Lesley Judd
Encyclopedia
Lesley Judd is an English dancer and TV presenter, best known as a long-serving host of the BBC
children's programme Blue Peter
. She was educated at the independent Royal Ballet School
. Brought in to the show when Valerie Singleton began to diversify her television career in 1971, Judd initially presented with Singleton as well as John Noakes
and Peter Purves
, the partnership with Noakes and Purves lasting until 1978 and remaining the show's longest-running line-up. According to the book Blue Peter" 50th Anniversary Book: The Story of Television's Longest-running Children's Programme, Judd's tenure on Blue Peter was often in doubt and she was retained for much of her seven years on the show on short term 3 month contracts. When her marriage broke down in 1975 and her ex-husband threatened to 'tell all' to the tabloid press, Sally James was lined up to replace Judd on Blue Peter. Eventually, the storm blew over and Judd remained with the show.
Before Blue Peter, she had appeared as part of the dance troupe the Young Generation on several TV shows and also had small roles in the first Monty Python
film, And Now For Something Completely Different
(1971) and the filmed musical Half A Sixpence
(1967). Judd made a brief return to dancing in 1976 when she joined Pan's People
on Top Of The Pops
for a one-off routine (The rehearsals were later shown on Blue Peter) and often danced on the BBC Christmas show All Star Record Breakers. During her time on the show she was criticised in the UK press when she divorced her first husband, actor Derek Fowlds
(former 'straight' man to TV Puppet Basil Brush
), and married a Blue Peter cameraman Terry Gabell, whom she also later divorced. It was her second husband's multiple sclerosis
that caused her to leave Blue Peter
in 1979.
During her time on Blue Peter, Judd also presented the spin-off series Blue Peter Special Assignment
. After leaving Blue Peter, Judd fronted a children's TV 'chat' show, In The Limelight With Lesley
, on BBC1, much along the same lines as the earlier Val Meets... The VIPS
. One of her guests was British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
who was asked to comment on an earlier appearance in which Thatcher had said there would not be a woman Prime Minister in her (Thatcher's) lifetime. Another guest was reigning Miss World Gina Swainson. Judd then appeared with Billy Boyle
on an ITV series for children, Dance Crazy, tracing the history of dance and was a regular panellist on game shows such as Punchlines
. She later featured as 'The Mole' in the educational game show The Adventure Game
, and was co-presenter of both the technology game show The Great Egg Race
, the computer-related Micro Live
(1983) and Pets In Particular (1986).
She was also one of the presenters of Woman's Hour
on BBC Radio 4
from 1982 to 1988, and appeared as a television newsreader in the film Threads
(1984). Judd was a presenter on the London radio station LBC
during the late 1980s, later co-hosting with Steve Allen
, at the same time presenting various programmes on TV for the Open University
. In 1992, Judd also presented a daytime interview programme on UK Channel 4
, Time To Talk. Each programme consisted of an interview with one celebrity guest. Valerie Singleton, David Kossoff
, Diana Moran
, Jonathon Porritt
and Don Maclean
were among the interviewees.
Now living in France near Toulouse
, she is employed as a conference organiser. Although asked on several occasions to take part in Blue Peter reunions, Judd has often declined, feeling that her television career was no longer a part of her life. However, she appeared on Blue Peters 35th birthday programme in 1993 and the 50th birthday commemorations in 2008. The latter entailed an appearance on ITV
's This Morning
, where she received a 'make over' ahead of joining other former presenters at Buckingham Palace
at a party hosted by The Queen. Judd then joined other former female presenters of the show in a photo shoot for the Mail on Sunday newspaper, celebrating fifty years of Blue Peter and was interviewed for a documentary about the show on BBC1.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
children's programme Blue Peter
Blue Peter
Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...
. She was educated at the independent Royal Ballet School
Royal Ballet School
The Royal Ballet School is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of the Royal Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Royal Opera House in London...
. Brought in to the show when Valerie Singleton began to diversify her television career in 1971, Judd initially presented with Singleton as well as John Noakes
John Noakes
John Noakes is a British television presenter and personality, best known for co-presenting the BBC children's magazine programme Blue Peter in the 1960s and 1970s. He remains the show's longest-serving presenter, with a stint that lasted 12 years and 6 months...
and Peter Purves
Peter Purves
Peter Purves is an English television presenter and actor.Purves was born in New Longton, near Preston, Lancashire, and was educated at the independent Arnold School in Blackpool, he had originally planned to go into teaching, training at Alsager College of Education, but began to act with the...
