Tess Daly facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tess Daly
Daly in 2009
Born	Helen Elizabeth Daly (1969-03-29) 29 March 1969 (age 56) Stockport, Cheshire, England
Education	New Mills School
Occupation	Television presenter model
Years active	1990–present
Spouse(s)	Vernon Kay ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	2

Tess Daly, whose full name is Helen Elizabeth Daly, was born on March 29, 1969. She is a famous English TV presenter and was once a model. Since 2004, she has been the co-host of the very popular dancing show Strictly Come Dancing on BBC One.

Early Life

Tess Daly was born on March 29, 1969. Her parents worked in a textile factory. She grew up in a small place called Birch Vale, near New Mills in Derbyshire, England.

Tess went to Hayfield Primary School. Later, she attended New Mills Secondary School. She did very well in her studies there. Tess has a younger sister named Karen. Her family background includes both English and Irish roots.

Career Highlights

Becoming a Model

Tess Daly started her career as a model. She was discovered by a talent scout outside a McDonald's restaurant in Manchester. At the time, she was waiting for her sister.

When Tess began modelling, there was already another model named "Helen Daly." So, she was asked to choose a different name. Her agent really liked the film Tess and suggested she change her name to "Tess." Tess later said she was "gullible and impressionable" back then. She has not officially changed her name by deed poll. This is because she feels it would be disrespectful to her parents.

Six weeks after her 18th birthday, Tess got her first professional modelling job in Tokyo. She then worked in many places across Asia and Europe. She lived in London for a while, then in Paris for five years. After that, she moved to New York for another five years.

In the 1990s, Tess appeared in music videos. She was in two Duran Duran videos: "Serious" and "Violence of Summer (Love's Taking Over)". She also appeared in The Beloved's 1993 song "Sweet Harmony". Later, she became the face of Danone Shape yogurt. She also modelled for the lingerie company La Senza in the UK.

Moving to Television

Tess Daly at the 2008 BAFTA Awards

While Tess was living in New York City, a friend suggested she interview celebrities at red carpet events. She bought a video camera and her first interview was with Quentin Crisp.

In 2000, she sent a video of her interviews to the producers of Channel 4's The Big Breakfast. They quickly hired her to host a competition called Find Me a Model. Since then, Tess has presented many TV shows. These include Get Your Kit Off, Singled Out, Smash Hits TV, and SMTV Live. She also hosted Back To Reality and the first series of Make Me a Supermodel.

In 2003, Tess took over from Ulrika Jonsson as the presenter of Home On Their Own on ITV. This show let children make changes to their house over a weekend. Their parents would go on holiday, and the kids would decide on home improvements. Some ideas included an Austin Powers themed room or individual doorbells for the children.

Hosting Strictly Come Dancing

Tess Daly has been a co-presenter of BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing since 2004. She first hosted the show with Bruce Forsyth. When he left in 2013, Claudia Winkleman joined her as co-host in 2014. Tess missed the first part of the second series because she had just had her first daughter. Natasha Kaplinsky, who won the previous series, filled in for her during those episodes.

Other TV Shows

In January 2007, Tess and her husband Vernon Kay co-presented the second series of Just the Two of Us on BBC One.

Tess has also hosted This Time Tomorrow. She also presented the National Lottery show on BBC One. From 2008 to 2019, Tess co-presented the BBC telethon Children in Need. This is a big charity event. She even won a special Children in Need version of Strictly Come Dancing herself. She was partnered with Anton du Beke. On December 17, 2008, Tess also co-hosted the Royal Variety Performance.

In November 2013, Tess was a guest presenter on an episode of The One Show. In 2015, she co-hosted The People's Strictly for Comic Relief for BBC One. This was a charity spin-off of Strictly Come Dancing. Also in 2015, Tess co-hosted Being Mum, a new show for AOL, with Rochelle Humes.

In 2019, she played a character who hosts a TV show called The Spotlight. This was in the CBBC drama Almost Never.

Other Work

In 2011, Tess Daly wrote her first novel, The Camera Never Lies. It was a story about love behind the scenes. Her second book, It's Up to You New York, was published in 2013.

In 2013, she became the new face of L'Oréal, a well-known beauty brand. In December 2017, Tess became the new face of Vitabiotics' Wellwoman supplements. She is also a co-founder of a swimwear brand called Naia Beach. She started this company with former swimwear model Gayle Lawton.

Personal Life

Tess Daly married DJ and television presenter Vernon Kay on September 12, 2003. Their wedding took place at St Mary's Catholic Church in Horwich, near Bolton. They have two daughters, who were born in 2004 and 2008. The family lives in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire.

Television Appearances

Guest Appearances

• Shooting Stars (2002, 2011)
• Bo' Selecta! (2002)
• Davina (2006)
• The Paul O'Grady Show (2007)
• Celebrity Juice (2012, 2014)
• Would I Lie to You? (2012)
• 8 Out of 10 Cats (2012, 2013)
• That Puppet Game Show (2013)
• Alan Carr: Chatty Man (2013)
• The Guess List (2014)
• Celebrity Squares (2015)
• Through the Keyhole (2015)
• Game of Talents (2021)
• RuPaul's Drag Race UK (2022)

Images for kids

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  A robot for kids

See also

In Spanish: Tess Daly para niños