Reggie Yates

Yates' parents, Felicia Asante and Reginald "Jojo" Yates,[https://www.thegenealogist.co.uk/featuredarticles/2014/who-do-you-think-you-are/reggie-yates-172/ "Reggie Yates – A tale of complicated relationships in the Ghana goldrush of the early 20th Century..."], TheGenealogist, 24 September 2014. were both born in Ghana;{{cite news|first=Rachel |last=Shields|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/tv-radio/im-peerless-if-youre-black-and-want-it-all-theres-no-blueprint-2157939.html |title='I'm peerless. If you're black and want it all, there's no blueprint'|newspaper=The Independent|date= 12 December 2010}} however, his paternal grandfather Harry was the son of an English accountant, George Yates, who worked in the gold mining industry. Harry Yates' mother Dorothy was also a member of Ghana's Euro-African community: her father was a British colonial administrator, Augustus George Lloyd, while her mother Sarah was an ethnic Fante, who worked as a farmer and trader in Dixcove, Ghana.Bauckham, Jon ( 25 September 2014), [http://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/episode/reggie-yates "Reggie Yates"],Who Do You Think You Are? online.

Yates grew up in North London, where he attended Central Foundation Boys' School in Cowper Street, Islington.

{{BLP sources section|date=August 2023}}

File:Reggie Yates (cropped).jpg

Yates made his first television appearance in Desmond's at the age of eight. He also appeared in Disney Club, as Robbie.{{cite podcast |edition=179 |url=https://soundcloud.com/an-irishman-abroad/craig-doyle-episode-179 |author-link=Jarlath Regan |first=Jarlath |last=Regan |work=An Irishman Abroad |publisher=SoundCloud |title=Craig Doyle |date=18 February 2017 |access-date=19 April 2017 |minutes=34}} In 1998, Yates appeared as a guest presenter on Diggit on CITV also under the name Robbie. In 2002, he played Carl Fenton in the popular children's series Grange Hill. From 2002 to 2004, he presented the Sunday morning programme Smile, and then went on to present Top of the Pops with former Smile co-host Fearne Cotton before the final episode broadcast on BBC Two on 30 July 2006. He also created and starred in the series The Crust and presented Dance Factory and his own radio show on BBC Radio 1.

In 2005, Yates appeared in the BBC singing contest Comic Relief Does Fame Academy in aid of Comic Relief, finishing in fourth place. On the show, his songs included "Boombastic", "You're The First, The Last, My Everything", "It Ain't Over Til It's Over", "U Can't Touch This" and "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)". He also sang a duet, "It Takes Two", with Edith Bowman, the eventual winner of the show. He dyed his hair red for his performance of "Dancing on the Ceiling".

On 10 March 2006, Yates appeared on Stars in Fast Cars and won his heat to get into the final, beating Elton Welsby and Ben Fogle in the last round.

Yates presented Mighty Truck of Stuff and Only in America with Fearne Cotton on CBBC as well as a programme on BBC Radio 1. They presented a breakfast show on Saturday and Sunday mornings, taking over from JK and Joel. They played from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 am. The duo then went on to present The Radio 1 Chart Show starting on 14 October 2007 until Sunday 20 September 2009. Cotton left following her promotion to weekday mornings on Radio 1 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:45 pm, leaving Yates to present on his own.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/schedule/oct2007.shtml |title=All Change at Radio 1 |access-date=6 September 2007 |date=6 September 2007 |publisher=BBC Radio 1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011083008/http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/schedule/oct2007.shtml |archive-date=11 October 2007}}

In addition to the chart show, Yates also presented a request show on Saturday afternoons, known as The Radio 1 Request Show, where listeners could send in a text or phone in to request a song. In April 2012, it was announced that Yates would finish the request show and continue with only The Official Chart. He announced in November 2012 that he would leave BBC Radio 1, and his last show aired on 23 December that year.

In 2006, Yates appeared on a Reality TV Special of The Weakest Link and was voted off in the fourth round.

In 2007, Yates appeared in the third series of revived science-fiction series Doctor Who as Leo Jones, brother of the Tenth Doctor's companion Martha.{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/news/jones.shtml |title=Meet the Joneses |publisher=BBC |date=3 September 2006 |access-date=3 September 2006}}

Yates also presented series 1 of Escape from Scorpion Island with co-presenter Caroline Flack on BBC 1 between 3 and 21 September 2007.{{cite web |title=UK Game Shows |url=http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Escape_from_Scorpion_Island |website=UK Game Shows |access-date=3 August 2014}}

He also appeared on Dizzee Rascal's 2007 single "Flex" music video as one of the judges in a parody TV show called "Flex Factor".[https://www.bbc.co.uk/1xtra/semtex/diary/archive_page_09.shtml "Semtex on set at the Dizzee Rascal 'Flex' video shoot"], BBC, 10 October 2007.

