Dani Behr
Encyclopedia
Dani Behr is an English
singer, actress and television presenter.
London
, of South Africa
n Jewish descent. Her father is a partner in London estate agent
s Behr & Butchoff. Dani Behr is a graduate of the Sylvia Young Theatre School
, and was discovered by Pet Shop Boys
manager Tom Watkins, who put her in his female Bros
concept, Faith Hope & Charity
singing alongside Diana Barrand
and future Xpansions star Sally Ann Marsh
, signed to the WEA
record company. However the band was not successful and Behr moved into television production.
and then later was a presenter on the late night Channel 4
music show, The Word
, for three years. She went on to feature in over 30 TV shows, including The Big Breakfast
, Hotel Babylon, Ice Warriors; and in 2002 the co-presenting role alongside Joe Mace
on the first series of the BBC's flagship children's program The Saturday Show
. She also provided the voice for the onboard ship's computer (coincidentally) named Dani in the computer game "Privateer 2".
After numerous presenting jobs for shows in the United States, Behr decided to move permanently to Hollywood to begin presenting Extra for NBC
. She went on to host several more shows for Fox, NBC/Bravo, VH1, with her biggest hit so far being the 2003 reality show Boy Meets Boy
. In between TV, Behr has also presented radio shows for Kiss 100, and has had some minor film acting roles and appeared alongside Kate Winslet
, Oprah Winfrey
, Glenn Close
in the play The Vagina Monologues
both in London at The Old Vic and on Broadway at Madison Square Garden
.
Behr was Maxim
s female presenter of the year in 2002. Until June 2007 she voiced the safety message on Virgin Atlantic.
After marriage and the birth of her two children, Behr attempted a UK television comeback on the 2008 edition of ITV
's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here!
where she was second voted out by the public, on day 12.
On 20 September, 2009 Behr appeared in a new series of the Channel 4
programme Come Dine with Me
. This was a celebrity episode in which she appeared with EastEnders actress Laila Morse
who plays the part of Big Mo, DJ Dane Bowers
and comedian Bobby Davro
. Behr came last in the competition (due to ill health she was unable to cook her recipe and had to ask her brother to prepare and serve the food) with first prize (£1,000 given to charity) being awarded to Bowers.
, Ryan Giggs
and also pop star Jason 'J' Brown
from boy band '5ive'. These relationships were well publicised by the tabloids.
Behr married American restaurateur (Founder of Kauai Juice, South Africa) and surfer Carl Harwin in Malibu, California, on 5 May 2005 - with pictures of the wedding featured in Hello!
magazine. Their daughter, Coco, was born in December 2005. They moved to Sydney, Australia, where on 19 April 2007, their son, Zane Max Harwin, was born.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
singer, actress and television presenter.
Early life
Behr was born in Mill HillMill Hill
Mill Hill is a place in the London Borough of Barnet. It is a suburb situated 9 miles north west of Charing Cross. Mill Hill was in the historic county of Middlesex until it was absorbed by London...
London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n Jewish descent. Her father is a partner in London estate agent
Estate agent
An estate agent is a person or business that arranges the selling, renting or management of properties, and other buildings, in the United Kingdom and Ireland. An agent that specialises in renting is often called a letting or management agent...
s Behr & Butchoff. Dani Behr is a graduate of the Sylvia Young Theatre School
Sylvia Young Theatre School
Sylvia Young Theatre School is an independent fee-paying stage school, in Westminster, London, named after its founder and Principal, Sylvia Young.-Outline:...
, and was discovered by Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....
manager Tom Watkins, who put her in his female Bros
Bros
Bros were a British band active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, consisting of twin brothers Matt Goss and Luke Goss along with Craig Logan...
concept, Faith Hope & Charity
Faith Hope & Charity (Girl group)
Faith Hope & Charity was a short lived British group that featured Dani Behr, Sally Ann Marsh and Diana Barrand.They released two singles and an album. They had a minor hit with their debut single "'Battle Of The Sexes" which peaked at #53 on the UK Singles Chart in 1990...
singing alongside Diana Barrand
Diana Barrand
Diana Barrand is a singer and actress. She was Holly-Anna Jones in the series Turn On To T-Bag and a member of a girl group Faith Hope & Charity -T Bag:...
and future Xpansions star Sally Ann Marsh
Sally Ann Marsh
Sally Ann Marsh is a British singer and actress who came to fame originally as a member of a short lived girlband with Diana Barrand and Dani Behr called Faith Hope & Charity, .-Performing career:...
, signed to the WEA
Warner Music Group
Warner Music Group is the third largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the big four record companies...
record company. However the band was not successful and Behr moved into television production.
