Shed Simove
Encyclopedia
Sheridan Howard Simove is a British author, performer and entrepreneur. He is best known for his non-fiction book Ideas Man and for several widely-reported publicity stunts and controversies. He is also the creator of a number of well-known novelty products, such as the Control-A-Woman remote control.
and went on to study Experimental Psychology at Balliol College, Oxford
, graduating with a 2:1.
as a graduate trainee and from 1996 to 2000 worked in various roles on The Big Breakfast
including an 18-month period writing and producing the popular Zig and Zag
segment.
In 2003 he was appointed commissioning editor of Big Brother
and continued in this role until 2009. Most notably, he was commissioning editor of Celebrity Big Brother 5
during the internationally-reported racism controversy
(see below).
Since 2009 he has focussed on promoting himself as an author, a performer and a novelty product entrepreneur.
In 2011 he was the author of the 200 empty page book 'What every man thinks about apart from sex', that was sold out very quick on amazon.
who refused to reflect the name change on his current account. HSBC agreed to reinstate his account on the condition that he reverted to his previous name.
In 2008 Shed launched his own currency - The Ego - and minted a One Ego banknote and a "two cents" coin.
In 2009, to promote his show Ideas Man at the Edinburgh Festival
, Shed printed 1000 rolls of promotional toilet paper.
documentary called Back To School. When the head teacher of the secondary school he was attending discovered the deceit, he and the film crew were ejected and the incident was widely reported in the British national press. The documentary was never broadcast.
In 2006, Shed was part of the commissioning team that came under fire during the broadcast of Celebrity Big Brother 5
, which generated record numbers of complaints following concerns that housemate Shilpa Shetty
was subjected to racism
by some of the other housemates.
In 2010, one of Shed's products caused controversy in the media after a Borders bookstore in Melbourne, Australia was forced to defend its decision to stock the Control-A-Woman remote control.
Background
Shed attended Cardiff High SchoolCardiff High School
Cardiff High School is a comprehensive school in the Cyncoed area of Cardiff, Wales. Cardiff High School is two miles from the city centre, serving a neighbourhood of privately-owned houses. According to the 2007 ESTYN Report, "Cardiff High School is a very good school with many outstanding...
and went on to study Experimental Psychology at Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
, graduating with a 2:1.
Career
After graduating from University, Shed spent two years working in Disney World, greeting guests as a 16th century gentleman. In 1994 he joined Planet 24Planet 24
Planet 24 was a television production company. It produced The Big Breakfast and The Word had an animation division Impossible TV. Bob Geldof and Tony Boland founded Planet Pictures which merged with 24 Hour Productions headed by Charlie Parsons and Waheed, later Lord Alli...
as a graduate trainee and from 1996 to 2000 worked in various roles on The Big Breakfast
The Big Breakfast
The Big Breakfast was a British light entertainment television show shown on Channel 4 and S4C each weekday morning from 28 September 1992 until 29 March 2002 during which period 2,482 shows were produced. The Big Breakfast was produced by Planet 24, the production company co-owned by former...
including an 18-month period writing and producing the popular Zig and Zag
Zig and Zag (puppets)
Zig and Zag are an Irish puppet duo performed by Mick O'Hara and Ciaran Morrison.The characters are a pair of furry extraterrestrial twins from the planet Zog. They made their television début on RTÉs Dempsey's Den in 1987. A year later they won a Jacob's Award for TV Personalities of the year...
segment.
In 2003 he was appointed commissioning editor of Big Brother
Big Brother (UK)
Big Brother UK is the British version of the Dutch Big Brother television format, which takes its name from the character in George Orwell's 1948 novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...
and continued in this role until 2009. Most notably, he was commissioning editor of Celebrity Big Brother 5
Celebrity Big Brother 2007 (UK)
Celebrity Big Brother 2007 was the highly controversial fifth series of the United Kingdom reality television series Celebrity Big Brother, a spin-off of Big Brother. The series was broadcast on Channel 4 in the UK , and involved a number of celebrities referred to as 'housemates', who live in the...
during the internationally-reported racism controversy
Celebrity Big Brother racism controversy
The Celebrity Big Brother racism controversy was a series of events related to incidents of perceived racist behaviour by contestants on the television series Celebrity Big Brother 2007 shown on British television station Channel 4...
(see below).
Since 2009 he has focussed on promoting himself as an author, a performer and a novelty product entrepreneur.
In 2011 he was the author of the 200 empty page book 'What every man thinks about apart from sex', that was sold out very quick on amazon.
Publicity stunts
In 2007 Shed successfully changed his name by deed to "God" and was subsequently dropped by his bank HSBCHSBC
HSBC Holdings plc is a global banking and financial services company headquartered in Canary Wharf, London, United Kingdom. it is the world's second-largest banking and financial services group and second-largest public company according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine...
who refused to reflect the name change on his current account. HSBC agreed to reinstate his account on the condition that he reverted to his previous name.
In 2008 Shed launched his own currency - The Ego - and minted a One Ego banknote and a "two cents" coin.
In 2009, to promote his show Ideas Man at the Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
, Shed printed 1000 rolls of promotional toilet paper.
Controversy
In 2001, Shed (at the age of 30) posed as a 16-year old schoolboy for eight weeks as part of a Channel 4Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
documentary called Back To School. When the head teacher of the secondary school he was attending discovered the deceit, he and the film crew were ejected and the incident was widely reported in the British national press. The documentary was never broadcast.
In 2006, Shed was part of the commissioning team that came under fire during the broadcast of Celebrity Big Brother 5
Celebrity Big Brother 2007 (UK)
Celebrity Big Brother 2007 was the highly controversial fifth series of the United Kingdom reality television series Celebrity Big Brother, a spin-off of Big Brother. The series was broadcast on Channel 4 in the UK , and involved a number of celebrities referred to as 'housemates', who live in the...
, which generated record numbers of complaints following concerns that housemate Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty is an Indian film actress and model. Since making her debut in the film Baazigar , she has appeared in nearly 40 Bollywood, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films, her first leading role being in the 1994 Aag. Although she has been through years of decline during her career, Shetty has been...
was subjected to racism
Celebrity Big Brother racism controversy
The Celebrity Big Brother racism controversy was a series of events related to incidents of perceived racist behaviour by contestants on the television series Celebrity Big Brother 2007 shown on British television station Channel 4...
by some of the other housemates.
In 2010, one of Shed's products caused controversy in the media after a Borders bookstore in Melbourne, Australia was forced to defend its decision to stock the Control-A-Woman remote control.