Anne Robinson facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Anne Robinson
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Robinson in 2023
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| Born |
Anne Josephine Robinson
26 September 1944 Crosby, Lancashire, England
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| Occupation | Broadcaster, journalist |
| Years active | 1967–present |
| Television |
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| Spouse(s) |
Charles Wilson
(m. 1968; div. 1973)John Penrose
(m. 1980; div. 2007) |
| Partner(s) | Andrew Parker Bowles (2023–present) |
| Children | 1 |
Anne Josephine Robinson (born 26 September 1944) is a British journalist and television presenter. She is well-known for hosting the BBC game show The Weakest Link from 2000 to 2012. She also hosted a special celebrity episode in 2017 for Children in Need.
Anne Robinson presented the BBC consumer affairs show Watchdog for a total of 15 years. She was on the show from 1993 to 2001 and again from 2009 to 2015. From June 2021 to July 2022, Robinson hosted the Channel 4 game show Countdown. She took over from Nick Hewer and recorded 265 episodes before leaving the show.
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Early Life and Family Background
Anne Robinson was born in Crosby, Lancashire, England, on 26 September 1944. Her family has both British and Irish roots. Her father was a schoolteacher. Her mother, Anne Josephine, was a successful businesswoman from Northern Ireland. She started by managing a market stall.
After moving to England, Anne's mother married into a family that dealt in wholesale chickens. During the time after the Second World War, she sold rationed rabbit. She later took over the family market stall in Liverpool. She grew it into one of the biggest wholesale poultry businesses in northern England.
Anne grew up in Crosby and went to a private Roman Catholic convent boarding school called Farnborough Hill Convent in Hampshire. During school holidays, she helped in the family business, preparing chickens for sale. After that, she worked in office jobs at a law firm. Her family often spent their summers on holiday in France, staying at the Carlton Hotel in Cannes.
Anne Robinson's Career Journey
Starting in Journalism
After finishing school, Anne Robinson decided to become a journalist instead of pursuing a career in theatre. She first worked at a news agency. In 1967, she moved to London and became one of the first young female trainees at the Daily Mail newspaper. Her mother gave her an MG sports car and a fur coat as a going-away present.
Anne got a permanent job at the Daily Mail because she found out important details about the death of Brian Epstein. She knew the Liverpool lawyer handling the case through a family friend. She offered him a ride to Euston railway station when he couldn't find a taxi, and he shared information with her.
Her work situation changed when she fell in love with the deputy news editor, Charles Wilson. They married in 1968. Because of their marriage, her husband had to end her employment at the Daily Mail. Robinson then joined The Sunday Times. In 1977, she left The Sunday Times and started working for the Liverpool Echo.
Working in Newspapers
In 1980, Anne Robinson returned to Fleet Street, which was famous for its newspapers. She worked as a columnist and assistant editor for the Daily Mirror. She also wrote a column under the pseudonym "Wednesday Witch," where she developed her sharp and direct writing style. During her time as a newspaper journalist, she became very good at writing catchy newspaper headlines.
She wrote about Robert Maxwell, the boss of the Mirror, after he passed away in 1991. She said he was her "inspiration and her hero." Later, in her 2001 book Memoirs of an Unfit Mother, Robinson discussed how Maxwell had misused the Mirror pension fund. She felt that many people, including bankers and lawyers, should have stopped him.
In 1982, Robinson attended a dinner with Queen Elizabeth II. She noticed that Diana, Princess of Wales, arrived late. Robinson asked the Mirror's Royal editor James Whitaker to investigate. After speaking with various sources, including Diana's sister Lady Sarah McCorquodale, she confirmed that Diana was suffering from an eating disorder. This was reported in a major article on 19 November 1982. As a result, Buckingham Palace asked for Robinson to be removed from the newspaper's editorial team. She was advised to focus more on television. Robinson has also written weekly columns for other British newspapers, including Today, The Sun, The Express, The Times, and The Daily Telegraph.
