- Bill Turnbull
Infobox journalist
name = Bill Turnbull
birthname = Bill Turnbull
birth_date =1956
birth_place =Surrey ,England
occupation =Journalist ,Presenter
spouse = Sarah McCombie (1988-present)
children = 3
ethnic = English / Scottish
religion =Christianity [BBC profile]
credits = "BBC Breakfast " Bill Turnbull (born1956 ) is an Englishjournalist andpresenter , currently employed by theBBC and best known for presenting "BBC Breakfast ".Early life
Turnbull was born in
Surrey ,South East England to an English father of Scottish ancestry and an English mother. He was educated at Eton and theUniversity of Edinburgh , where he edited the student newspaper. He is the main male presenter of the early morning news programme "BBC Breakfast " broadcast onBBC One and BBC News, presenting alongsideSian Williams each Monday-Thursday. He first joined the programme as a weekend presenter in 2001.Career history
Bill Turnbull's career in journalism began at Scottish local station
Radio Clyde in 1978, and later he freelanced for a number of years in the USA.He joined the BBC as a reporter for the
Today programme in 1986 and Breakfast as a reporter in 1988, before becoming a correspondent forBBC News in 1990. He covered a wide range of domestic and international stories, reporting from over thirty countries including a four-year stint as Washington Correspondent, based in the USA. In this role he reported on a whole swathe of major American stories, including theO.J. Simpson murder trial and theMonica Lewinsky scandal that rockedBill Clinton 's presidency.In 1997 Turnbull moved back to the UK and into the studio to become one of the main presenters on BBC News, appearing alongside
Valerie Sanderson . He also presented regular programmes onBBC Radio 5 Live , including a stint as a presenter on "Weekend Breakfast".He joined the "BBC Breakfast" team in 2001 as a weekend presenter, presenting alongside
Sian Williams initially and then laterMishal Husain andSusanna Reid . He also regularly appeared as a relief presenter on the weekday programme withSophie Raworth ,Natasha Kaplinsky ,Kate Silverton andLouise Minchin . In 2008 he became the main weekday presenter of "Breakfast" rejoining Williams. He was also an occasional relief presenter of theBBC News at Six and theBBC News at One .As well as anchoring programmes in the studio, he regularly presents on location. In the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina , he was sent toNew Orleans to report for BBC News, presenting both "BBC Breakfast" and the "BBC News at Six" live from Biloxi and Gulfport, Mississippi. In the aftermath of the July 7 bombings in Central London, Bill anchored "Breakfast's" coverage live fromKing's Cross railway station .Other TV appearances
In 2005, he was a contestant in the third series of the BBC dancing competition "
Strictly Come Dancing ", paired withKaren Hardy . In spite of a serious ankle injury in the second week (which then flared up at various points in the series), he stayed in the competition seven weeks, finishing sixth out of twelve contestants.In August 2006, he agreed to take part in a
polyphasic sleep experiment presented on BBC One's "The One Show " programme. In this experiment he slept for a total of three hours per day, in six thirty-minute bursts, for ten consecutive days. The effect of this sleep pattern on his health was plain to see as he presented "Breakfast" almost every weekday during the duration of the exercise and became increasingly sleep deprived. [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/theoneshow/features/bill_turnbull.shtml Bill Turnbull's diary over polyphasic sleep period] ]Turnbull also appeared in, and won, an episode of the BBC celebrity game show "School's Out" broadcast on BBC One, Saturday 11 August 2007.
In September 2007, Bill appeared on the celebrity version of
ITV gameshow "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" alongside his "BBC Breakfast" co-presenterSian Williams . The pair played to raise money forMarie Curie Cancer Care.On
October 28 2007 , he made a guest appearance on the children's television show "SMart ".Aired on
January 1 2008 , he appeared on "Celebrity Mastermind". His specialist subject was Beekeeping.On October 5th 2008 Bill ran The Great North Run.
Personal
Turnbull is a fan of Wycombe Wanderers football club. His hobbies include
beekeeping . In addition Bill enjoys long distance running, having competed in theLondon Marathon on a number of occasions. He also keeps chickens in his back garden at his house inBuckinghamshire . He is 5ft 8 in height, is married and has two sons, Henry and Will (born October 1988 and December 1989), and a daughter who is actressFlora Turnbull (born August 1991). He married Sarah McCombie in March 1988 in the London Borough ofHackney .References
External links
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/breakfast/presenters/1809239.stm BBC Profile of Bill Turnbull]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk BBC News]
* [http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/my-life-in-media-bbc-presenter-bill-turnbull-770055.html January 14th 2008 "Independent" article - My life in Media]Video clips
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RsO7DCnia8 Dancing with Karen Hardy]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYuWFulbl3I With Kate Silverton]
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