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Born near Liverpool on 5 June 1944, Nigel went to the Merchant Taylors’ School, Crosby, and then took a degree in English at Oxford. He went straight into television with Granada in Manchester and made his first TV appearances on local programmes in 1967 before moving to London as a freelance. He reported for ITN’s News at Ten and then became involved in a wide range of programmes for BBC Radio news, current affairs, arts and entertainment including two years as co-presenter of the breakfast-time Today programme on Radio 4 (1976-78).

Unusually, he has combined his broadcast presentation work with appearances in comedy shows, notably BBC Radio’s Week Ending (with David Jason and Bill Wallis), The Betty Witherspoon Show (with Ted Ray, Kenneth Williams and Miriam Margolyes) and The Burkiss Way (with Chris Emmett and Fred Harris), and in Harry Enfield and Chums on BBC TV.

Among other radio shows he has presented are: Twenty-Four Hours (BBC World Service 1972-9), Kaleidoscope (BBC Radio 4, 1973-5), Where Were You in ‘62? (BBC Radio 2, 1983-4, he also devised it) and Stop Press (BBC Radio 4, 1984-6).

He is the author of more than fifty books. His most recent titles include, from Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Brewer's Famous Quotations and from Collins, A Word In Your Shell-Like: 6,000 Curious & Everyday Phrases Explained.

Nigel is President of the (Dr Samuel) Johnson Society (2006-07) and lives with his wife, Sue Bates, in London and Oxfordshire.

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Copyright © 2010 by Nigel Rees