Chris Evans (presenter)

For other people named Christopher Evans, see Christopher Evans (disambiguation).

Chris Evans
Chris Evans (left) with Joss Stone
Career
Show	Drive Time Show
Station	BBC Radio 2
Time slot	5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Weekdays
Style	Drivetime Show Host
Country	United Kingdom
Website	Chris Evans Drivetime

Chris Evans (born 1 April 1966 in Warrington) is an English radio/television presenter and producer.

Biography

Chris Evans is the youngest child of Martin, a bookmaker (died in 1980 from cancer), and Minnie, who managed a cornershop. He has an older brother David and older sister Diane.

Before starting a career in the media, Evan's had a number of dead-end jobs in and around his native Warrington, notoriously inclduing a period as a "Tarzan-ogram."

Career

Evans started his broadcasting career in 1983 at Manchester Piccadilly Radio, as an assistant to Timmy Mallett and playing a character on his show called 'Nobby Nolevel' ('No 'O' Level'). At the time (1982–84) Evans worked at one of TJ & B McLoughlin's tobacconists and newsagents stores, in Woolston, an outer suburb of nearby Warrington. Tom the newsagent remarked on more than one occasion, "He drives me mad, he'll end up in prison or a millionaire!". Chris would DJ in local pubs when he was not at Piccadilly Radio, notably 'The Brittania' on Scotland Road in Warrington, popular with followers of alternative and Gothic rock in the mid 1980s. Chris would finish at Piccadilly in the early hours and open up the shop some 3 hours later, during this period. His antics at Piccadilly Radio (Now Key 103 Manchester) also extended to driving round the Manchester area in the radio car to turn up at listeners' houses. In addition, he was producer to the presenter James H Reeve on the station.

Following this, he presented a weekday graveyard slot with competitions such as 'What’s my gadget' and gave listeners opportunities to sell their belongings on air. He was then offered a Saturday afternoon show and then the weekday evening show, until he was fired in 1987 for gross misconduct.

After working as a producer on Richard Branson's service The Superstation, where he produced material for Jonathan Ross, Evans went on to work at the BBC London radio station GLR, first as a producer on Emma Freud's mid-morning show, and then Weekend Breakfast with Danny Baker. Evans became a presenter on the station in early 1990, taking over a Saturday afternoon show. Three months later, he started presenting the Monday - Thursday evening show, entitled The Greenhouse, which went out from 19:30–22:00; he remained on this slot until the end of 1990.

In early 1991, due to television commitments with BSkyB, Evans took over presenting his show Round At Chris', every Saturday morning from 10:00 a.m - 1:00 p.m, which he continued to present until April 1993.

Rise to popularity

In addition to his Saturday morning show on GLR, in March 1992, Evans began presenting a Sunday afternoon show on BBC Radio 1, replacing Phillip Schofield who had previously broadcast in the slot. His show called Too Much Gravy, was broadcast from 14:30–16:00 and ended in September 1992. His move to Radio 1 was shortlived but seen as a huge success, with controller Johnny Beerling later admitting he wished he'd offered Evans a full-time show there and then. At the time, however, Evans objected that Radio 1 had tried to constrain his style, preventing him from using the "zoo" format, allegedly because Steve Wright was already doing that on the station.

In April 1993, Evans joined Virgin Radio as part of its original line up to host a Saturday morning show called 'The Nescafé big red mug show'. He was paid £30k per annum to present this show but left to pursue his TV career, not to return until 1997.

The Big Breakfast

His departure from Radio 1 was in part so he could devote his time to the new Channel 4 breakfast television show, The Big Breakfast, from 28 September 1992. Evans, along with co-host Gaby Roslin, was an unqualified success in the slot, which brought him national celebrity and considerable acclaim. In 1993, he left GLR to present his radio show with the same format on the newly-launched Virgin Radio, but this only lasted for three months.

Evans left The Big Breakfast on 29 September 1994 and formed his own television production company, Ginger Productions. Its first major programme, Don't Forget Your Toothbrush, was broadcast between 1994 and 1995. The original concepts involved proved to be lucrative for Evans as its format was sold to numerous foreign broadcasters, building up Evans personal fortune.

