John Leslie (TV presenter) facts for kids

John Leslie (born John Leslie Stott; 22 February 1965) is a Scottish television and radio presenter. He became famous for hosting popular TV shows like Blue Peter, Wheel of Fortune, and This Morning. He started his career on the Music Box channel in 1987.

Early Life and First Jobs

John Leslie Stott was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He is the brother of Grant Stott. John went to Liberton High School and James Gillespie's High School. When he was younger, he sang in a church choir. After school, he studied music. He also worked as a DJ in Copenhagen and in nightclubs in Edinburgh and Newcastle.

His first TV job was with Yorkshire Television. He hosted an all-night music show called Formula One. This show linked music performances from a German TV show to a UK studio. He started this in 1989.

John's Hobbies and Life Now

John Leslie really loves football. He played as a goalkeeper for the Scottish team in a special Celebrity World Cup Soccer Six tournament. This event happened on 14 May 2006. He is a big fan of Hibernian football club.

Today, John works in property development. He lives with his girlfriend, Kate Moore.

John's TV Career

Presenting Blue Peter

On 20 April 1989, John Leslie joined Blue Peter. He was the first Scottish presenter on the show. He was also the tallest at 1.93 meters (6 feet 4 inches). John was the second Blue Peter presenter to run in the London Marathon. He finished the race in four hours and thirty-six minutes.

For his last Blue Peter show, John had to complete a big challenge. He had to abseil down BBC Television Centre. He also did an obstacle course and used a trampoline. Finally, he conducted an orchestra in the studio. John presented Blue Peter with other well-known presenters. These included Caron Keating, Yvette Fielding, Diane-Louise Jordan, Anthea Turner, and Tim Vincent.

Hosting Wheel of Fortune

John Leslie took over as the main presenter of the British game show Wheel of Fortune. He replaced Bradley Walsh. Later, in 2001, Paul Hendy became the host. In the same year, John also appeared on Lily Savage's Blankety Blank.

On This Morning

From 1999, John Leslie became a regular presenter on This Morning. He hosted the Friday show with Fern Britton. In 2001, the main presenters, Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan, left the show. Coleen Nolan and Twiggy took their place. However, viewers preferred John and Fern. So, John and Fern started presenting the show full-time. This helped the show's ratings go back up to about one million viewers.

Music and Radio Work

In December 2003, John Leslie was in a music video. It was for the Christmas song "Proper Crimbo". This song was released by Leigh Francis, who created Bo' Selecta!.

In November 2012, John Leslie started presenting a radio show. It was the Friday Drivetime show on 98.8 Castle FM. He hoped to restart his career as a radio DJ. In March 2013, John and other presenters left Castle FM after a disagreement. The radio station later became automated, meaning it had no live presenters.

On 28 March 2014, it was announced that John Leslie would have his own Saturday radio show. This show would be on the Scottish Bauer Radio AM network. It started the very next day.

Filmography

• Formula One (1989)
• Blue Peter (1989–94)
• Future Cooks (1993)
• Scavengers (1994–95)
• Mega Machines (narrator) (1995)
• Style Challenge (1996–98)
• Wheel of Fortune (1998–2001)
• This Morning (1999–2002)
• Was It Good for You? (1999)
• Survivor (2001)