Ashley Banjo facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ashley Banjo
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Banjo interviewed by UK Gossip TV at the National Television Awards in 2020
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| Born |
Ashley Modurotolu Banjo
4 October 1988 Leytonstone, London, England
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| Occupation |
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| Years active | 2009–present |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Jordan Banjo (brother) |
| Current group | Diversity |
| Dances | Street dance |
Ashley Modurotolu Banjo MBE (born 4 October 1988) is a famous English dancer, choreographer, and TV star. He leads a super cool street dance group called Diversity. They won the TV talent show Britain's Got Talent in 2009!
Ashley has also been a judge on popular dance shows. These include Got to Dance and Dancing on Ice. He even helped host a game show called Can't Touch This.
Contents
Early Life and School Days
Ashley Banjo's dad was a heavyweight boxer named Funso Banjo. Ashley went to an independent school called St John's School, Billericay. He was even the Head Boy there! Ashley still holds the high jump record from his school sports day.
Diversity Dance Group
In 2007, Ashley and his younger brother Jordan started a dance group. They called it Swift Moves at first, with nine of their friends. Later, they changed the name to Diversity. Ashley's friends in the group gave him the nickname "Chosen".
In their first year, Diversity won a competition called Street Dance Weekend 2007. After that, they decided to try out for Britain's Got Talent.
Winning Britain's Got Talent
Diversity impressed all three judges in their first audition. They moved on to the semi-finals on May 24. They didn't win the public vote, but the judges chose them to go to the final.
Six days later, Diversity won the whole competition! They beat Susan Boyle and Julian Smith. As winners, they got £100,000. They also got to perform for Queen Elizabeth at the Royal Variety Show in December 2009.
After Britain's Got Talent
After their big win, Diversity became very popular. They were nominated for an award at the South Bank Show awards. They also won an award at the Pride of Britain Awards.
In 2013, Ashley created a dance tour for Diversity called Limitless. The tour ran from November 30 to December 16. In 2021, Ashley worked with Persil and Sky Nature. They made short films to show how important it is to protect the environment.
In June 2023, Ashley started acting in a play in London's West End. He played the Tin Woodman in The Wizard of Oz.
Ashley's TV Work
Ashley was a judge on Sky1's dance show Got to Dance for all five seasons. Diversity also performed on the show many times. In 2015, Ashley presented a show called Perspectives: Michael Jackson's Thriller with Ashley Banjo.
In 2016, Ashley helped host Can't Touch This on BBC One with Zoe Ball. In 2017, he was a judge on the ITV show Dance Dance Dance.
Since January 2018, Ashley has been a judge on Dancing on Ice. In August 2020, Ashley even filled in for Simon Cowell on Britain's Got Talent. Simon was recovering from a bike injury, so Ashley became a guest judge for the live semi-finals and final.
Filmography Highlights
Ashley Banjo has appeared in many TV shows and movies. Here are some of them:
- Britain's Got Talent (2009, 2016, 2020) – Himself, and guest judge
- StreetDance 3D (2010) – Played a character named Aaron
- Got to Dance (2010–2014) – Himself as a judge
- Ashley Banjo's Secret Street Crew (2012–2014) – Himself, helping people learn to dance
- The Cube (2012) – Won money for charities like NSPCC
- Can't Touch This (2016) – Himself, co-presenter
- Dancing on Ice (2018—) – Himself as a judge
- Flirty Dancing (2019—) – Himself, presenter
- Ashley Banjo: Britain in Black and White (2021) – Himself, presenter
Personal Life
After winning Britain's Got Talent in 2009, Ashley took a break from school. He wanted to focus on his dancing. He said he started teaching himself dance routines when he was 14.
Ashley has two children, a daughter named Rose (born 2019) and a son named Micah (born 2020).
Ashley Banjo is an official Ambassador for the United Dance Organisation. In 2022, he was given an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire). This award recognized his amazing contributions to dance.
