Matt Baker is a British TV presenter who co-presented the children’s television show “Blue Peter” from 1999 until 2006, BBC One’s “Countryfile” since 2009, and “The One Show” from 2011 to 2020, with Alex Jones. During his seven years with “Blue Peter”, he won the title Best Children’s Presenter in BAFTAs for two consecutive years. In his Junior years, he was a British gymnast and sports acrobatics champion. He had to give up due to anemia at the age of 14. He was also the commentator for the gymnastics events for the BBC’s coverage of the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics. He was a participant in 2010 Strictly Come Dancing. He won second place with his dance partner, professional ballroom dancer, Aliona Vilani. He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2022 New Year Honours for charitable and voluntary services to fundraising. He is the currently presenter of “Matt Baker: Our Farm in the Dales” on Channel 4 since 2021. The show is now in its second season and is a hit with fans, but Matt’s career nearly went down an entirely different path.
What is Matt Baker Famous For?
- Being a British TV Present, and Actor.
- For co-presenting the children’s television show “Blue Peter” from 1999 until 2006.
Where is Matt Baker From?
Matt Baker took birth on 23rd December 1997. He is from Easington, County Durham, England. He holds British nationality and he belongs to British-White ethnic background. His birth name is Matthew James Baker. His present age is 44 as of 2021. His family had a smallholding in the village where his father ran a newsagents shop. His father’s name is Mike and his mother’s name is Janice. About his siblings, he has one sister and two half-sisters. Capricorn is his Zodiac sign and his religion is Christian.
Source: @mirror
Regarding his education, he attended Easington Village School. When he was 10, his parents bought a farm west of Durham, which they moved into and renovated. From the age of 5, he was a keen dancer and began competing as a gymnast whilst at school. He continued his education at Belmont Comprehensive School in Durham and was a budding gymnast, but was forced to give up after being diagnosed with anemia at the age of 14. He next took A-levels in Drama, Biology, and Sports Science at Durham Sixth Form Centre. In the late 1990s, as a drama student at Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh, he worked as an entertainer, and with a 1970s comedy disco-dancing revival show called “Disco Inferno”, which toured the north of England.
Matt Baker Career Timeline
- Matt Baker initially wanted to become a physiotherapist. Later, his future wife’s aunt spotted that “Blue Peter” was looking for a new presenter.
- He was then asked to come to London the next day for an interview and made his first appearance on the show on 25th June 1999. His gymnastic background helped him in physical challenges, including training as a stuntman, and passing the recruitment courses for both the Royal Marines and the Parachute Regiment.
- During his seven years on Blue Peter, he won two BAFTAs for Best Children’s Presenter two years in a row and a Royal Television Society award.
- He then left “Blue Peter” at the end of its 2005–06 series. His last live show was broadcast on 26th June.
- After that, he co-presented “Countryfile Summer Diaries” on weekday mornings on BBC One along with “Open Country” for Radio 4 and “Animal Rescue Squad” and “Animal Rescue Squad International” for Channel 5.
- He has co-presented BBC One’s Countryfile on Sunday evenings since 2009.
- In addition, he co-presented the first series of “Secret Britain” with Julia Bradbury and presented “One Man and His Dog” with Kate Humble.
- He was a guest presenter on BBC One’s magazine program “The One Show” from May to August 2010. He then acted as a guest co-host on the program and took over as a permanent presenter on the show.
- Later, he rose to the public by asking then-Prime Minister David Cameron, “How on earth do you sleep at night?” on 8th March 2011. Will Heaven, Deputy Editor of Telegraph Blogs, wrote: “Was this the unearthing of a true Northern lefty? Or did Baker just misspeak?”.
- He announced on The One Show on 4th December 2019 stating that he would be leaving in the spring of 2020. He announced it in an emotional speech to the camera where he thanked everyone for their support, especially for the money donated to The Rickshaw Challenges. His last show on “The One Show” was on 31 March 2020 (Tuesday).
- Besides this, he was one of three main presenters on the final series of the BBC One reality series “City Hospital”.
- He also co-presented coverage of “Crufts” in March 2007 and in 2008.
- He co-presented five episodes of “Animal Rescue Live” with Selina Scott in 2007.
- He co-hosted the London 2012 party with Claudia Winkleman on 24th August 2008. For the BBC’s coverage of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, he commentated on the gymnastics events.
- Furthermore, he provided commentary for the gymnastics at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, provided the BBC commentary on the gymnastic events at the Rio Olympics in 2016, and provided commentary for the Tokyo 2020 gymnastics events.
- Similarly, he took part in the reality program “Around the World in 80 Days” in October 2009.
- He was a celebrity showjumper in the Sport Relief event “Only Fools on Horses” in 2006.
- He co-hosted the four-part BBC One series “The Gift” in 2015 and also co-hosted a three-part factual series “Big Blue Live” in the same year.
- In July 2017, he co-presented “Wild Alaska Live” on BBC One with Steve Backshall and Liz Bonnin.
- He participated in the eighth series of “Strictly Come Dancing” in 2010 partnering with ballroom dancer Aliona Vilani finishing in second place. Also, they participated in 2011 Strictly Come Dancing Live Tour.
- When it comes to his film career, he played himself in an episode of the BBC Drama series “Cutting It” in 2002 and briefly appeared as himself, as the presenter of Blue Peter, in an episode of the sci-fi series “Doctor Who”.
- He played the role of Dick from “The Famous Five in The Queen’s Handbag” in June 2006.
- He returned to his native North East England to play the role of Caractacus Potts in the production of “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” at the Sunderland Empire.
Source: @thetimes
Matt Baker Personal Life: Who is he married to?
Matt Baker is a married man to his beautiful wife, Nicola Mooney. By profession, Nicola is a former physiotherapist. He first met his spouse when he was performing in the disco show at Pier 39 in Cleethorpes. On 16th July 2004, the couple married and their wedding took place at Winston in Teesdale. The couple is also blessed with two children; a son namely Luke and a daughter namely Molly. The family is currently residing in Buckinghamshire. He also described Nicola as a very patient and supportive wife. In early 2011, Baker was elected as the president of the National Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs. He is president for Here4Horses. His sexual orientation is straight. He also has a dog namely Meg.
Source: @instagram.com/mattbakerofficial
Matt Baker Net Worth and Annual Salary
Matt Baker is a talented TV present whose net worth is estimated to have $10 Million as of 2022. He is making an annual salary of around $1 Million annually. His earnings comes from his professional career as a TV presenter. Today, he is living a cool lifestyle. He has spent a notable amount of time in the entertainment industry and he is undoubtedly one of the talented personalities of the modern entertainment industry.
What is Matt Baker Height?
Matt Baker stands at the perfect height of 5 feet 8 inches. His balanced bodyweight consists of 78 kg. He has a pair of brown eyes and his hair color is also the same. Overall, he has got a healthy body with an average body type.
Source: Gossip G