Yates co-hosted the MOBO Awards 2009 with Keri Hilson at the SECC, Glasgow. He has also presented live coverage of the Glastonbury, Reading and T in the Park music festivals for BBC Three, and interviewed stars such as Estelle and 50 Cent for MTV specials. Yates made a cameo appearance in Jack Osbourne's Celebrity Adrenaline Junkie.

Yates appeared in a special Family Guy episode on BBC Three, counting down the top 20 characters of the show as part of a special Family Guy weekend.

In 2011, Yates voiced the main character, Rastamouse, in the CBeebies television show Rastamouse. In March 2011, he appeared with Lenny Henry, Angela Rippon, and Samantha Womack in the BBC fundraising documentary for Comic Relief called Rich, Famous and in the Slums, where the four celebrities were sent to Kibera in Kenya, Africa's largest slum.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2011/mar/03/love-they-neighbour-review |title=TV review: Love Thy Neighbour; Famous, Rich and In the Slums |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=4 March 2011 |author=Mangan, Lucy |location=London |date=3 March 2011}} In October 2011, Yates starred in Arjun Rose's UK slasher Demons Never Die as Officer Mason.

In 2012, as part of BBC Three's Criminal Britain Season, Yates explored the culture of fear, anger and violence that drives the dangerous world of teen gangs. The show, Reggie Yates: Teen Gangs, involved him speaking to current and former gang members to find out why and how teens get into gangs.

In 2012 and 2013, Yates hosted the BBC One singing show The Voice UK, hosting the first two series with Holly Willoughby. They were replaced by Emma Willis and Marvin Humes in 2013.

2013 saw Yates travel to South Africa to shoot a series, Reggie Yates' Extreme South Africa: White Slums, which aired in Spring 2014 on BBC Three. It was successful enough for Yates to return with Reggie Yates' Extreme Russia in April 2015 for BBC Three.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05rbyhq "Reggie Yates' Extreme Russia"], BBC.co.uk. Accessed 8 August 2023.

In 2013, his first short film Patriarch aired on Channel 4 as part of their "Random Acts" season and he has just completed his second short called Date Night, starring Daniel Kaluuya and Tony Way, which won "Best UK Short Film" at the London Independent Film Festival.

Yates hosted the ITV2 programme Release the Hounds from 2013 until 2017. He was replaced by Matt Edmondson in 2017.{{cite web |url=https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/reality-tv/news/a832917/matt-edmondson-replaces-reggie-yates-host-release-the-hounds/ |title=Matt Edmondson replaces Reggie Yates as host of Release the Hounds |first=Justin|last=Harp|website=Digital Spy|date=11 July 2017}}

Yates appeared in an episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, first aired on 25 September 2014,{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04jr0rl|title=Reggie Yates {{!}} Who Do You Think You Are?|website=BBC One|access-date=4 May 2023}} for which he travelled to Ghana to trace his family history.{{cite web|url=https://www.whodoyouthinkyouaremagazine.com/episode/reggie-yates/|title=Reggie Yates on Who Do You Think You Are?: Everything you need to know|website=Welcome to Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine|access-date=4 May 2023}}

Yates, along with Emma Willis presented the Saturday-night game show Prized Apart on BBC One in 2015.{{cite web|first=Alex |last=Fletcher|url=http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/tv/news/a616000/emma-willis-reggie-yates-to-host-new-bbc-saturday-night-show-prized-apart.html#~oY9u5l3YiNvktV |title=Emma Willis, Reggie Yates to host new BBC Saturday night show Prized Apart|website= Digital Spy|date= 11 December 2014}} The show was axed shortly after.

In 2016, Yates was awarded Best Presenter for his critically acclaimed series Extreme Russia at the Royal Television Society Awards[https://rts.org.uk/award/rts-programme-awards-2016 "RTS Programme Awards"], 2016 winners. and Best Multi-channel Programme at the Broadcast Awards.[http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/features/best-multi-channel-programme-reggie-yates-extreme-russia/5100103.article "Best multi-channel programme: Reggie Yates' Extreme Russia"] Broadcast Now

Continuing his documentarian journey, in 2016 Yates's BBC Three series The Insider saw the presenter spend time behind bars in Texas and join Unit 27 of the 56th Infantry Battalion in Acapulco to live the life of an ordinary soldier fighting on the front line of the brutal war against the country's powerful and violent drug cartels.