Career
In 1989, Dani Behr had a cameo appearance in Grange HillGrange Hill
Grange Hill is a British television drama series originally made by the BBC. The show began in 1978 on BBC1 and was one of the longest running programmes on British television...
and then later was a presenter on the late night Channel 4
Channel 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...
music show, The Word
The Word (TV series)
The Word was a 1990s Channel 4 television programme in the United Kingdom.-Format:Its presenters included Mancunian radio presenter Terry Christian, comedian Mark Lamarr, Dani Behr, Katie Puckrik, Jasmine Dotiwala, Alan Connor, Amanda de Cadenet and "Huffty"...
, for three years. She went on to feature in over 30 TV shows, including 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...
, Hotel Babylon, Ice Warriors; and in 2002 the co-presenting role alongside Joe Mace
Joe Mace
Joe Mace is a British radio and television presenter. Former host of the programme The Album Chart Show on the UK's Channel 4 and the Dream Ticket on BBC 6 Music....
on the first series of the BBC's flagship children's program The Saturday Show
The Saturday Show (BBC TV series)
The Saturday Show was a BBC children's Saturday morning show that first aired in 2001, replacing the popular Live & Kicking. It had a mix of audience participation, cartoons, games and gunge. Initially it was presented by Dani Behr and Joe Mace. They left in 2002 and were replaced by Fearne Cotton...
. She also provided the voice for the onboard ship's computer (coincidentally) named Dani in the computer game "Privateer 2".
After numerous presenting jobs for shows in the United States, Behr decided to move permanently to Hollywood to begin presenting Extra for NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
. She went on to host several more shows for Fox, NBC/Bravo, VH1, with her biggest hit so far being the 2003 reality show Boy Meets Boy
Boy Meets Boy (TV series)
Boy Meets Boy is an American reality television show in which a gay man meets and chooses a mate from a group of 15 potential male suitors. The show was made more novel by the fact that the "leading man" did not know that the mix of suitors included both gay and straight men.The show premiered July...
. In between TV, Behr has also presented radio shows for Kiss 100, and has had some minor film acting roles and appeared alongside Kate Winslet
Kate Winslet
Kate Elizabeth Winslet is an English actress and occasional singer. She has received multiple awards and nominations. She was the youngest person to accrue six Academy Award nominations, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Reader...
, Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
, Glenn Close
Glenn Close
Glenn Close is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and singer of theatre and film, known for her roles as a femme fatale Glenn Close (born March 19, 1947) is an American actress and...
in the play The Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler which ran at the Off Broadway Westside Theatre after a limited run at AFRICA in 1996. Ensler originally starred in the production which was produced by David Stone, Nina Essman, Dan Markley, The Araca Group, Willa Shalit, Mike Skipper...
both in London at The Old Vic and on Broadway at Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
.
Behr was Maxim
Maxim (magazine)
Maxim is an international men's magazine based in the United Kingdom and known for its pictorials featuring popular actresses, singers, and female models, sometimes pictured dressed, often pictured scantily dressed but not fully nude....
s female presenter of the year in 2002. Until June 2007 she voiced the safety message on Virgin Atlantic.
After marriage and the birth of her two children, Behr attempted a UK television comeback on the 2008 edition of ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
's I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here!
I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here! (Series 8 UK)
I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here! returned to ITV for an eighth series from 16 November to 5 December 2008. Ant & Dec returned to present the main show on ITV, whilst Matt Willis, Emma Willis and Mark Durden-Smith returned to host spin-off show I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here... Now! on...
where she was second voted out by the public, on day 12.
On 20 September, 2009 Behr appeared in a new series of the Channel 4
Channel 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...
programme Come Dine with Me
Come Dine With Me
Come Dine With Me is a popular Channel 4 television programme shown in the United Kingdom, produced by Granada Television and first broadcast in January 2005. The show has either four or five amateur chefs competing against each other hosting a dinner party for the other contestants...
. This was a celebrity episode in which she appeared with EastEnders actress Laila Morse
Laila Morse
Laila Morse is an English actress, best known for playing Mo Harris in BBC series EastEnders and Janet in the 1997 movie Nil by Mouth ."Laila Morse" is an anagram of an Italian phrase for "my sister" - a name she...
who plays the part of Big Mo, DJ Dane Bowers
Dane Bowers
Dane Bowers is an English R&B singer, songwriter, DJ and record producer. He was a part of R&B boyband Another Level between 1997 and 2000 when he performed on seven Top 10 singles...
and comedian Bobby Davro
Bobby Davro
Bobby Davro is a British actor and comedian. He is mainly known for his work as an impressionist...
. Behr came last in the competition (due to ill health she was unable to cook her recipe and had to ask her brother to prepare and serve the food) with first prize (£1,000 given to charity) being awarded to Bowers.
Personal life
Behr has dated several high-profile people including footballers Les FerdinandLes Ferdinand
Leslie "Les" Ferdinand MBE is a former English footballer. His playing career included spells at Queens Park Rangers, Besiktas J.K., Newcastle United, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United and Bolton Wanderers F.C., during which period he earned a number of appearances for England...
