- Natasha Kaplinsky
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Natasha Kaplinsky Born Natasha Margaret Kaplinsky
9 September 1972
Brighton, SussexEducation Ringmer Community College
Varndean College
Hertford College, OxfordOccupation Newsreader; TV presenter Spouse(s) Justin Bower (2005-present) Notable credit(s) BBC News anchor
Five News anchorNatasha Margaret Kaplinsky[1] (born 9 September 1972 in Brighton)[2] is a British newsreader and television presenter, currently employed by ITV having previously worked for Channel 5, Sky News and the BBC. She won the first series of the TV show Strictly Come Dancing.
Contents
Early life
Kaplinsky's parents are Raphael Kaplinsky, an exiled Jewish South African[3] economics professor at the Open University, and his wife Catherine Kaplinsky née Charlewood, a psychotherapist.
Her paternal grandparents originated from Slonim (then in Poland, now in Belarus), and emigrated to South Africa in 1929. Kaplinsky was born in Brighton, but spent her early life in Kenya (where she claims to have been fluent in Swahili,[4] although she later returned to the United Kingdom, where she was brought up in Barcombe, East Sussex. She attended Ringmer Community College, until the age of sixteen when she moved to Varndean College in Brighton.
After graduating in English from Hertford College, Oxford in 1995,[2] one of her first jobs was working in the press offices of Labour leaders Neil Kinnock and John Smith.
Kaplinsky was the subject of one of a series of BBC television programmes, Who Do You Think You Are?, in which well-known people trace their family trees. Kaplinsky's programme was broadcast on 6 September 2007.[5][6] She followed her paternal line to Slonim and was shown official documentation relating to her cousin's family. This included the death of family members during the "liquidation" – massacre – of the Slonim ghetto by the Nazis and another's escape to the partisans and eventual emigration to Australia. Her maternal line included an apothecary to King George III.
Broadcasting career
Early career
Kaplinsky started out presenting on F2F, a youth chat show, for Granada Talk TV in 1996[2] with co-host Sacha Baron Cohen. She then moved to presenting early morning news bulletins at Meridian. Within six months she was co-presenting their evening news programme Meridian Tonight. In 1999 she moved to ITV's London News Network[2] where she hosted London Today and London Tonight and a political programme called Seven Days.
In November 2000, she moved to Sky News, where she co-presented Live at Five with Jeremy Thompson, as well as the breakfast news programme Sunrise.
BBC News
Kaplinsky joined the BBC to present BBC Breakfast in November 2002, from Monday to Thursday alongside Dermot Murnaghan, following the departure of Sophie Raworth to present the BBC News at Six. Kaplinsky eventually left Breakfast in May 2005, to become an occasional presenter on the News at Six. Kaplinsky also acted as main weekday presenter on the News at Six, when Raworth was on maternity leave in October 2005. She was replaced as the main weekday presenter on Breakfast by Sian Williams.
In 2006, Kaplinsky became only the third woman to present the BBC's Ten O'Clock News, after Fiona Bruce (regular presenter) and Sian Williams who had co-presented the programme from the studio in Westminster with Huw Edwards in April 2005. She continued to present the programme occasionally in 2007, and was also on the One O'Clock News.
From May 2007, Kaplinsky took part in a trial on BBC One in Birmingham, where she presented a news update at 20:00, between 60–90 seconds long.[7]
On 5 October 2007 the BBC confirmed that Kaplinsky had decided to depart the BBC to become a presenter of Five News. She presented her last Six O'Clock News on 5 October with former Breakfast colleague Dermot Murnaghan.[8] Her BBC salary was a reported £175,000 and her salary at Five was reported to be "in excess of" £300,000.[9]
Five News
On 18 February 2008 Kaplinsky presented her first broadcast for Five.[2] Her first bulletin which aired at 17:00 was reported to have been watched by a million viewers.[citation needed] She also presented a second programme at 19:00, Monday to Thursday with news correspondent Matt Barbet presenting each Friday.
On 21 August 2008, she begun her first maternity leave from Five, Isla Traquair and Barbet stood in for her until 16 February 2009. Following her return she only hosted the 17:00 programme. From 18 March 2010 she started her second maternity leave with Barbet again standing in for her.
On 14 October 2010, Kaplinsky announced that she was leaving her job at Channel 5 at the end of 2010, having spent much of her three years at the broadcaster on maternity leave.[10] On 23 December 2010, she presented her final bulletin for Five News.
ITN
On 3 August 2011, it was announced that Kaplinsky will provide maternity leave cover for Nina Hossain, the main presenter of London Tonight and relief presenter of ITV News programmes from mid-September until Spring 2012.[11]
Other TV work
In 2004, Kaplinsky participated in the first series of the celebrity ballroom dancing competition Strictly Come Dancing and along with partner Brendan Cole, went on to win the competition. She then co-presented the first half of the second series in 2004 with Bruce Forsyth, as maternity cover for regular presenter, Tess Daly.[12]
She has also appeared in a number of episodes of the sitcom My Hero, reading the news, mainly reports of character Thermoman's heroic deeds. In July 2005 she hosted the one-off special Strictly African Dancing alongside Martin Offiah. Kaplinsky has also hosted Making Your Mind Up, the UK qualifier for the Eurovision Song Contest.