Radio 1 breakfast show

In April 1995 Evans re-joined BBC Radio 1 to host the flagship breakfast show. Evans negotiated into his contract with Radio1 a clause allowing him to still make television programs, and specifically an option to make a Friday night programme for Channel4. This allowed him after a period to specifically not to have to attend post-show production meetings on a Friday.

Allowed to create the "zoo" format he was previously banned from performing on Radio1, Evans was treated with kid gloves by his friend, Radio1 controller Matthew Bannister. Critics hated innuendo-laden features like Honk Your Horn and In Bed With Your Girlfriend, but Evans put on 600,000 new listeners over Simon Mayo - one for every £5 spent on salary and advertising. The effect also flowed through into the listening of later programs. But, as the breakfast format became more outrageous, the audience grew: humiliating assistant Holly Samos by repeatedly asking her about her sex life (Evans and Samos were reportedly in a relationship at periods through their time working together), and encouraging two female guests to perform a strip show on live radio.

Evans began making editions of Channel 4's TFI Friday from 1996. programme, which had commenced in 1996. The show - devised, produced and hosted by Evans through his Ginger Media company - combining celebrity interviews, musical guests and daft games and competitions. Largely based on the successful formula of his radio show, it was initially a big success during a period when anything Evans touched turned to gold. However, as the success of both shows peaked, combined with a string of celebrity relationships and highly publicised nights drinking with friends Danny Baker and footballer Paul Gascoigne - the strain began to show.

Beginning to think he was indispensable at Radio1, the first big falling-out with management came in December 1995, after taking his crew out on a 17 hour pub-crawl which ended two hours before they were due on air: Evans was fined one day's pay, £7,000. In 1996, broadcasting watchdogs investigated a continual trail of complaints against the show: Radio 1 refused to comment, Evans never said sorry. Evans also made increasing public demands of the Radio 1 management: after taking an extra week of unplanned holiday, Evans chose to turn up half an hour late for his 06:30 show and then demanded that his hours were changed so that it was a permanent fixture - this request was accepted.

However, after the summer break, things got decidedly worse. Criticised by the broadcasting watchdog for a tasteless joke about Nazi victim Anne Frank, Evans countered with an item about haemorrhoids. Asked by Bannister to watch the rules, Evans the next day branded Bannister "The Fat Controller." In November, the Evans announced on air that he was medically unfit to be on the radio - Bannister re-negotiated his contract to double his holiday to twice that of other Radio 1 DJs. After more publicised public drinking and self-confessed illness, Evan's spell at the station ended in January 1997, when he was sacked after consistently failing to turn up to work.

The Radio 1 breakfast show was taken over by Mark and Lard a.k.a. Mark Radcliffe and Marc Riley. When Evans found out that they were a ratings disaster, he quickly got in touch with BBC Radio 1 management to ask whether he could take back the show again. Station management declined but did offer him a weekend slot, which he turned down. In response to the falling ratings of the Radio 1 Breakfast Show, bosses decided to replace its presenters with the relatively unknown Kevin Greening and the well known children's TV presenter Zoe Ball. Their tenure was due to start on 13 October 1997.

Virgin Radio

Chris Evans, on the other hand, was hired by Virgin Radio to host its breakfast show from the same date, prompting an immediate upsurge in listening figures to the station. He initially, however, presented the show from Monday - Thursday only, starting at 7:00 a.m. This was in contrast to the 6:30 a.m start of the Radio 1 Breakfast show, which ran 5 days a week.

On 9 December, with the assistance of investors, Evans vehicle Ginger Media Group bought Virgin Radio from Richard Branson, for £85m, to control the interests both of Ginger Productions and Virgin Radio. Both APAX Partners and Branson each owned 20% of Ginger Media Group, while Evans and his investors owned the remaining 60%.

During the last quarter of 1999, Evans ran separate quizzes on his radio show and on TFI Friday, both called Someone's Going To Be A Millionaire! (a reference to the very popular TV game show, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire). The million-pound prize was awarded on radio on 17 December and on television on 24 December. These were the first million-pound prizes awarded on either medium in the UK. The distinction of being the first quizmaster to give away a million-pound prize is often erroneously ascribed to Chris Tarrant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, however Evans was in fact first by more than ten months.

Both the Radio 1 breakfast show and its Virgin Radio successor introduced the audience to Evans' loyal production team, all of whom were encouraged to play speaking roles in the shows. This led to producer John Revell and engineer Dan McGrath presenting the Virgin show during Evans' absence, while researcher Holly Samos earned a contract to model bras.