, the partnership with Noakes and Purves lasting until 1978 and remaining the show's longest-running line-up. According to the book Blue Peter" 50th Anniversary Book: The Story of Television's Longest-running Children's Programme, Judd's tenure on Blue Peter was often in doubt and she was retained for much of her seven years on the show on short term 3 month contracts. When her marriage broke down in 1975 and her ex-husband threatened to 'tell all' to the tabloid press, Sally James was lined up to replace Judd on Blue Peter. Eventually, the storm blew over and Judd remained with the show.
Before Blue Peter, she had appeared as part of the dance troupe the Young Generation on several TV shows and also had small roles in the first Monty Python
Monty Python
Monty Python was a British surreal comedy group who created their influential Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series...
film, And Now For Something Completely Different
And Now For Something Completely Different
And Now for Something Completely Different is a film spin-off from the television comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus featuring favorite sketches from the first two seasons. The title was used as a catchphrase in the television show....
(1971) and the filmed musical Half A Sixpence
Half a Sixpence
Half a Sixpence is a musical comedy written as a vehicle for British pop star Tommy Steele.It is based on H.G. Wells's novel Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul...
(1967). Judd made a brief return to dancing in 1976 when she joined Pan's People
Pan's People
Pan's People were a British TV dance troupe, who are usually associated with the BBC TV music chart show Top of the Pops.In an era before pop videos, they danced to songs whose original artists were not available to perform them live...
on Top Of The Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
for a one-off routine (The rehearsals were later shown on Blue Peter) and often danced on the BBC Christmas show All Star Record Breakers. During her time on the show she was criticised in the UK press when she divorced her first husband, actor Derek Fowlds
Derek Fowlds
Derek Fowlds is an English actor, known for playing Bernard Woolley in popular British television comedies Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister and Oscar Blaketon in the long-running ITV police drama Heartbeat....
(former 'straight' man to TV Puppet Basil Brush
Basil Brush
Basil Brush is a fictional anthropomorphic fox raconteur, best known for his appearances on daytime British children's television. He is primarily portrayed by a glove puppet, but has also been depicted in animated cartoon shorts and comic strips...
), and married a Blue Peter cameraman Terry Gabell, whom she also later divorced. It was her second husband's multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms...
that caused her to leave Blue Peter
Blue Peter
Blue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time...
in 1979.
During her time on Blue Peter, Judd also presented the spin-off series Blue Peter Special Assignment
Blue Peter Special Assignment
Blue Peter Special Assignment was a factual BBC TV series broadcast in the 1970s and early 1980s, the first spin-off from the long running BBC series Blue Peter. It ran regularly from 1973 until 1981, usually at weekends on BBC1, and was heavily promoted on Blue Peter itself...
. After leaving Blue Peter, Judd fronted a children's TV 'chat' show, In The Limelight With Lesley
Val Meets... The VIPS
Val Meets... The VIPS was a UK TV series broadcast over three seasons from 1973-1974 on BBC1, hosted by Valerie Singleton. There were eighteen editions, broadcast in three series of six episodes. The format for the programme was that Singleton would interview one celebrity guest, who would also...
, on BBC1, much along the same lines as the earlier Val Meets... The VIPS
Val Meets... The VIPS
Val Meets... The VIPS was a UK TV series broadcast over three seasons from 1973-1974 on BBC1, hosted by Valerie Singleton. There were eighteen editions, broadcast in three series of six episodes. The format for the programme was that Singleton would interview one celebrity guest, who would also...
. One of her guests was British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
who was asked to comment on an earlier appearance in which Thatcher had said there would not be a woman Prime Minister in her (Thatcher's) lifetime. Another guest was reigning Miss World Gina Swainson. Judd then appeared with Billy Boyle
Billy Boyle
Billy Boyle is an Irish actor on British film, television and stage. He is a veteran of the West-End stage having played leading roles in over 15 hit shows. In his first West-End musical "Maggie May" he was nominated as best newcomer. Gower Champion then chose him to play Barnaby in "Hello Dolly"...
on an ITV series for children, Dance Crazy, tracing the history of dance and was a regular panellist on game shows such as Punchlines
Punchlines
Punchlines was a comedy game show series that was produced by LWT and aired on the ITV network from January 3, 1981 until December 22, 1984...
