Alexander Armstrong facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Alexander Armstrong
Armstrong at Waterstones, London in 2024
Born	Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong (1970-03-02) 2 March 1970 (age 55) Rothbury, Northumberland, England
Education	Trinity College, Cambridge (BA)
Occupation	Actor comedian radio personality television presenter singer farmer
Years active	1994–present
Spouse(s)	Hannah Snow ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	4
Relatives	Lucius Thompson-McCausland (grandfather); Alastair King (brother-in-law)

Alexander Armstrong (born on March 2, 1970) is a well-known English actor, comedian, and TV presenter. He is famous for hosting the popular BBC One game show Pointless. You might also hear his voice on Classic FM, where he presents a morning show during the week.

Alexander is part of a funny comedy duo called Armstrong and Miller. He has been in many TV shows, including Armstrong and Miller, Beast, and Life Begins. He also voiced the character of Mr Smith, an alien supercomputer, in The Sarah Jane Adventures and Doctor Who.

Besides acting and comedy, Alexander Armstrong is also a talented singer. He sings in a deep voice called a bass-baritone and has released three music albums.

Early Life and Education

Family Background

Alexander Armstrong comes from a family in North East England that owned land a long time ago. His great-great-great-uncle, William Armstrong, was made a Baron in 1887. His grandfather, Rex Armstrong, was a rugby player and a doctor.

Growing Up and School

Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong was born in Rothbury, Northumberland, England, on March 2, 1970. He grew up in Longframlington and was the youngest of three children. His father, Henry Angus Armstrong, was a doctor.

He went to Mowden Hall School and then St Mary's Music School in Edinburgh. There, he was a chorister (a singer in a choir) at St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral from age 11 to 13. He also attended Durham School and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he studied with music scholarships.

Alexander learned to play the piano and the cello. He later switched from the cello to the oboe. At Cambridge, he studied English and continued to sing in the college choir. He also joined a famous comedy group called the Footlights in his last year.

Career Highlights

After finishing university in 1992, Alexander moved to London to become an actor and comedian. He worked in restaurants while looking for acting jobs. He met Ben Miller, and in 1996, they performed together at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, a big arts festival.

Comedy Work

Alexander Armstrong and Ben Miller starred in four seasons of their show Armstrong and Miller from 1997 to 2001. They then took a break to work on their own projects. They reunited in 2007 for the popular The Armstrong and Miller Show, which won awards. They also released a book together in 2010.

Alexander also voiced the narrator in the cartoon series The Big Knights in 1999. He played a vet in the BBC sitcom Beast and appeared in many TV commercials for Pimm's.

TV Presenting

Alexander Armstrong is well-known for hosting the BBC One game show Pointless. He started hosting it in 2009 with his friend Richard Osman. He has also been a frequent guest host on the satirical news show Have I Got News for You, appearing more times than anyone else.

He has presented several documentaries, including Alexander Armstrong's Very British Holiday and Rome's Invisible City. In 2015, he hosted Alexander Armstrong in the Land of the Midnight Sun, where he traveled around the Arctic Circle. He has also presented shows like Don't Ask Me Ask Britain and Teach My Pet to Do That.

Singing and Music

After many years in TV and comedy, Alexander returned to his love for music. He formed his own band, which plays different types of music, from jazz to rock. He is the lead singer, and his band includes talented musicians on keyboards, woodwind, drums, and bass. They went on their first tour in 2013.

Alexander has sung at church services and weddings. He surprised judges on Your Face Sounds Familiar by singing in a high voice (falsetto). He has also sung on Pointless Christmas specials and collaborated with a group called the Sixteen to raise money for charity.

Since 2014, Alexander Armstrong has presented a show on the classical radio station Classic FM. He now hosts the mid-morning show on weekdays.

In 2015, he released his first solo album, A Year of Songs. It became very popular, reaching number six on the UK Albums Chart and number one on the UK Classical Chart. He released his second album, Upon a Different Shore, in 2016, and a third, In a Winter Light, in 2017. In 2017, he also narrated Peter and the Wolf for children.

Other Projects

In 1997, Alexander and Ben Miller provided voices for a PC game called Wings of Destiny. Alexander also voiced the character Horse in the English version of the series A Town Called Panic.

In 2009, he played Clive Sinclair, a British computer inventor, in the BBC drama Micro Men. He also voiced Professor M for the McLaren F1 team's animated shorts called Tooned.

Alexander has done a lot of voiceover work for children's cartoons. He is the narrator for CBeebies animation Hey Duggee. In 2015, he took over as the voice of Danger Mouse in the new version of the classic animated show. He also voices Mr Wolf and Captain Dog in Peppa Pig.

In 2019, he had a small role in Horrible Histories: The Movie. In 2024, he appeared on The Masked Singer UK as the character "Chicken Caesar".

Honours

In December 2015, Alexander Armstrong received an honorary doctorate from Northumbria University. This is a special award given to people who have achieved great things. In 2017, he became the president of the P. G. Wodehouse Society in the UK.

Personal Life

Alexander Armstrong married Hannah Bronwen Snow on August 27, 2003. They have four sons. In 2014, they moved from London to a farm in Bledington, Gloucestershire.

He is also a supporter of several charities, including Family Links and Just A Drop.

Filmography

Television

Non-presenting roles

Presenting roles

Film

Radio

• December 1998 – Children's Hour with Armstrong and Miller (BBC Radio 4)
• 2005–2006 – Weak at the Top (BBC Radio 4)
• July 2006 – Private Passions (BBC Radio 3)
• June 2020 – Hall of Fame (Classic FM)

Video games

• 2000 – Team Buddies
• 2003 – Hidden & Dangerous 2

Music Albums

See also

In Spanish: Alexander Armstrong para niños