- David Bull
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David Bull Personal details Born 9 May 1969
Kent, EnglandNationality British Alma mater St Mary's Hospital, London Occupation Television host, commentator, physician Website www.davidbull.com David Bull (born 9 May 1969, Kent, England) is a British physician, author, and host and commentator on a variety of British television programmes, such as Newsround, Living's Most Haunted Live!, Channel 4's Richard & Judy, the BBC's Watchdog, Watchdog Healthcheck, Tomorrow's World, and Sky's The Breathing Life Awards. He has also made repeated appearances on The Rachael Ray Show in the US. [1]
In 2009, Bull was the 2010 Conservative Party candidate for Brighton Pavilion, before standing down to head up a Conservative policy review on sexual health, an area about which he has been outspoken. [2] He was replaced by Charlotte Vere. [3]
Contents
Early life
David Bull was born in Farnborough, Kent to Richard and Pauline Bull, moving to Framlingham, Suffolk at the age of four with his siblings Anthony and Katie. In Suffolk, Bull attended Fairfield Preparatory School followed by Ipswich Preparatory School before graduating to Framlingham College. At Framlingham, Bull cultivated interests in music and drama, and was made Head Of The Day Boys in the Upper Sixth, working to fight bullying. [4]
Passing his A levels at Framlingham College, Bull was accepted to study medicine at St Mary's Hospital Medical School in London, graduating with a Bachelor of Medicine degree, a Bachelor of Surgery degree (MBBS) and a first class Bachelor of Science honors degree (BSc) in 1993. [5] He began his medical career at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington as an intern before working for the NHS in the fields of Emergency Medicine at Ealing Hospital NHS Trust, and General Practice and Emergency Medicine at Whittington Hospital in London. [6]
Career
Despite having wanted to be a doctor since childhood, Bull described working for the NHS as tough and pursued his interest in entertainment - specifically television. In 1995, Bull auditioned to be a guest commentator for The Sky Travel Guide on Sky Travel. Of the auditioning process Bull recalled, "I had to read autocue, I had to interview someone, and I had to handle a live show, and I was dreadful!" Bull was awarded the position on Sky Travel, giving advice for the holiday health feature to those traveling abroad, and beginning his career as a television commentator and presenter. [7]
Television
Within months of appearing on The Sky Travel Guide, Bull became the sole presenter of Tell Me About It! for C4. Aimed at young people, the five-installment program, chaired by Bull, tackled issues including eating disorders, parental divorces and teen drug use and alcoholism. [8] In 1996, Bull joined the longrunning Newsround as a presenter and producer of segments regarding children's health, becoming the first person in the UK to broadcast medical issues specifically to children. Bull's reports on Newsround were also featured on BBC News, one documentary discussing bullying winning the Royal Television Society Award for Best Children’s Factual program. [9] Presenting on Newsround over the course of three years, Bull became extremely popular with viewers, receiving 3,000 fan letters in the first three months. [10]
Leaving Newsround in 1999, Bull continued addressing issues important to young people with the BBC2 program, Sort It!, for which he hosted and moderated live debates. Following Sort It!, Bull hosted eight episodes of The Really Useful Show, then joined the BBC's Watchdog. Beginning as a contributor for Watchdog alongside Anne Robinson, Bull went on to host Watchdog Healthcheck, a weekly, half-hour health program running from 2001 to 2002. [11]
In addition to appearing on Healthcheck, Bull hosted the science and technology-centered Tomorrow's World in 2001, before launching Most Haunted on Living TV. [12] Bull appeared on Living TV's highest rated series, Most Haunted Live! from October 2002 to October 2005, hosting three-hour installments that featured paranormal investigations broadcast live with interactive sections involving the audience. Bull also participated in a ghost hunt at Choughs Hotel where he claimed to have seen an apparition, though he admitted it could have been an optical illusion [13]
Bull made his American television debut in 2010 as a contributor on the daytime talk show The Rachael Ray Show. First appearing on the April 12, 2010 segment "Why You Crave Food", Bull discussed the affects of high-fat, high-calorie foods on the brain and gave advice on cutting down on cravings. [14] On July 23, 2010, Bull returned to The Rachel Ray Show to discuss "Mystery Diseases". [15]
Politics
David Bull speaking at the Health Hotel session "Does Every Child Matter: the Healthcare in Education Challenge" at the Manchester Central Conference Centre during the Conservative Party Conference 2009.
On 16 December 2006 Bull was selected to represent the Parliamentary seat of Brighton Pavilion at the 2010 general election for the Conservative Party, after being placed on the party's A-List earlier that year. He withdrew his candidacy in June 2009 and was replaced by Charlotte Vere, who went on to win election. [16] Denying rumors he quit after falling out with party leadership, Bull cited the increased workload accompanying his recent appointment to head up a Conservative policy review on sexual health with Shadow Health Minister Anne Milton. [17]
Author
In 1998, Bull published his first book, Cool and Celibate?: Sex and No Sex, arguing the benefits of abstinence in teenagers. Translated in multiple languages, Bull is currently revising and updating Cool and Celibate to be published in 2011. Bull followed his first book with What Every Girl Should Know: An A to Z of Health-From Allergies to Zits! in 1999. [18]
Business
Bull is also the co-founder and chairman of IncrediBull, a creative communications agency.[citation needed]
Charitable work
Bull is a celebrity ambassador for the British Red Cross and a Patron of the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, with whom he has been associated for more than a decade, as well as a spokesperson and proponent for cancer research and sexual health. He is also a supporter of The Duke of Edinburgh's Award and frequently works with young people in schools on behalf of the organisation.[citation needed]
References
External links
Categories:- 1969 births
- Living people
- Old Framlinghamians
- People from Kent
- Conservative Party (UK) politicians
- 20th-century English medical doctors
- English television personalities
- American television personalities
- Medical journalists
- British television journalists
- English television journalists
- English chief executives
- English businesspeople
- English non-fiction writers
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