Television and Radio Career
Anne Robinson started appearing on BBC television in 1982. She was sometimes a guest on Question Time and presented her 'TV Choice' segment on Breakfast Time. From 1986, she began filling in for the presenter of Points of View, a show where viewers shared their opinions. She took over permanently in 1988 and stayed for 11 years. In 1993, she became the presenter and writer for the consumer affairs television programme Watchdog.
Robinson also worked on BBC Radio 4, presenting the News Stand and filling in for presenters on the Today programme from 1985 to 1987. She then joined BBC Radio 2 in 1987, covering Derek Jameson's breakfast show. From 1988 to 1993, she had her own Saturday morning show on Radio 2. For 10 years, between 1988 and 1998, she also filled in for Jimmy Young on his weekday lunchtime show.
In the UK, Anne Robinson is most famous for hosting the game show The Weakest Link. She also hosted the American version, Weakest Link, on NBC. She became known for her sharp questions and direct style with contestants. Her famous phrase, "You are the weakest link – goodbye!", became a popular catchphrase after the show began in 2000.
In 2001, some people accused her of being unfair to the Welsh after she described them as "irritating and annoying" on the show Room 101.
Anne Robinson supports fox hunting. Before it was banned in 2004, she was a strong supporter of the pro-hunt cause. In an interview in 2000, she said that if she were a world leader, she would "lock up all the hunt saboteurs." In 2002, she hosted a special Weakest Link event in Cirencester to raise money for a local hunt. The event was met with protests from animal rights activists.
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In 2005, Anne Robinson appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Also in 2005, she was featured in an episode of Doctor Who called "Bad Wolf". She voiced a futuristic robot version of herself called the "Anne Droid" on a dangerous version of The Weakest Link in the year 200,100. This robot would blast losing contestants with a disintegrator. Robinson also hosted the BBC's blooper show Outtake TV until 2009. She hosted a news-based chat show called What's the Problem? With Anne Robinson and the BBC's interactive quiz Test the Nation.
In 2008, the BBC received complaints after Robinson asked wine expert Olly Smith to feel her chest during a celebrity version of The Weakest Link. This happened after he described her as a "full-bodied, expensive red." Robinson also made former Blue Peter presenter John Noakes cry on The Weakest Link by asking about the end of his pet dog, Shep.
In 2009, Robinson returned to present Watchdog on BBC One. She stopped hosting The Weakest Link in 2012 after 12 years and 1,693 shows. In 2015, she announced she would leave Watchdog again to film a new series called Britain's Spending Secrets. She had presented Watchdog for a total of 15 years.
In 2016, Robinson presented Anne Robinson's Britain for BBC One. This series had three episodes. They focused on parenting, people's love for pets (especially cats and dogs), and how people care about their appearance.
In February 2021, it was announced that Anne Robinson would be the next host of the game show Countdown. Her first episode as host aired on 28 June 2021. She had previously appeared as a guest on the show in 1987. In May 2022, it was announced that she would be leaving the show after just one year. Her last episode aired on 13 July 2022. She recorded 265 episodes of Countdown in total.
In 2025, Robinson presented You Be the Judge: Crime and Punishment, a show broadcast on 6 May on Channel 5.
Personal Life
Anne Robinson married journalist Charles Wilson in 1968. In 1970, they had a daughter named Emma Wilson. Emma later became a British radio disc jockey and hosted a game show in the United States called Scaredy Camp. In 1973, Anne lost a custody battle for Emma, who was two years old at the time. Emma lived with her father until she was 16.
Robinson married journalist John Penrose in 1980. In 2007, they announced they were getting a divorce. In 2001, she published her autobiography, Memoirs of an Unfit Mother. In the book, she talks about her early life and her marriage to Charles Wilson.
In 2001, Anne Robinson was diagnosed with skin cancer and had surgery to treat it.
Robinson has two grandchildren. In December 2023, it was reported that she was in a relationship with Andrew Parker Bowles. He is the former husband of Queen Camilla. Robinson confirmed this in an interview in May 2024, saying they had been dating for over a year.
