Nicky Campbell

Nicky Campbell presenting the Radio 1 Roadshow from Helensburgh in July 1989

After graduating from the University of Aberdeen with a 2:1 in history, Campbell toyed with the idea of becoming an actor and got involved in commercial production for radio to gain his Equity card. At university, Campbell's best friend had been the actor Iain Glen. He worked at Northsound Radio in Aberdeen from 1981 to 1985, first as a jingle writer, before going on to host the breakfast show.

Campbell worked at London station Capital Radio from 1986–87, occasionally presented on Music Box and joined BBC Radio 1 in 1987, presenting a Saturday night show from 10 pm to midnight. In early 1988, he took over the weekend early morning show from 6 am to 8 am from Simon Mayo and in October 1988 he presented the music and interview show which he named Into the Night, which went out from 10 pm to midnight Monday to Thursday. Guests included political figures, with Campbell interviewing John Major in 1991, after Conservative Party chairman Chris Patten recommended the show to the Prime Minister when Radio 1 sent an invitation to No.10. He was also regularly joined by Frankie Howerd in the last years of the comedian's life. In August 1993, Campbell also took over a Sunday morning show from 10 am to 1 pm, following the on-air resignation of Dave Lee Travis.

Campbell left the network briefly in October 1993 to care for his sick wife. In early 1994, he took over the weekday drivetime show from 4 pm to 7 pm, and in 1995, he took over the afternoon show from 2 pm to 4 pm. Campbell attracted a large audience, and when Radio 2 wanted a replacement for Jimmy Young, he revealed that he was the BBC's choice and detailed a series of meetings between himself and the controller of Radio 2. However, the BBC later claimed that Campbell had initiated the meetings himself, and his public revelations prompted the wrath of Greg Dyke.[1]

Campbell left BBC Radio 1 in October 1997 and joined the news and sport network BBC Radio 5 Live, when offered the job by Roger Mosey, the station's head. He presented the mid-morning programme on 5 Live for over 5 years before replacing Julian Worricker in the breakfast slot in January 2003, co-presenting initially with Victoria Derbyshire. From 2004 to 2011, he co-presented the programme with Shelagh Fogarty. In May 2011, Fogarty left the breakfast show and was replaced by Rachel Burden.[2] Campbell joins the programme half an hour later than Burden (6:30 am, as opposed to 6 am) and usually continues on his own for an hour at the end when the show becomes a topical events phone-in (Your Call). He also presented an interactive programme called Now You're Talking on the radio.

Campbell presented the British version of Wheel of Fortune (produced by Scottish Television for the ITV network) from 1988 to 1996.

He regularly hosted Top of the Pops from 1988 to 1991 and again from 1994 to 1997. In the 1990s, Campbell fronted Central Weekend on Central Television in the English Midlands and Carlton Live in London with Richard Littlejohn and then Andrew Neil.

In 2001, Campbell began presenting the BBC consumer affairs programme Watchdog. He presented the show alongside Kate Sanderson until 2004 and then alongside Julia Bradbury from 2004 until 2009, when it was revealed that Anne Robinson would replace Campbell and Bradbury for the next series of Watchdog, which began airing in September 2009.

In 2006, Campbell appeared in the singing show Just the Two of Us, with Beverley Knight.

From 2007 until 2009, Campbell hosted For the Rest of Your Life for Endemol, beginning in May 2007. Campbell featured in an episode of Who Do You Think You Are? that aired 11 July 2007, where he was seen tracing his adoptive family's roots in Scotland and Australia.

Campbell also narrates the CBeebies show "Our Story".[3]

He currently presents The Big Questions on BBC One and has done so since 2007. He hosted the second series of the BBC Two quiz show Battle of the Brains in 2009. He replaced Paddy O'Connell, who presented the first series.

Since 2011, Campbell has co-presented the BAFTA award-winning Long Lost Family, with Davina McCall on ITV.[4] The show aims to reunite family members and as of 2021, ten series have aired. Campbell also co-hosted BBC One's Your Money Their Tricks opposite Rebecca Wilcox and Sian Williams in July 2013.

In early 2014, Campbell presented four-part series Wanted: A Family of My Own beginning 24 April on ITV.[5] In 2015, he wrote and presented an episode of Perspectives on his great love for 'The Great American Song Book' and a one-off episode called Rebuild Our Home, both for ITV.[6]

Campbell started out as a jingle writer and when he was on BBC Radio 1 from 1987 to 1997, he wrote a lot of music for the station. He has written and co-produced a jazz swing album for singer and actor Mark Moraghan, Moonlight's Back in Style, released on Linn Records in September 2009. Campbell and Moraghan met on Just the Two of Us in 2006. Campbell is a company director of Mhor Music Ltd.,[7] an original music company producing bespoke and original music for feature film, television, corporate media, online content and ringtones; and Mhor Productions Ltd., a supplier of radio and television programming and broadcasting activities.

Campbell and Kate Robbins co-wrote and recorded an album, We're Just Passing Through, which was released on 7 July 2014.

In 2004, he wrote a book called 'Blue Eyed Son', about his own adoption experience. Campbell currently narrates the C5 Documentary series Nightmare Tenants Slum Landlords (June 2019).