Sale of GMG - dismissal and legal cases

On 14 March 2000, Evan's agreed the sale of Ginger Media Group to SMG plc, for £285m. The sale made Evans the highest paid entertainer in the UK in 2000, estimated to have been paid by the Sunday Times Rich List around £35.5million. Following poor reviews of TFI Friday, and Evans himself handing over presentation of the last series to a series of "friends," the show was cancelled in December 2000.

Evans continued to host the station's breakfast show until, photographed by the tabloids with new wife Billy Piper in the nearest pub to their home in Hascombe, Surrey, he was dismissed on June 28, 2001, for (again) repeatedly failing to arrive at work. Evans was replaced by the older Steve Penk, whom Evans criticised for his age - 39 versus Evan's then 35.

Evans attempted to sue Virgin Radio, claiming that he was unfairly dismissed and denied share options worth £8.6m. On 26 June, 2003 in the judgement of in Evans v SMG Television Ltd. & Ors 2003 EWHC 1423 (Ch), Justice Lightman found that he had been fairly dismissed and was not entitled to the share options, Evans was publicly criticised for his attitude by the judge. Virgin Radio later countersued, with Evans ordered to pay £1m towards their legal costs.

UMTV

In August 2002, Chris Evans set up a radio and television production company, UMTV, with the aim of specialising in live cutting-edge entertainment programming. Over the next 3 years UMTV produced more than 375 hours of television, with mixed success. TV shows included 'Johnny Vegas: 18 Stone of Idiot' for Channel 4 / E4; 'OFI Sunday' for ITV; 'Live With Christian O'Connell' and 'Live With Chris Moyles' for Five and the BAFTA award-winning 'School of Hard Knocks' for 4 Learning.

Following two high profile shows which failed to perform in the ratings, UMTV hired Terry Wogan and Evans' former Big Breakfast co-host Gaby Roslin to host a weekday morning magazine show, 'Terry & Gaby'. Evans said publicly that if this show failed he would set up a market stall. Despite critical acclaim, the audience numbers never took off and Channel 5 axed the show after its year-long run citing its high cost as a reason. True to his word, Evans was pictured at the end of the final show with a market stall and later he opened it for real at Stables Market, Camden. More recently the company has expanded to include a factual entertainment department and launched its first advertiser-funded programming.

Radio 2

He re-entered public life in early 2005, presenting the breakfast slot of UK Radio Aid’s day of programming for the victims of the Asian Tsunami, which was aired on most of the UK's commercial radio stations, and also the BRIT Awards in 2005 and 2006.

Evans joined BBC Radio 2 in April 2005 presenting a number of one-off Bank Holiday shows for the station as well as BBC Radio 2's coverage of the Live 8 concert in London.

Evans then joined Radio 2 on a permanent basis in September 2005, presenting a weekly Saturday afternoon show from 2.00 pm - 5.00 pm. This show was well received and he was announced as the successor to Radio 2's drivetime show on Thursday 2 March 2006 to succeed long-time host Johnnie Walker, beginning on 18 April. His arrival in the slot saw more than 1,000 listeners complain. Lesley Douglas, the station's controller, issued a statement in response saying that Evans should be given a chance. RAJAR audience figures published in August 2006 showed Evans had 150,000 fewer listeners than his predecessor's last show but was on par with previous years (BBC News, 2006). The second set of Rajars published in October 2006 showed his audience was up by 109,000 year-on-year, and up by 33,000 compared with the previous quarter. Figures showed he was drawing an average audience of 4.9 m a day on his drivetime show. By the end of 2007, the show was averaging over 5m listeners[1]. An interesting feature of his show is the Friday night 'Sports Locker' section, in which sports presenter Johnny Saunders conducts live interviews with experts in obscure sports. Another very successful regular Drivetime slot is 'Fox the Fox', where Chris challenges the show's business presenter Rebecca Pike to answer very difficult questions submitted by the listeners in less than one hour.

In early May 2006, Chris Evans, now hosting Radio Two's Drivetime Show, was named music radio personality of the year at the annual Sony Radio Academy Awards, defeating rivals Jamie Theakston, Lauren Laverne, Marc Riley and Tim Lovejoy to win. When accepting the award, Evans thanked the BBC for giving him "a second chance".

