Helen Elizabeth "Tess" Daly (born 27 April 1969) is an
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
television presenter. She is married to the presenter
Vernon KayVernon Charles Kay is a British television presenter, radio DJ, american footballer and former model. He began television presenting on the BBC children's programme FBi, a spin-off of Fully Booked. Since he has presented various programmes, most notably T4, Beat the Star and All Star Family...
.
Early life
Daly was born in
DerbyshireDerbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
to Vivian (1932-2003), who died of
emphysemaEmphysema is a long-term, progressive disease of the lungs that primarily causes shortness of breath. In people with emphysema, the tissues necessary to support the physical shape and function of the lungs are destroyed. It is included in a group of diseases called chronic obstructive pulmonary...
, and Sylvia Daly
and grew up in
Birch ValeBirch Vale is a village in the High Peak district of Derbyshire, just outside the boundary of the Peak District National Park, between New Mills and Hayfield...
near
New MillsNew Mills is a town in Derbyshire, England approximately south-east of Stockport and from Manchester. It is sited at the confluence of the rivers Goyt and Sett, on the border of Cheshire. The town stands above the Torrs, a deep gorge, cut through Woodhead Hill Sandstone of the Carboniferous period...
, Derbyshire. She attended Hayfield Primary School and New Mills Secondary School. She has a younger sister, Karen.
Career
In 1990, Daly appeared in two
Duran DuranDuran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
videos for the songs "Serious" and "Violence of Summer (Love's Taking Over)", both from the album
LibertyLiberty is the sixth studio album by Duran Duran, released on . It entered the top 10 in the UK albums chart, and garnered a #6 hit for the single "Serious" in Japan.-Recording:...
. She also appeared in the video for
The BelovedThe Beloved are an English electronic dance music group, best known for the singles "Sweet Harmony", "Hello", "Your Love Takes Me Higher", and "Satellite".-Formation:...
's 1993 song "
Sweet Harmony"Sweet Harmony" is a hit single by UK band The Beloved. It became one of their biggest hits, peaking at #8 in the UK. None of the band's other singles have made into the Top 10, which is why many consider this the band's signature song.-Music video:...
".
After working as a model, her first television appearance was in 2000, when she hosted the 'Find Me a Model' competition on
Channel 4Channel 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...
's
The Big BreakfastThe 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...
. Since then, she has presented shows including
Singled Out,
Smash Hits TV,
SMTV LiveSMTV Live , also written SM:TV Live and in early promotional material SMTV://live, was a British Saturday morning children's television programme, first broadcast on ITV on 29 August 1998 and last broadcast on 27 December 2003.On the surface, the programme did not seem to stray away from the format...
,
Back To Reality, the first series of
Make Me a Supermodel (with
Dave BerryDavid "Dave" Berry is a British TV and Radio presenter from Charlton, London, England. Currently working with ITV and Capital London.-Career:...
) and
Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
, which she has co-hosted with
Bruce ForsythSir Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson, CBE , commonly known as Bruce Forsyth, or Brucie, is an English TV personality...
in all nine series to date. Daly missed a couple of episodes in Season 2 due to being pregnant with her first daughter; Natasha Kaplinsky, the first series winner, took her place but she later returned. She was a possible contender to replace
Samantha Harris as the co-host of the American version,
Dancing With the StarsDancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
.
Recently, she has also hosted
This Time TomorrowThis Time Tomorrow, is a BBC National Lottery game show that was broadcast on BBC One from 5 July 2008 to 23 August 2008. The programme was hosted by Tess Daly.-Ratings:Episode Viewing figures from BARB....
, the National Lottery show for BBC1. On 14 November 2008, she presented
Children in NeedChildren in Need is an annual British charity appeal organised by the BBC. Since 1980 it has raised over £500 million. The highlight of the Children in Need appeal is an annual telethon, held in November. A teddy bear named "Pudsey Bear" fronts the campaign, while Terry Wogan is a long...
with
Terry WoganSir Michael Terence Wogan, KBE, DL , or also known as Terry Wogan, is a veteran Irish radio and television broadcaster who holds dual Irish and British citizenship. Wogan has worked for the BBC in the United Kingdom for most of his career...
and
Fearne CottonFearne Cotton is an English television and radio presenter who is known for presenting a number of popular TV programmes such as Top of the Pops and the Red Nose Day telethon. In 2007, she became the first regular female presenter of BBC Radio 1's Chart Show...
. Daly won the special version of
Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
against Wogan, where she was partnered with
Anton du BekeAnton du Beke is a British ballroom dancer and television presenter. His professional dance partner since 1997 has been Erin Boag. With Boag, he won the IDTA Classic in England in November 2003.-Family and early life:...
. She co-hosted the
Royal Variety PerformanceThe Royal Variety Performance is a gala evening held annually in the United Kingdom, which is attended by senior members of the British Royal Family, usually the reigning monarch. In more recent years Queen Elizabeth II and The Prince of Wales have alternately attended the performance...
2008 on 11 December, broadcast on 17 December 2008.
She is the face of lingerie company
La SenzaLa Senza Corporation is a Canadian fashion retailer based in Dorval, Quebec, Canada, which sells lingerie and intimate apparel. The La Senza brand is currently owned by Limited Brands.- History :...
in the UK and appeared in their Steal the Show Christmas 2009 campaign.
Personal life
Daly married
Vernon KayVernon Charles Kay is a British television presenter, radio DJ, american footballer and former model. He began television presenting on the BBC children's programme FBi, a spin-off of Fully Booked. Since he has presented various programmes, most notably T4, Beat the Star and All Star Family...
on 12 September 2003, at St Mary's Catholic Church in
HorwichHorwich is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. It is southeast of Chorley, northwest of Bolton and northwest from the city of Manchester. It lies at the southern edge of the West Pennine Moors with the M61 motorway close to the...
,
BoltonBolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
. They have two children, Phoebe Elizabeth Kay, who was born in
WestminsterThe City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
, London, in 2004, and Amber Isabella Kay, born in 2009, also born in London. In January 2007, they co-presented the second series of
Just the Two of Us on
BBC OneBBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
. They live in
FulmerFulmer is a village and civil parish in South Buckinghamshire district in Buckinghamshire, England. The village is now contiguous with Gerrards Cross but remains administratively separate....
,
BuckinghamshireBuckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe....
.
External links