In 2018, Yates was the themed category judge for Koestler Trust's I'm Still Here at the Southbank Centre, London, an exhibition of art works by prisoners, detainees and ex-offenders. The theme was 'connections'.{{cite web |title=Exhibition Launch – I'm Still Here |url=https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/131591-exhibition-launch-i'm-still-here-2018 |website=Southbank Centre |access-date=31 January 2019}}. Yates has also been listed in the Powerlist, as one of the most influential people in the UK from African/African-Caribbean descent, most recently making the 2019, 2020 and 2021 editions.{{cite web |last1=Mills |first1=Kelly-Ann |title=Raheem Sterling joins Meghan and Stormzy in top 100 most influential black Brits |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/black-powerlist-2020-raheem-sterling-20721033 |website=mirror |access-date=20 April 2020 |date=25 October 2019}}

In 2020, Yates' television film Make Me Famous premiered on BBC Three.{{Cite news|url=https://www.whattowatch.com/news/make-me-famous-guide-624574/|title=Make Me Famous on BBC3: launch date, cast, plot details and everything you need to know|work=What's on TV|first=Steven |last=Perkins|access-date=10 June 2020|archive-date=10 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610180138/https://www.whatsontv.co.uk/news/make-me-famous-guide-624574/amp/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2020/cast-announced-reggie-yates-make-me-famous|title=Cast announced for Reggie Yates's screenplay: BBC Three's Make Me Famous|work=BBC|date=2 April 2020|access-date=10 April 2020|archive-date=11 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411054223/https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2020/cast-announced-reggie-yates-make-me-famous|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/drama/bbc-three-drama-make-me-famous-first-look/|title=First look at BBC Three one-off drama about impact of "fast fame" on reality TV stars|work=Radio Times|date=2 April 2020|access-date=10 April 2020|archive-date=10 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200410183542/https://www.radiotimes.com/news/tv/2020-04-02/bbc-three-drama-make-me-famous-first-look/amp/|url-status=live}}{{cite news |title=Cast announced for Reggie Yates's screenplay: BBC Three's Make Me Famous| work=BBC|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2020/cast-announced-reggie-yates-make-me-famous|access-date=25 May 2021 |date=2 April 2020}}{{cite news |title=Make Me Famous review: Reggie Yates' BBC Three TV film on the tragedy that befalls reality stars should be compulsory viewing| work=Metro|url=https://metro.co.uk/2020/06/22/make-famous-review-should-compulsory-viewing-everybody-12861080/|last=Yeates|first=Cydney|access-date=25 May 2021 |date=22 June 2020}}

In 2021, Yates's debut directorial feature film, Pirates, was released. The film, a comedy-drama set in 1990s London,{{Cite web |last=Webb |first=Beth |date=2021-10-15 |title='Pirates', Reggie Yates' directorial debut, drops first trailer |url=https://www.nme.com/news/film/pirates-reggie-yates-directorial-debut-drops-first-trailer-3071587 |access-date=28 July 2023 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} received largely favourable reviews from critics.{{Citation |title=Pirates |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/pirates-2021 |access-date=28 July 2023}}

In 2017, the BBC was forced to apologise for a Yates (and independent production company, Sundog Pictures) piece on Australia's Indigenous communities called Hidden Australia: Black in the Outback,{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04nc0s5|title=BBC Three – Reggie Yates: Hidden Australia, Black in the Outback|website=BBC|language=en-GB|date=2017|access-date=27 March 2020}} filmed in Wilcannia, New South Wales.{{Cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-06-08/bbc-suspends-relationship-with-wilcannia-doco-sundog-pictures/8599730|title=BBC suspends relationship with producers of Wilcannia documentary|last=Wainwright|first=Sofie|date=8 June 2017|website=ABC News|language=en-AU|access-date=27 March 2020}} The Aboriginal people Yates interviewed and filmed for the documentary said they were misled by Yates and the production crew. They accused Yates of portraying them in a negative light, after Yates had promised them the story would be fair.{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/mar/08/bbc-apologises-for-misleading-documentary-on-aboriginal-community |title=BBC apologises for misleading documentary on 'drunken' Aboriginal community |first=Helen |last=Davidson |date=8 March 2017 |work=The Guardian}}

