Greg James facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Greg James
James in 2022
Born	Gregory James Alan Milward (1985-12-17) 17 December 1985 (age 39) Lewisham, London, England
Education	University of East Anglia
Occupation	Author broadcaster presenter
Employer	BBC
Spouse(s)	Bella Mackie ​ (m. 2018)​

Gregory James Alan Milward (born 17 December 1985), known professionally as Greg James, is an English radio and TV presenter and a children's author. He is famous for hosting the main breakfast show on BBC Radio 1.

Since 2017, James has co-hosted the popular cricket podcast Tailenders. He hosts it with England cricket player James Anderson and musician Felix White. He also writes the Kid Normal book series with his friend Chris Smith.

Early Life and Education

Greg James was born in Lewisham, South London, on 17 December 1985. His parents, Alan and Rosemary, were both teachers. When he was a baby, he was very ill and needed to be kept in an incubator for a week.

Growing up, James was a talented cricket player and played for the Hertfordshire Under-18s team. His first time on the radio was at a hospital radio station when he was 14. He later found out that the transmitter was broken, so no one actually heard his shows.

He went to The Bishop's Stortford High School and later studied drama at the University of East Anglia. He graduated with a 2:1 degree.

Career in Radio

Starting at BBC Radio 1

While at university, James worked at the student radio station, Livewire 1350AM. In 2007, he got his big break and joined BBC Radio 1. He started by presenting the Early Breakfast show. His first show was on 1 June 2007, the day after he graduated from university.

Over the years, he hosted different shows, including the early afternoon show from 1 pm to 4 pm. He also co-hosted a cricket show on BBC Radio 5 Live and had a podcast with his friend Chris Smith.

The Drivetime Show

The Dorset Police tractor 'Robocrop', which was named by Greg James's listeners.

In 2012, James took over the famous Drivetime show, which runs from 4 pm to 7 pm as people are driving home from work. The show was known for fun games like "Impossible Karaoke" and "Rage against the Answer Machine."

One funny moment on his show was when he asked listeners to name a police tractor for the Dorset Police. From thousands of suggestions, he chose the name "RoboCrop."

The Radio 1 Breakfast Show

On 20 August 2018, James became the host of Radio 1 Breakfast, one of the most important jobs in UK radio. He swapped shows with the previous host, Nick Grimshaw. James said it was a "big challenge" but he was excited to take it on. The show is now on five days a week, from Monday to Friday.

Podcasts

James is also a successful podcast host. In 2017, he started the cricket podcast Tailenders with cricketer Jimmy Anderson and musician Felix White. It started as a weekly show about the Ashes cricket series but became so popular that it continued.

In 2023, he launched a Formula 1 podcast called The Fast And The Curious with Christian Hewgill and Betty Glover.

Television Work

James has presented many TV shows. In 2009, he hosted a show for BBC Three about British tourists on holiday. He has also presented the BBC's coverage of big music festivals like Glastonbury Festival, Reading and Leeds Festival, and Radio 1's Big Weekend.

He has co-hosted game shows and chat shows, such as Unzipped with comedian Russell Kane. In 2015, he hosted a reality game show called I Survived a Zombie Apocalypse. He has also appeared on many other shows, including The One Show and Children in Need. In 2023, he began hosting the Channel 4 reality show Rise and Fall.

Kid Normal Book Series

James with his co-author Chris Smith in 2022.

Together with his friend and fellow presenter Chris Smith, James writes the popular children's book series Kid Normal. The story is about a regular boy who finds himself living in a world of superheroes.

The first book was released in 2017 and became the best-selling children's debut book of the year. The series has sold over 100,000 copies in the UK and has been translated into 19 different languages.

Charity Challenges

James is well known for taking on difficult challenges to raise money for charity, especially for Comic Relief and Sport Relief.

• Hell and High Water (2013): James and other celebrities travelled along the Zambezi River for five days. They raised over £1 million to build a new school in the area.
• The Gregathlon (2016): For Sport Relief, James completed five triathlons in five days in five different UK cities. He raised £1 million for charity.
• Pedal to the Peaks (2018): For his second Gregathlon, he cycled over 500 miles and climbed the UK's highest mountains. The challenge was paused because of extreme snow from the "Beast from the East" weather storm, but he finished it later, raising over £1 million.

Personal Life

On 1 June 2018, James announced he was engaged to Bella Mackie, an author. They got married in September of the same year and live in London.

James is a big sports fan. He supports Bath Rugby and Arsenal. He is also an ambassador for The Stroke Association and The Lord's Taverners charities.

Awards and Recognition

Greg James has won many awards for his radio shows.

• 2005 – Student Radio Award for 'Best Male Presenter'
• 2013 – Silver Sony Radio Academy Award for 'Best Entertainment Show'
• 2014 – Gold Radio Academy Award for 'Best Entertainment Show'
• 2016 – Gold Radio Academy 'ARIA' Award for 'Best Entertainment Production'
• 2020 – Arias Award for 'Best New Show'
• 2020 – TRIC award for "Radio Personality"

In July 2025, The University of York announced that James would receive an Honorary Degree for his achievements.

Selected Work

Television

Radio