Chris was born in Bristol. He was a former actor with the Bristol Old Vic (joining in 1966).
…Jones, Gareth
Gareth was born in St Asaph, Wales and is a Welsh speaker. His nickname – ‘Gaz Top’ – was earned whilst working as a roadie for The Alarm (1979 – 1985).
…Craven, John
John was born in Leeds. He’s had a long career in journalism and TV presenting. He started in print journalism as a junior reporter at the Harrogate Advertiser.
…Haycocks, Paddy
Paddy was born in Portsmouth. He worked at BFBS radio (British Forces Broadcasting Service) in Cyprus (1966 – 1968). He performed various roles including tape editing, reporting, presenting and studio management (1966 – 1968).
…Stevens, Julie
Julie is an actress and former ABC contract artist. She was a great children’s favourite on both Play School (1964 – 1978) and Play Away (1971 – 1979) and is remembered for her zany appearances.
…Constantinis, Jayne
Jayne was born in Yorkshire. She has an acting diploma from the Royal Academy of Music and a modern languages degree from Cambridge. She studied journalism at the LCP and has written for publications including Condé Nast Traveller and Good Housekeeping.
…Kyle, Redvers
Redvers is regarded as one of ITV’s announcing greats. He was born in Germiston, South Africa and named after General Sir Redvers Buller, British military commander in the Anglo-Boer War. He began his broadcasting career as a student at Johannesburg University, where he presented for SABC (South African Broadcasting Corporation).
…Chell, Carol
Carol was born in 1941. An actress, she studied drama at The Royal Academy of Music and was a qualified teacher who presented many schools series for Granada TV and Central TV including: The Messengers and Enough to Eat. Carol was the 23rd presenter on Play School making her first appearance on 28th February 1966, which was the start of a 22-year association with the programme, giving her the distinction of being the longest-serving presenter and also the presenter with the most appearances – 763 editions – and one of only four presenters to appear in all three decades.
…Griffiths, Derek
Derek is fondly remembered by a certain generation as a children’s TV presenter during the 1970s on Play School and Play Away.
…Burn, Christine
Christine was born in Birmingham. She attended the Birmingham School of Speech and Drama (1961 – 1963) and the Lucie Clayton Modelling School (spring 1964).
…Macann, Peter
Peter was born in Tehran, Iran. His father, as a Colonel in the Indian Army, was Consul in Ahwaz at the time. Peter spent the first four years of his life in India, before arriving in the UK in 1948.
…Taylor, Alec
Alec was born in Dublin. He went to university in Dublin and worked as a publicity assistant for Oxam, then as a market researcher and teacher.
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