Jonathan Shalit

Shalit left the City of London School at the age of 18, working initially as a broker at Lloyd's of London and then worked at advertising company Saatchi & Saatchi before founding his first West End talent management company, Shalit Global, in 1991.{{cite web |last=Rashty |first=Sandy |date=13 November 2014 |title=Jonathan Shalit: Starmaker who shows celebs what it means to be Jewish |url=https://www.thejc.com/culture/tv/jonathan-shalit-starmaker-who-shows-celebs-what-it-means-to-be-jewish-1.61160 |access-date= |website=thejc.com |publisher=Jewish Chronicle |quote=}}

He has managed the careers of stars including Charlotte Church, Mel B, Baroness Brady, Kelly Brook, Cher, Dame Joan Collins, Rebecca Ferguson, Katherine Jenkins, Lorraine Kelly, Myleene Klass, Arlene Phillips, Simon Cowell, and the winners of the ITV television talent show Britain's Got Talent.{{cite web|title=jonathanshalit.com|url=http://www.jonathanshalit.com/biography.shtml|accessdate= 12 April 2015|website=Jonathan Shalit}}{{cite web|title=The man who turned Myleene Klass' fame into fortune|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/festival-of-business/11075732/The-man-who-turned-Myleene-Klass-fame-into-fortune.html|accessdate=12 April 2015|website=The Telegraph}} In 1994, he was instrumental in the making of The Glory of Gershwin, Larry Adler's album of George and Ira Gershwin songs.The Glory of Gershwin CD booklet.

As a regular media commentator on entertainment issues, Shalit appears frequently in broadcast and print. Between 2020 and 2022, Shalit, who is Jewish, authored a column for the Jewish Chronicle.{{Cite web |title=Jonathan Shalit |url=https://www.thejc.com/author/jonathan-shalit-t6e7mto6?skip=16&limit=16#pg-anchor |access-date=2024-11-25 |website=The Jewish Chronicle}}

In 2012 he gave evidence to the Leveson Inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British Press. His evidence disputed that given by his former client Charlotte Church, who said that she had been encouraged to perform at Rupert Murdoch's birthday party in exchange for positive media coverage, waiving a £100,000 fee, over a decade previously.{{Citation needed|date=November 2024}} In 2000, Shalit had sued Church over his dismissal as her manager and was awarded £2 million, in addition to his legal costs.{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/1039171.stm |title=Charlotte's ex-manager 'gets £2m' |last= |first= |date=24 November 2000 |website=BBC News |publisher= |access-date= |quote=}}.

Shalit has been executive producer in two movies: Pudsey the Dog: The Movie (2014; also voiced the character Cyril the Chicken) and The Time of Their Lives (2017).{{Cite web |title=Jonathan Shalit |url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1694982/ |access-date=2022-12-01 |website=IMDb |language=en-US}}

Shalit is chair of trustees and Chief Barker of Variety, the Children's Charity and a leading figure behind the return to London of the Variety Club Showbusiness Awards in 2022. He is also Chairman of the MOBO Charity Foundation (Music of Black Origin), a Trustee of ChickenShed (Theatre Changing Lives), Patron of the Royal Television Society and co-chairman of the Classic BRITS, and a supporter of Norwood.{{cite web |title=Jonathan Shalit talks to Norwood |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lw3klntY0ac |accessdate=14 April 2015 |website=YouTube| date=11 November 2013 }}

Shalit was awarded the OBE in 2014 for services to the entertainment industry.{{cite web |title=UK Cabinet Office, Birthday Honours 2014 |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/319881/Birthday_Honours_2014_List.pdf/ |accessdate=6 April 2015 |website=GOV.UK}} He also holds an honorary professorship, awarded in 2012, and honorary doctorate at Henley Business School of Reading University in recognition of his contribution to the arts, music and broadcasting.{{cite web |date=11 May 2012 |title=Jonathan Shalit becomes a Professor |url=https://www.musicweek.com/news/read/jonathan-shalit-becomes-a-professor/048866 |accessdate=6 April 2015 |website=Music Week}}

{{reflist}}

• [http://jonathanshalit.com jonathanshalit.com] Retrieved 12 April 2015
• {{IMDb name|1694982}}
• [https://archive.today/20150412142401/http://debretts.com/people-of-today/profile/13425/Jonathan-Sigmund-SHALIT Debrett's] Retrieved 12 April 2015

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Category:1962 births

Category:English Jews

Category:Living people

Category:British talent agents

Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire

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