David Frost facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sir
David Frost
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Frost during an interview with Donald Rumsfeld in 2005
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| Born |
David Paradine Frost
7 April 1939 |
| Died | 31 August 2013 (aged 74) MS Queen Elizabeth, Mediterranean Sea
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| Resting place | Holy Trinity Churchyard, Nuffield, Oxfordshire, England |
| Education | Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge |
| Occupation |
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| Years active | 1962–2013 |
| Known for |
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| Spouse(s) |
Lynne Frederick
(m. 1981; div. 1982)Lady Carina Fitzalan-Howard
(m. 1983) |
| Partner(s) | Diahann Carroll (1970–1973) |
| Children | 3, including Wilfred |
Sir David Paradine Frost OBE (7 April 1939 – 31 August 2013) was a famous British television host, journalist, comedian, and writer. He became well-known in 1962 when he hosted the funny and sharp show That Was the Week That Was. This show was part of a new trend of satire in the UK.
His success led him to work on American television too. He became famous for his interviews with important political leaders. One of his most famous interviews was with US President Richard Nixon in 1977. These interviews were so important that they were later made into a play and a movie. David Frost interviewed all eight British prime ministers who served between 1964 and 2016. He also interviewed all seven American presidents in office between 1969 and 2008.
Frost helped launch the ITV channel TV-am in 1983. He was also the first host of the US news show Inside Edition. He hosted the Sunday morning interview show Breakfast with Frost for the BBC from 1993 to 2005. For two decades, he hosted Through the Keyhole. From 2006 to 2012, he hosted Frost Over the World on Al Jazeera English. He received a special award from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in 2005 and a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Emmy Awards in 2009.
Sir David Frost passed away on August 31, 2013, at the age of 74. He was on a cruise ship, the MS Queen Elizabeth, where he had been giving a talk. A memorial stone for him was placed in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey in March 2014.
Contents
Early Life and Education
David Paradine Frost was born in Tenterden, Kent, England, on April 7, 1939. His father, Wilfred John "W. J." Paradine Frost, was a Methodist minister. David had two older sisters.
He went to several schools, including Barnsole Road Primary School and Wellingborough Grammar School. When he was young, he loved playing football and cricket. He was even offered a contract to play football for Nottingham Forest F.C..
In 1958, Frost began studying at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. He studied English and became the editor of the university's student newspaper, Varsity, and the literary magazine Granta. He was also involved with the Footlights Drama Society, which included famous actors like Peter Cook. Frost first appeared on television during this time, performing comedy characters. He once said, "The first time I stepped into a television studio, it felt like home. It didn't scare me. Talking to the camera seemed the most natural thing in the world."
After university, Frost trained at Associated-Rediffusion, a TV company. At the same time, he performed comedy shows at the Blue Angel nightclub in London.
Rise to Fame with That Was the Week That Was
David Frost was chosen by producer Ned Sherrin to host the satirical TV show That Was the Week That Was, often called TW3. This happened after his flatmate, John Bird, suggested Sherrin watch Frost's act at the Blue Angel club. The show ran for less than 18 months in 1962–63. It was a big part of the "satire boom" in Britain during the early 1960s and quickly became very popular.
TW3 was known for its sharp humor and comments on current events. On November 23, 1963, the show dedicated an entire episode to a tribute for the assassinated US President John F. Kennedy, who had died the day before.
After the British series ended, an American version of TW3 was created. This 30-minute US show, also featuring Frost, aired on NBC from January 1964 to May 1965.
Beyond TW3: New Shows and Interviews
After the success of TW3, Frost hosted many other programs. One of these was The Frost Report, which aired between 1966 and 1967. This show helped launch the careers of famous comedians like John Cleese, Ronnie Barker, and Ronnie Corbett. They appeared together in a very famous sketch called the Class sketch.
Frost then moved to ITV to host The Frost Programme. This show focused on serious interviews with important figures. His opening words for his TV shows during this time, "Hello, good evening and welcome," became his famous catchphrase.
In 1967, Frost was part of a group that successfully bid for an ITV television license. This led to the creation of London Weekend Television (LWT), which started broadcasting in July 1968. Frost was involved in the station's early years as a presenter. On July 20 and 21, 1969, he hosted David Frost's Moon Party for LWT. This was a ten-hour discussion and entertainment show about Neil Armstrong walking on the moon.
