Bradley Walsh Biography

Bradley Walsh was born to Margaret Walsh and Daniel Walsh on 4th June 1960, in Watford, Hertfordshire. He has a sister Kerri.

He spent his early days in Leavesden near Watford and studied at Francis Combe Academy. He was a mischievous student but was also highly popular.

Bradley Walsh joined Rolls-Royce's aircraft engine factory as an apprentice after he left school at the age of sixteen.

He was also a keen sportsman and played football. His skills as a footballer were recognised by a talent scout and he was signed up by Brentford FC. He was a part of the reserve squad. Unfortunately, though, his promising career as a footballer came to a halt after he hurt his ankles in the year 1982.

A variety of jobs followed this including working as a bluecoat at Pontins in Morecambe for three months and doing stand-up comedy at clubs. He also participated in a comedy talent contest and ranked second.

He was spotted performing in Blackpool and was invited to Des O'Connor Tonight (1991) show. He then began performing at the Royal Albert Hall and later at The Royal Variety Show (1993).

Thereafter, he became a television presenter of The National Lottery (1994), Midas Touch (1995) and the British version of the US game show Wheel of Fortune (1997).

In 1998, he starred in a critically acclaimed radio sitcom King of the Road where he played Trevor King. The sitcom ran for two series.

Bradley Walsh soon decided to expand his television profile and turned his focus towards acting. His first role was a minor one in the Channel 4 series, Lock, Stock...(2000).

In 2001 and 2002, he hosted his own radio show - Breakfast With Brad On Capital Gold -across The Capital Gold Network.

A few more acting assignments followed before he landed his first regular role in the television shows Night & Day (2002-2003) and later Coronation Street (2004-2006).

His portrayal of the lovable rogue Danny Baldwin in the latter not only made him a household name but also earned him the 2006 British Soap Award for Best Dramatic Performance and 2006 TV Quick Awards for Best Soap actor.

In October 2007, he acted in ITV’s three-part original drama series Torn and in 2008 appeared in a couple of episodes of The Sarah Jane Adventures, a spin off show of BBC’s long running science fiction show Doctor Who.

Bradley Walsh’s career as a presenter flourished simultaneously. He presented countdown 50 Greatest Stars Polls and No. 1 Soap Fan in 2007 and My Little Soldier and Spin Star in 2008.

In 2009, he landed an important presenting role of his career in game show The Chase. The show has aired 14 series till 2020 with more than thousand episode and is hugely popular.

The popularity of the show resulted in numerous spin offs, each featuring Walsh as presenter. These include Celebrity Chase (2011-2020), Family Chase (2017-2020) and Beat the Chasers (2020).

In 2009 again, he was signed to play DS Ronnie Brooks in ITV crime drama Law & Order: UK. He continued with the show till 2014 and acted in 53 episodes. The role once again won him a lot of appreciation and nominations at award functions.

He began bagging more presenting assignments on television like Odd One In (2010-2011), The Crime Thriller Awards (2012-2014), Crime Thriller Club (2013), Come on Down! The Game Show Story (2014) and Keep It in the Family (2014-2015).

In 2014 itself, he acted in BBC One comedy series SunTrap and also presented an episode of Tonight at the London Palladium.

In 2016-2017, he presented two series of Tonight at the London Palladium. The year 2016 also saw him begin hosting yet another game show Cash Trapped which aired three series till 2019.

In 2016 again, he made his singing debut by releasing his album Chasing Dreams which climbed to the 10th spot of UK Albums Chart. The following year, his second album When You're Smiling released and peaked 11th on the charts.

Between 2015 and 2017, he was a regular soccer aid player and team captain on sports panel show Play to the Whistle.

In 2018, he played Harry Priest in the BBC Radio 2’s sitcom pilot The World According to Harry Priest.

In 2018 again, he became a part of 11th series of Doctor Who, yet another significant show of his career. In 2020, he went on to star in the 12th series of the show as well.

In 2019, he began appearing in a coming-of-age road trip series – Bradley Walsh & Son: Breaking Dad – along with his son Barney Walsh. The second series was aired in 2020.

Walsh has been pretty active in the theatre and pantomime circuit as well. The various pantomime that he has been a part of over the years include Peter Pan (as Smee), Cinderella (as Buttons), Aladdin (as Wishee Washee), Dick Whittington (as Dick) and Snow White (as Muddles).

His other theatre work include Cash on Delivery (1996–1997), Run For Your Wife (1999) and Tom, Dick and Harry (2003).

Apart from the ones mentioned above, he has also acted in other television series like M.I.T.: Murder Investigation Team (2003), Reps (2003), The Basil Brush Show (2003), Murder City (2004), The Revolting World of Stanley BrownMini (2012), The Spa (2013) and Drunk History: UK (2016).

More television movies he has acted in include Mike Bassett: England Manager (2001), Hotel! (2001), Coronation Street: Pantomime (2005), The Old Curiosity Shop (2007) and The Jonah Man (2017).

He also worked in a TV miniseries The Thing About Vince (2000), shorts The Glow (2001) and The Lights (2016), a TV Special The Children's Party at the Palace (2006) and a comedy film Mike Bassett: Interim Manager (2016).

He has also hosted other television series, award shows, documentaries and specials. These include television movie documentary When Dummies Took Over the World (2018) and The London Palladium: The Greatest Stage on Earth (2018).

He also hosted a television movie A Christmas Cracker (2014) as well as TV series The Nightly Show (2017) and Take off with Bradley and Holly (2019).

Bradley Walsh has been married to Donna Derby, former professional dancer and currently a choreographer since 1997 and the couple have a son named Barney Walsh.

Bradley Walsh also has a daughter, Hayley, from an earlier relationship.

Bradley Walsh is not only a talented actor and presenter, but he is also an accomplished singer. He released his debut album, "Chasing Dreams," in 2016 which became the best-selling debut album by a British artist that year.

Bradley Walsh holds the Guinness World Record for "Fastest-selling debut album by a British artist" for his album "Chasing Dreams."

In addition to his entertainment career, Bradley Walsh is a former professional footballer. He played for Brentford and Barnet in the 1970s and 1980s.

Bradley Walsh is a big fan of Doctor Who and fulfilled a lifelong dream when he was cast as the companion, Graham O'Brien, in the popular sci-fi series.

Despite his success in the entertainment industry, Bradley Walsh remains down-to-earth and is known for his friendly and approachable demeanor with fans and colleagues alike.