Jason Manford to take over from Adrian Chiles on The One Show

11 April 2012
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Comedian Jason Manford will step into Adrian Chiles's shoes on The One Show, the BBC announced.

The panel show regular will join Christine Bleakley to present the flagship BBC1 magazine programme.


In the hotsteat: Jason Manford will replace Adrian Chiles

He will join the team in July, the corporation said, and will co-host the show from Monday to Thursday.

Others who had been thought to be in the frame included Matt Allwright and Matt Baker.

Chiles made an emotional farewell to viewers last month in his final appearance on The One Show.

The presenter has defected to ITV in a deal which sees him heading to the GMTV sofa and fronting a range of shows including football coverage.

Chiles had appeared on the BBC1 weekday magazine programme since 2007, co-presenting with Myleene Klass when the show first hit TV screens.

During his tenure, Chiles dressed as James Bond, broke a kissing record, was caned on his backside and donned a pair of high heels.

He was thought to have agreed a £6 million contract over four years with ITV after becoming disenchanted by the BBC's decision to replace him with Chris Evans on The One Show on Friday nights.

Lancashire-born Manford, 29, said: "I am thrilled to be part of The One Show team.

"My dad put £10 at 500/1 that I'd get the job so it just made sense."

He does not yet have the same household name status as Chiles or Evans, and could be seen as a surprise choice for the popular show.

But it is thought his cheeky observations and friendly approach are set to make viewers warm to him.

Like fellow host Evans, Manford has also presented on BBC Radio 2 and last year he fronted Jason Manford And Friends, a two-part series showcasing the cream of the comedy acts from the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe.

BBC1 controller Jay Hunt said: "Jason looked instantly at home on The One Show sofa.

"His intelligence and humour strike just the right tone for the programme and he is an exciting addition to the team."

The One Show editor Sandy Smith added: "Jason's strength is his likeability, his natural warmth and his quick wit.

"He's intelligent and curious about the sort of subjects discussed every day on The One Show and is equally at home with the light-hearted and the serious issues."

The show, which features celebrity guests and topical subject matter, regularly pulls in more than five million viewers.

The BBC said that to add to its regular formula, some new features and guest slots will be revealed in the coming weeks.

The show achieved its highest ratings this year at 7.4 million.

Regular reporters on the programme include Allwright, Dan Snow, Phil Tufnell, John Sergeant, Gyles Brandreth, and Germaine Greer.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in