In November 2017, Yates stated on a podcast: "The thing that makes it great about this new generation of artists is that they ain't signing to majors. They're independent, they're not managed by some random fat Jewish guy from north west London, they're managed by their brethren".{{cite news |last=Turner |first=Camilla |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/11/18/reggie-yates-apologises-comment-fat-jewish-music-managers-north/ |title=Reggie Yates apologises for comment about 'fat Jewish' music managers from north London |work=The Telegraph |date=18 November 2017 |access-date=24 December 2017}} His remarks were condemned by the Community Security Trust's Dave Rich who said: "Even worse than any offence is the message Yates gives his audience by reinforcing an anti-Semitic stereotype". Yates was "hugely apologetic" for his comment.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-42063141 |title=Reggie Yates apologises for 'fat Jewish guy' comment |publisher=BBC News |date=21 November 2017 |access-date=24 December 2017}} Following his comments, he stood down from presenting the 2017 festive special editions of Top of the Pops.{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-42231416 |title=Reggie Yates leaves Top of the Pops after 'offensive' Jewish slur |publisher=BBC News |date=4 December 2017 |access-date=24 December 2017}}

In 2019, when filming for his MTV television series Reggie Yates vs The World in Derry, Northern Ireland, it was claimed that tensions on the street were stoked by dissident Republicans "for the benefit of the film crew", resulting in a riot during which Lyra McKee was murdered.{{cite news |url= https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/apr/21/new-ira-staged-derry-riot-to-impress-tv-presenter-reggie-yates |title=Dissidents accused of stoking Derry riot for Reggie Yates documentary |first=Rory|last= Carroll|date=21 April 2019 |work=The Guardian }}{{cite news|first1=Dipesh|last1=Gadher|access-date=9 August 2019|title=Reggie Yates's MTV crew 'drew crowd' to riot in Derry|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/crime/article/reggie-yatess-mtv-crew-drew-crowd-to-riot-in-derry-lkj7x857z|newspaper=The Sunday Times|date=21 April 2019|issn=0956-1382}}{{cite news|access-date=9 August 2019|title=Lyra McKee killed for TV cameras: New IRA wanted publicity with MTV in Derry for documentary|first=Ciaran|last=Barnes|date=22 April 2019|url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sunday-life/lyra-mckee-killed-for-tv-cameras-new-ira-wanted-publicity-with-mtv-in-derry-for-documentary-38034806.html|newspaper=The Belfast Telegraph|issn=0307-1235}}{{cite web|access-date=9 August 2019|title='New IRA' reportedly tried to 'impress MTV presenter Reggie Yates when Lyra McKee was murdered'|first= Emma|last=Costello|url=https://extra.ie/2019/04/21/news/irish-news/new-ira-reggie-yates-lyra-mckee|date=21 April 2019|website=Extra.ie}} Detective Superintendent Jason Murphy of the Police Service of Northern Ireland said that those claims were untrue.{{cite web|access-date=9 August 2019|first=Graham|last= McGrath|title=MTV denies film crew 'impacted' severity of Derry riot where Lyra McKee died|url=https://extra.ie/2019/04/23/news/irish-news/mtv-derry-riot|date=23 April 2019|website=Extra.ie}}

{{div col|colwidth=25em}}

• Top of the Pops (BBC One; 2004–2016) – Co-presenter, with Fearne Cotton
• Mighty Truck of Stuff (CBBC Channel; 2005) – Presenter
• Only in America (CBBC Channel; 2005) – Co-presenter, with Fearne Cotton
• Dance Factory
• Beckham's Hotshots
• Smile (BBC Two)
• Bring It On (BBC One)
• UGetMe (CBBC & BBC One)
• Trevor Nelson's Lowdown (BBC Three)
• The Big C Concert (BBC)
• Blue Peter Jubilee Special (BBC)
• Kids Passport to London (Miramax)
• Disney Club
• Diggit, RoadHog (Buena Vista)
• Get 100 (BBC Two; 2007)
• Escape from Scorpion Island (CBBC Channel; 2007) – Co-presenter, with Caroline Flack
• The Almost Perfect Guide to Life (BBC Switch)
• MTV Base Backstage EMA 2007 (MTV Base)
• MOBO Awards (BBC; 2009)
• ''School for Stars (CBBC) – Narrator
• Autistic Superstars 2010 (BBC Three)
• Frankenstein's Wedding... Live in Leeds (BBC Three)
• Reggie Yates: Teen Gangs (BBC Three) – Presenter
• This is Justin Bieber (ITV; 2011) – Presenter
• The Voice UK (BBC One; 2012–2013) – Co-presenter, with Holly Willoughby
• Unity: A Concert for Stephen Lawrence (BBC One)
• Release the Hounds (ITV2; 2013–2017) – Presenter
• Who Do You Think You Are? (BBC One; 2014) – Subject
• Reggie Yates: Extreme South Africa (BBC Three) – Presenter
• Reggie & Thunderbirds: No Strings Attached[https://www.itv.com/presscentre/ep1week14/reggie-thunderbirds-no-strings-attached "Reggie & Thunderbirds: No Strings Attached"], ITV Press Centre. (ITV2; 2015) – Presenter
• Thunderbirds Are Go – Ellis the Security Guard (voice)
• Reggie Yates: Extreme Russia (BBC Three; 2015–) – Presenter
• Prized Apart (BBC One; 2015) – Co-presenter, with Emma Willis
• Reggie Yates: Race Riots USA – Presenter
• Reggie Yates Extreme Countries (BBC Three; 2015–) – Presenter
• Reggie Yates: The Insider (BBC Three; 2016–) – Presenter
• Special Forces: Ultimate Hell Week (BBC Two; series 2, 2017–) – Presenter
• Reggie in China (BBC Two; series 1, 2019) – Presenter

