Strange But True: John Rapheal (Past Life)/Premonitions
6:50 pm - 7:25 pm, Today on Talking Pictures TV (82)
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About this Broadcast
John Rapheal (Past Life)/Premonitions
Season 4, Episode 5
Michael Aspel introduces the stories of a retired bingo caller who unearths past lives and a French scholar whose visions came true
subtitles
Education/Science/Factual Topics
General
More Information
Did You Know..
Michael Aspel
(Presenter)
Born:
January 12, 1933
in
Battersea, London
Best Known For:
Springing out on celebs, carrying the This Is Your Life red book.
Early-life:
Michael Terence Aspel was born in London in his grandmother's house behind Clapham Junction Station on January 12, 1933. He grew up in the city, apart from a five-year spell during the Second World War when he was evacuated to Chard in Somerset. In his youth, Michael wanted to be a cartoonist but, after doing National Service with the King's Royal Rifle Corps, he worked as a journalist on the Western Mail in Cardiff.
Career:
Michael began his broadcasting career with the BBC in Cardiff in 1954, making his debut as a villain in a Children's Hour play. He later filled the BBC's demand for a pretty face to front the news and has suggested he moved through the ranks by being friendly and never refusing a job offer: "I kept saying yes, and suddenly I was a TV personality." He has compered Miss World, hosted chat show Aspel and Company, as well as presenting Family Favourites, Crackerjack, Ask Aspel, Give Us a Clue and Come Dancing. He took over from Eamonn Andrews as presenter of This is Your Life in 1988 and fronted it until 2003. He spent eight years as host of Antiques Roadshow until 2008.
Quote:
Explaining why he wearied of interviewing celebrities on his chat show: "There's this element of sitting at their feet that I got fed up with."
Trivia:
He was awarded an OBE in 1993.