The same time next year, Evans again won 'music radio personality'; his show won the Entertainment award. "I didn't expect this," he said. "I wouldn't have minded if I didn't win, but I really love the fact I have won" [2].

Evans return to television

In November and December 2005, he presented OFI Sunday on ITV. In a move described by Private Eye as Partridgean, ex-wife Billie Piper was the first guest on the programme. OFI Sunday was cancelled after just 5 shows following poor reviews and low viewing figures. Its cancellation led Evans to complain on air during his Saturday BBC Radio 2 slot that he no longer knew how to be successful on television. The possible cause of its ratings could be due to its timeslot, as variety/chat shows are not very popular in Britain on late Sunday nights. Another cause could be that the 'post-pub' format had run its day and Evans had simply run out of ideas. Add to this the marked downhill lurch of ITV with its accent on 'celebrity' as opposed to quality or originality and it is possible to argue that the programme was doomed from the start.

Chris has also provided the voice of rock star Lennie Lazenby in the children's animated series Bob the Builder.

Personal life

Evans has a daughter, Jade (born 1986) by Alison Ward. Evans then married Carol McGiffin; the couple separated in 1994 and were divorced in 1998. The split was not amicable and McGiffin has been scathing about Evans in newspaper articles in the years since. During his time at BBC Radio1 and Virgin, Evans had well publicised relationships with Kim Wilde, model Rachel Tatton-Brown (whose sister was a researcher on The Big Breakfast), production assistant Suzi Aplin, Geri Halliwell, and Melanie Sykes. After meeting teenage pop star Billie Piper, and after she proposed on his 35th Birthday, the couple married in a £200 ceremony at the Little Church of the West in Las Vegas on May 6, 2001; attended by six guests including best man Danny Baker. In September 2004, news stories circulated regarding a trial separation. In spring 2005, it was confirmed that Evans and Piper would divorce, although it is well-known to be an amicable split. Evan's meet professional golfer, part-time model and columnist for Golf Punk magazine Natasha Shishmanian, when they became golf partners in a celebrity tournament in Newport, Wales. The couple married in London on Saturday 11 August 2007, and held a reception in Faro, Portugal attended by ex-wife Piper.

In January 2008 Evans gained his helicopter Private Pilots Licence, and now owns a Robinson R44. On May 18, 2008, he attended a Ferrari auction in Maranello, Italy, and bought a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB California Spyder (formerly owned by US actor James Coburn) for the record price of 6.4 Million Euros (7.04 Million Euros including fees).

Shows hosted

The following is a list of the main shows Evans has presented:

Television

• The Big Breakfast - Channel 4, 1992 - 1994
• Don't Forget Your Toothbrush - Channel 4, 1994 - 1995
• TFI Friday - Channel 4, 1996 - 2000
• OFI Sunday - ITV, 2005

Radio

• Piccadilly Radio, Saturday Aftenoons & Weekday Evenings(1986-1987)
• BBC GLR Saturday afternoons 3-5pm (1990)
• BBC GLR The Greenhouse Mondays - Thursdays 7.30-10pm (1990)
• BBC GLR Round at Chris's Saturdays 10am-1pm (1991 - 1993)
• BBC Radio 1 Too Much Gravy Sundays 2.30pm-4pm (1992)
• Virgin Radio Saturday mornings 10am-1pm (1993)
• BBC Radio 1 Weekday Breakfast Show 6.30-9am (1995 - 1997)
• Virgin Radio Weekday Breakfast Show 6-10am (1997 - 2001)
• BBC Radio 2 Good Friday afternoon 2-5pm (2005)
• BBC Radio 2 Easter Monday afternoon 2-5pm (2005)
• BBC Radio 2 May Day Bank Holiday 2-5pm (2005)
• BBC Radio 2 Whitsun Bank Holiday 2-5pm (2005)
• BBC Radio 2 Saturday afternoons 2-5pm (2005-2006)
• BBC Radio 2 Weekday Drivetime Show 5-7pm (2006 - Present)
• BBC Radio 7 Mentioned on 'Old Harry's Game' in a gag where Satan said he could be mistaken for Chris Evans.

External links

• Chris Evans Drivetime blog
• TFI Friday archive videos