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Valerie Singleton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Valerie Singleton OBE (born 9 April 1937) is an English television and radio presenter, best known as the longest-serving female presenter of the popular children's series, Blue Peter.
Originally having wanted to be a ballerina, she trained at RADA and began a career as an actress. In 1959, she starred in the sitcom The Adventures of Brigadier Wellington-Bull.
She joined Blue Peter in 1962, and stayed for nearly ten years. She continues to be more closely associated with Blue Peter than any other former presenter. (Initially, Singleton was for a long time credited for being the 3rd ever presenter, but the acknowledgment of her predecessor Anita West as a former presenter, in 1998, helped her slip down a place to 4th.) During her long stint on Blue Peter, Singleton pulled off the coup of jointly presenting a wildlife safari special in the company of Princess Anne. During her time as a presenter, she had a well-publicised relationship with Radio 1 disc jockey, Pete Murray.
After leaving Blue Peter in 1972 (although she continued to make occasional special appearances during the next two years), Singleton presented a solo spin-off series, Blue Peter Special Assignment, which was shown at weekends and ran from 1973-76, followed by a final series in 1981. She then went on to host many other programmes, notably Radio 4's PM and BBC Two's The Money Programme, and was awarded the OBE for her services to children's television, in 1994. She still makes occasional guest appearances on the show.
| Preceded by Anita West |
Blue Peter Presenter No. 4 1962-1972 |
Succeeded by Lesley Judd |