. She later featured as 'The Mole' in the educational game show The Adventure Game
The Adventure Game
The Adventure Game was a game show, aimed at children but with an adult following, which was originally broadcast on UK television channels BBC1 and BBC2 between 24 May 1980 and 18 February 1986. The story in each show was that the two celebrity contestants and a member of the public had travelled...
, and was co-presenter of both the technology game show The Great Egg Race
The Great Egg Race
The Great Egg Race was a BBC television series that ran from 1978 to 1986 and featured Professor Heinz Wolff and Lesley Judd, who joined the series in 1984...
, the computer-related Micro Live
Micro Live
Micro Live was a BBC2 TV series that was produced by David Allen as part of the BBC's Computer Literacy Project, and followed on from earlier series such as The Computer Programme, Computers In Control, and Making the Most of the Micro...
(1983) and Pets In Particular (1986).
She was also one of the presenters of Woman's Hour
Woman's Hour
Woman's Hour is a radio magazine programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in the United Kingdom.-History:Created by Norman Collins and originally presented by Alan Ivimey the programme was first broadcast on 7 October 1946 on the BBC's Light Programme . It was transferred to its current home in 1973...
on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
from 1982 to 1988, and appeared as a television newsreader in the film Threads
Threads
Threads is a British television drama produced by the BBC in 1984. Written by Barry Hines and directed by Mick Jackson, it is a documentary-style account of a nuclear war and its effects on the city of Sheffield in northern England....
(1984). Judd was a presenter on the London radio station LBC
LBC
LBC Radio operates two London-based radio stations, with news and talk formats. LBC was Britain's first legal commercial Independent Local Radio station, providing a service of news and information to London. It began broadcasting on 8 October 1973, a week ahead of Capital Radio...
during the late 1980s, later co-hosting with Steve Allen
Steve Allen (LBC radio presenter)
Steven William Allen Steven William Allen Steven William Allen (born 17 March 1930, Steven William Allen (born 17 March 1930, Steven William Allen (born 17 March 1930, [[Brinsworth], [[Kent]], [[England]]) is an english [[television presenter|television]] and [[radio presenter]], who is currently...
, at the same time presenting various programmes on TV for the Open University
Open University
The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
. In 1992, Judd also presented a daytime interview programme on UK 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...
, Time To Talk. Each programme consisted of an interview with one celebrity guest. Valerie Singleton, David Kossoff
David Kossoff
David Kossoff was a British actor. Following the death of his son Paul, a rock musician, he became an anti-drug campaigner...
, Diana Moran
Diana Moran
Diana Moran is a British model, fitness expert and journalist.In the 1960s and 1970s, Moran was a successful print and catwalk model. She also appeared as a TV announcer and newsreader for HTV West.-Career:...
, Jonathon Porritt
Jonathon Porritt
Jonathon Espie Porritt, CBE, is an English environmentalist and writer. Porritt appears frequently in the media, writing in magazines, newspapers and books, and appearing on radio and television regularly.-Early life and family background:...
and Don Maclean
Don Maclean
Don Maclean is an English actor and comedian, who appeared on the BBC television series Crackerjack with Michael Aspel, Peter Glaze, and Jan Hunt in the 1970s....
were among the interviewees.
Now living in France near Toulouse
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
, she is employed as a conference organiser. Although asked on several occasions to take part in Blue Peter reunions, Judd has often declined, feeling that her television career was no longer a part of her life. However, she appeared on Blue Peters 35th birthday programme in 1993 and the 50th birthday commemorations in 2008. The latter entailed an appearance on 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 This Morning
This Morning (TV series)
This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...
, where she received a 'make over' ahead of joining other former presenters at Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
at a party hosted by The Queen. Judd then joined other former female presenters of the show in a photo shoot for the Mail on Sunday newspaper, celebrating fifty years of Blue Peter and was interviewed for a documentary about the show on BBC1.
External links
- Lesley Judd BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Blue PeterBlue PeterBlue Peter is the world's longest-running children's television show, having first aired in 1958. It is shown on CBBC, both in its BBC One programming block and on the CBBC channel. During its history there have been many presenters, often consisting of two women and two men at a time... - The Great Egg Race at UKGameshows.com