{{div col end}}

{{div col|colwidth=25em}}

• Fearne & Reggie (BBC Radio 1)
• The Trevor Nelson Show (BBC Radio 1)
• Reg & Dev (BBC Radio 1Xtra)
• Smile Radio (Smile Website)
• The UK Top 40 (Formally known as Radio 1's Chart Show) (BBC Radio 1)
• The Fearne & Reggie Saturday request show (BBC Radio 1)
• The Request Show with Reggie Yates (BBC Radio 1)
• The Official Chart with Reggie Yates (BBC Radio 1)

{{div col end}}

{{div col|colwidth=25em}}

• Thunderbirds Are Go (ITV)
• The Crust (Archie)
• UGetMe (Calvin)
• Grange Hill (BBC)
• The Bill (ITV)
• Priest (Screen Two)
• Family Affairs (Five)
• I Bring You Frankincense (Crucial Films)
• Ghostbusters of East Finchley (BBC)
• Agent Z and the Penguin from Mars (Jenks) (BBC)
• Focus (Harrison) (BBC Schools)
• Pirates (Child's Play)
• Children's Society (Breechhurst)
• Between the Lines (BBC)
• Desmond's (Humphrey Barclay)
• Promotional Advert (Trouble TV)
• Stars in Fast Cars (BBC)
• Doctor Who (BBC) (as Leo Jones)
• Trinity (ITV2)
• Rastamouse(CBeebies)
• Playhouse Presents – Episode: "The Pavement Psychologist" (Sky Arts), Series 2 2013 (as Tommy)
• Release the Hounds (ITV) 2013–2017
• Reggie Yates: Outside Man (Netflix) 2017

{{div col end}}

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• Patriarch{{cite web |last1=Munday |first1=Rob |title=Patriarch: A Short Film by Reggie Yates |url=https://directorsnotes.com/2013/10/14/patriarch-a-short-film-by-reggie-yates/ |website=Directors Notes |access-date=24 November 2022 |date=14 October 2013}} (2013). Cast was just three performers: Trevor Laird, Ansu Kabia and Kareem Onyiukah.
• Date Night (2014) – Won Best UK Short Film at the London Independent Film Festival[http://www.reggieyates.com/news/article/date-night "Date Night"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126152657/https://www.reggieyates.com/news/article/date-night |date=26 January 2021 }}, Reggie Yates website, 21 April 2014.
• Shelter (2015)
• Roadkill (2016)
• Make Me Famous (2020)[https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08fvdyp#credits "Make Me Famous"], BBC iPlayer website, 20 June 2020.
• Pirates (2021)

{{div col end}}

{{reflist}}

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{{Commons category}}

• {{IMDb name}}
• {{Official website}}
• [https://www.thefive7.com/ Production company - FIVE7]
• [http://www.reggieyatesphotography.com/ Reggie Yates Photography] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101105215/http://reggieyatesphotography.com/ |date=1 November 2020 }}

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{{S-media}}

{{Succession box|

before=JK and Joel|

title=BBC Radio 1
chart show presenter|

years=(with Fearne Cotton)
14 October 2007 – 20 September 2009|

after=himself

}}

{{Succession box|

before=Fearne Cotton and himself|

title=BBC Radio 1
chart show presenter|

years=27 September 2009 – 23 December 2012|

after=Jameela Jamil

}}

{{S-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yates, Reggie}}

Category:Living people

Category:1983 births

Category:BBC Radio 1 presenters

Category:BBC Radio 1Xtra presenters

Category:Black British filmmakers

Category:Black British male actors

Category:Black British radio presenters

Category:Black British television personalities

Category:English male television actors

Category:English people of Ghanaian descent

Category:English television presenters

Category:People educated at Central Foundation Boys' School

Category:People from Archway, London