 4 television series Embarrassing Bodies opposite Pixie McKenna and Christian Jessen. She works as a part-time GP in Stroud, Gloucestershire and runs several private clinics.
Brad McKay is an New Zealand born Australian doctor, science communicator and author. He is best known for his television series Embarrassing Bodies Down Under, which was broadcast in 2013. He is also a regular guest on numerous Australian television and radio programs including Today.
Celebrity doctors include physicians, medical professionals, people with the title doctor, and some with the nickname "doctor" who have extensive media exposure. Some may have a secondary role as an entertainer. Examples of celebrity doctors include Dr. Drew, Dr. Miami, Dr. Oz, Dr. Ruth, Dr. Weil and Dr. Om Murti Anil.
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