, Ryan Giggs
Ryan Giggs
Ryan Joseph Giggs OBE is a Welsh professional footballer who plays for Manchester United. Giggs made his first appearance for the club during the 1990–91 season and has been a regular player since the 1991–92 season...
and also pop star Jason 'J' Brown
Jason 'J' Brown
Jason Paul "J" Brown is an English singer who is best known as one of the lead vocalists in the former boyband, Five...
from boy band '5ive'. These relationships were well publicised by the tabloids.
Behr married American restaurateur (Founder of Kauai Juice, South Africa) and surfer Carl Harwin in Malibu, California, on 5 May 2005 - with pictures of the wedding featured in Hello!
Hello!
Hello is a weekly magazine specializing in celebrity news and human-interest stories, published in the United Kingdom since 1988. Hello is sister magazine to ¡Hola!, the Spanish weekly magazine launched in Spain in 1944...
magazine. Their daughter, Coco, was born in December 2005. They moved to Sydney, Australia, where on 19 April 2007, their son, Zane Max Harwin, was born.
Filmography
- 1989 - The Rainbow (film)The Rainbow (film)The Rainbow is a 1989 drama film directed by Ken Russell. The story, adapted from the D. H. Lawrence novel, is a prequel to Lawrence's Women in Love, which was also made into a film by Russell in 1969....
Directed by Ken RussellKen RussellHenry Kenneth Alfred "Ken" Russell was an English film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. He attracted criticism as being obsessed with sexuality and the church...
, Behr played a school girl - 1997 - Bolt Directed by David Caffey, herself
- 1998 - Ice WarriorsIce Warriors (game show)Ice Warriors is a British game show which aired on ITV from 24 January to 21 March 1998 and made by London Weekend Television. Hosted by television presenter Dani Behr it had a similar format to Gladiators, except that the games were played on an ice rink rather than in an arena...
, presenter - 1998 - Like It IsLike It IsThis article is about the movie. For other uses see, Like It Is .Like It Is is a 1998 British gay-themed romance film. It stars Steve Bell, Ian Rose, Roger Daltrey and Dani Behr.-Plot summary:...
Directed by Paul Oremland, playing "Paula". A gayGayGay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
-themed indie film co-starring Roger DaltreyRoger DaltreyRoger Harry Daltrey, CBE , is an English singer and actor, best known as the founder and lead singer of English rock band The Who. He has maintained a musical career as a solo artist and has also worked in the film industry, acting in a large number of films, theatre and television roles and also... - 1999 - Dark RealmDark RealmDark Realm is an anthology series hosted by Eric Roberts. The series aired in syndication in the United States for a total of 13 episodes, from May to December 2001.-Episodes:...
for Warner Brothers - 2001 - Rancid Aluminum Directed by Ed ThomasEd ThomasEd Thomas was the high school football coach for Aplington-Parkersburg High School in Parkersburg, Iowa. On June 24, 2009, Thomas was shot and killed in the football team's weight room. Ed Thomas's killer is Mark Becker, a 2004 Aplington-Parkersburg graduate and one of Thomas' former players...
, playing Charlie. Co-starring with Joseph FiennesJoseph FiennesJoseph Fiennes is an English film and stage actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth, Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates, Martin Luther in Luther, Merlin in Camelot, and his portrayal of Mark Benford in the...
and Rhys IfansRhys IfansRhys Ifans is a Welsh actor and musician. He is known for his portrayal of characters such as Spike in Notting Hill and Jed Parry in Enduring Love and as a member of the Welsh rock groups Super Furry Animals and The Peth. Ifans also appeared as Xenophilius Lovegood in Harry Potter and the Deathly... - 2001 - Goodbye Charlie BrightGoodbye Charlie BrightGoodbye Charlie Bright is a 2001 film directed by Nick Love and starring Paul Nicholls, Roland Manookian and Danny Dyer. The film is also known by the U.S. title Strong Boys.-Plot:...
directed by Nick LoveNick LoveNick Love is a British film director and writer. Love came to public attention in the UK after making the films The Football Factory, The Business and The Firm. He has two 'Millwall' tattoos, including one on the inside of his bottom lip.Love is well known for collaborating with actor Danny Dyer...
, playing a blonde. Co-starring with Paul Nicholls - 2002 - Tabloid a made for TV special, playing a TV presenter
- 2008 - I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here! (Series 8 UK)I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here! (Series 8 UK)I'm a Celebrity... Get Me out of Here! returned to ITV for an eighth series from 16 November to 5 December 2008. Ant & Dec returned to present the main show on ITV, whilst Matt Willis, Emma Willis and Mark Durden-Smith returned to host spin-off show I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here... Now! on...
as herself