In the late 1960s, Frost also started working in the film industry. He set up his own company, David Paradine Ltd, in 1966. He helped fund the film The Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer (1970) and was an executive producer for the British musical film The Slipper and the Rose (1976), which retold the story of Cinderella.
American Career and the Nixon Interviews
In 1968, David Frost signed a large contract to appear on American television. From 1969 to 1972, he hosted The David Frost Show in the U.S. He interviewed many famous people, including heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali in 1974 before his famous "The Rumble in the Jungle" fight.
In 1977, Frost conducted the famous Nixon Interviews with former U.S. President Richard Nixon. These were five 90-minute interviews. The US television networks initially didn't want to broadcast the interviews, so Frost's company had to fund them himself. He then made deals with local stations across the U.S. and internationally.
Frost recorded about 29 hours of interviews with Nixon over four weeks. Nixon had avoided talking about his role in the Watergate scandal, which led to his resignation in 1974. During the interviews, Nixon expressed regret, saying, "I let the American people down and I have to carry that burden with me for the rest of my life." Frost also asked Nixon if a president could do something illegal if they believed it was "in the best interests of the nation." Nixon replied: "Well, when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal."
After the 1979 Iranian Revolution, Frost was the last person to interview Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the former Shah of Iran. This interview took place in January 1980 and was broadcast in the U.S.
Later Career and Achievements
Frost was one of the "Famous Five" who launched TV-am in February 1983. He remained a presenter there, and his show Frost on Sunday ran until 1992. After that, his Sunday morning interview program Breakfast with Frost aired on the BBC from January 1993 until May 2005.
He also hosted Through the Keyhole, a popular show that ran on several UK channels from 1987 until 2008.
From 2006, Frost worked for Al Jazeera English, hosting a weekly current affairs program called Frost Over The World. This show often made headlines with interviews with world leaders like Tony Blair and President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan.
During his career, Frost became one of the most frequent fliers on Concorde, flying between London and New York about 20 times a year for 20 years. In June 2010, Frost presented Frost on Satire, a BBC Four documentary about the history of television satire.
David Frost was the only person to have interviewed all eight British prime ministers who served between 1964 and 2016. He also interviewed all seven U.S. presidents in office between 1969 and 2008.
He supported several charities, including the Motor Neurone Disease Association and the Alzheimer's Research Trust. He was also recognized for his help with the women's charity "Wellbeing for Women."
Frost/Nixon Film and Play
The famous interviews Frost conducted with Richard Nixon in 1977 were turned into a play called Frost/Nixon by Peter Morgan. The play was shown in London in 2006 and on Broadway in 2007. Frank Langella won an award for playing Nixon in the play.
The play was then made into a Hollywood movie, also called Frost/Nixon, released in 2008. Michael Sheen played David Frost, and Frank Langella played Nixon, both repeating their roles from the stage. The movie was directed by Ron Howard and was nominated for several major awards, including five Academy Awards.
Personal Life
David Frost had several relationships with well-known women. In 1981, he married Lynne Frederick, but they divorced the next year.
On March 19, 1983, Frost married Lady Carina Fitzalan-Howard. They had three sons over the next five years. His second son, Wilfred Frost, followed in his father's footsteps and now works as a news anchor for Sky News and CNBC. The family lived in Chelsea, London, and had a weekend home in Hampshire.
Death and Legacy
On August 31, 2013, David Frost passed away from a heart attack at age 74 while on the Cunard cruise ship MS Queen Elizabeth. An autopsy later found that he had a heart condition called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Sadly, his son Miles also died from the same condition in 2015 at the age of 31.
A funeral service was held for David Frost on September 12, 2013, at Holy Trinity Church in Nuffield, Oxfordshire, where he was buried. On March 13, 2014, a special memorial service was held at Westminster Abbey, and a memorial stone for him was placed in Poets' Corner.
British Prime Minister David Cameron paid tribute to Frost, saying, "He could be—and certainly was with me—both a friend and a fearsome interviewer."
Awards and Honours
- 1970: Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)
- 1993: Knight Bachelor (meaning he was given the title "Sir")
- 2005: Fellowship of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA)
- 2009: Lifetime Achievement Award at the Emmy Awards
See also
In Spanish: David Frost (periodista) para niños