On 18 November 2005, Kaplinsky hosted the BBC's annual Children in Need charity telethon, alongside Fearne Cotton and Terry Wogan, and again in 2006, on 17 November. Kaplinsky also presented the BBC's New Year Live, celebrating the arrival of the year 2006 and 2007. She has made at least one appearance on Have I Got News For You, also with Bruce Forsyth hosting.
In 2008, she made a cameo appearance in the BBC television series Torchwood as archive footage for the millennium in the directory of geological studies by DkMd in 2005.
Kaplinsky returned to television in July 2011, hosting Born to Shine for ITV.[13][14]
Personal life
On 21 August 2005, Kaplinsky married Justin Bower, an investment banker from London at Babington House, Somerset,[15] whom she met on a blind date six months earlier.[16]
In April 2008, Kaplinsky announced she was pregnant with their first child, six weeks after her debut on Five News. On 25 September 2008, Five News revealed that Kaplinsky had given birth to a son,[17] whom she and Bower later named Arlo, over two weeks after he was born.
On 7 October 2009, Natasha informed Five bosses she was pregnant again.[18] On 9 April 2010 she gave birth to a daughter, Angelica Pearl Bower.[19][20]
On 8 February 2011, Natasha commented in a BBC radio interview on Steve Wright in the Afternoon that she and her husband Justin Bower had performed as disguised extras for the English National Ballet although she "had insisted that her name was not used in the programme". In the production of Romeo and Juliet she had performed as "Wench number 7" at the London Coliseum.
References
- ^ General Register Office Birth Index 1972 Q2 Kaplinsky, Natasha Margaret CHARLEWOOD Brighton 5h 89
- ^ a b c d e The Donor, News and information for blood donors, Winter 2009, National Blood Service, England, page 55
- ^ Who Do You Think You Are? - Natasha Kaplinsky[dead link] The National Archives
- ^ Claim made by Kaplinsky herself on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross on 28 March 2008
- ^ Wollaston, Sam (7 September 2007). "Last night's TV". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv_and_radio/story/0,,2164118,00.html. Retrieved 7 September 2007.
- ^ Shot and pushed in a ditch...how the Nazis slaughtered all but one of Natasha's family Mail Online, 28 January 2007
- ^ BBC One to pilot short news summary BBC Press Office, 6 May 2007
- ^ Kaplinsky leaves BBC for Five BBC News, 5 October 2007
- ^ Natasha Kaplinsky leaves BBC to present Five News Times Online, 6 October 2007
- ^ Midgley, Neil (14 October 2010). "Natasha Kaplinsky to quit Channel 5". The Telegraph. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8065064/Natasha-Kaplinsky-to-quit-Channel-5.html. Retrieved 14 October 2010.
- ^ Sweney, Mark (3 August 2011). "Natasha Kaplinsky takes ITV news anchor role". guardian.co.uk. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/aug/03/natasha-kaplinsky-takes-itv-news-role. Retrieved 3 August 2011.
- ^ "Natasha Kaplinsky on her £1m Five News deal". Times Online (News International). 14 February 2008. http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/tv_and_radio/article3364356.ece.
- ^ "Born to Shine". ITV.com. August 2011. http://www.itv.com/borntoshine/.
- ^ Natasha Kaplinsky to front ITV show Born To Shine Mirror.co.uk, 7 June 2011
- ^ "Breakfast TV host Kaplinsky weds". BBC News. 22 August 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4172110.stm. Retrieved 30 March 2008.
- ^ Clemmie Moodie (11 August 2005). "Waltzing down the aisle". Mail Online. http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=359979&in_page_id=1773. Retrieved 30 March 2008.
- ^ "Boy born to newsreader Kaplinsky". BBC News. 25 September 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7636536.stm. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- ^ "Pregnant Natasha has news for chiefs". The Sun. 7 October 2009. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/2670746/Natasha-Kaplinsky-pregnant-again.html.
- ^ Cable, Simon (13 April 2010). "Natasha Kaplinsky beams as she shows off her precious little Pearl". Mail Online. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1265556/Natasha-Kaplinsky-beams-shows-precious-little-Pearl.html. Retrieved 17 May 2010.
- ^ "Baby girl for Natasha Kaplinsky". BBC News. 9 April 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8612579.stm. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
External links
- Who Do You Think You Are? - Natasha Kaplinsky BBC
- "Natasha Kaplinsky talks at campaign dinner". Jewish Care. 4 July 2007. http://www.jewishcare.org/news/archive-2007/july/natasha-kaplinsky-talks-at-campaign-dinner/. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
Media offices Preceded by
Sophie RaworthMain presenter of BBC Breakfast
2002 – 2005Succeeded by
Sian WilliamsPreceded by
Sophie RaworthMain presenter of BBC News at Six
2005 – 2007Succeeded by
Sian WilliamsNew title Strictly Come Dancing Champion
(with Brendan Cole)
Series 1 (Spring 2004)Succeeded by
Jill Halfpenny and Darren BennettPreceded by
John SuchetMain presenter of Five News
2008 – 2010Succeeded by
Matt Barbet and Emma CrosbyNatasha Kaplinsky · Christopher Parker · Lesley Garrett · Martin Offiah · Claire Sweeney · Verona Joseph · David Dickinson · Jason WoodCategories:- 1972 births
- Living people
- People from Brighton
- English people of South African descent
- British people of Belarusian descent
- Alumni of Hertford College, Oxford
- British reporters and correspondents
- BBC newsreaders and journalists
- English television presenters
- Strictly Come Dancing participants
- Reality show winners
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
