Bradley Walsh

After leaving school, Walsh got an apprenticeship at Rolls-Royce's aircraft engine factory in Watford.

Football career

Walsh started his youth football career at Wormley Rovers. In 1979, at the age of 18, Walsh became a professional football player for Brentford, although he failed to make the first team, and was regularly a member of the reserves. While Walsh was at Brentford, he also played for Barnet on loan, making five Alliance Premier League appearances in the 1979–80 season. He also played for Tring Town, Boreham Wood and Chalfont St Peter. Ankle fractures ended his football career at the age of 22, in 1982. He has participated in Soccer Aid, a charity football match in which England takes on The Rest of the World, with teams made up of celebrities and professional footballers. He helped England secure a victory in the inaugural 2006 event as a player and later led his team to another win as manager in 2026. He also served as a coach during the 2012 and 2016 events. Walsh also made an episode for Soccer Aid in June 2022.

Television career

Following his football career, Walsh had a variety of jobs, including working as a bluecoat at Pontins in Morecambe for three months. In October 1982, performing as a newcomer comedian, he came third in a talent contest at the Rolls-Royce Sports and Social Club in his hometown of Leavesden. Walsh was recruited by television channel ITV, who offered him the role as presenter on one of the network's new game shows,…

Bradley John Walsh was born in Watford on 4 June 1960, the son of Scottish mother Margaret and English father Daniel. He grew up in Leavesden and has a sister named Kerri. Walsh was educated at Francis Combe School (now known as Future Academies Watford), a state comprehensive school in the suburban village of Garston, in Hertfordshire, where he was voted most likely to become a TV host.

Walsh married dancer Donna Derby in 1997. They have a son named Barney, with whom Walsh appeared in the travel series Bradley Walsh & Son: Breaking Dad. Walsh also has a daughter born in 1982 from a previous relationship. Walsh lives in a barn conversion in Epping, Essex, with his family. Walsh attends church and has described himself as "very spiritual".