Angus Purden

Angus Purden (born circa 1974) is a Scottish television presenter. A former Mr. Scotland and model, he wrote for a Scottish newspaper and is now best known for presenting do-it-yourself and Scottish lottery shows. One of the regular presenters for the BBC series Cash in the Attic since 2002, he also appeared in programmes such as Channel 4's Room For Improvement (2004-2010) and Ghost Towns (2005–2006) for Living TV, and he was a street prize presenter and public face of People's Postcode Lottery. In April 2010, Angus became the main host of STV gameshow Postcode Challenge.

Angus Purden
Born
Lanarkshire, Scotland
NationalityScottish
OccupationTelevision presenter/Teacher of Psychology
HeightAbout 6 ft (1.8 m)[1]

Early life

The youngest in his family with two sisters and a brother,[1] Purden is believed to have been born in 1974.[2] He was raised in the small town of Shotts in Lanarkshire.[3] As a teenager, he won the title of Mr. Scotland in a Daily Record competition in 1992.[1] The win opened the door to working as a catwalk model in Paris and Milan, including a three-year modelling stint for Giorgio Armani in Milan.[3][4] According to Purden, "I was surrounded by beautiful people so I remember laughing my head off that they thought I looked exotic. I was just a wee boy from a housing estate in Lanarkshire but I had thick, long curly hair and they liked me. The designer Romeo Gigli used me as his muse, and designed an entire collection on me. It was an amazing time."[1]

Career

Purden wrote[4] a column for the Glasgow Evening Times before his break on television appearing on STV as a prize presenter for the quiz show Wheel of Fortune presented by John Leslie.[1] Subsequently, he was a reporter for GMTV and Five News.[5]

Purden was a presenter on BBC's Cash in the Attic, visiting family homes to find out what they need to raise money for. They then explore the home to find items that may be taken to auction, which are valued by experts. Before this, he presented Series 1 to 3 of Channel 4's Room For Improvement, a home renovation show.[5]

Purden appeared with TV personality and self-described psychic medium Derek Acorah. In 2005 he presented Quest for Guy Fawkes, which attempted to discover what happened during the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 by contacting Guy Fawkes's spirit. In the first season[1] of Derek Acorah's Ghost Towns (2005–2006), Purden and co-presenter Danniella Westbrook accompanied Acorah to towns and cities throughout Great Britain said to be haunted. These programmes were produced for Living TV.

Purden did media work for British Airways TV, RBS, Scottish Television (now STV)[6] and the Travel Channel, and also fronted TV We Love To Hate for BBC Three. Radio appearances include BBC Radio Scotland and LBC 97.3, and he writes occasional travel pieces for the Scottish tabloid the Sunday Mail.[5]

In 2010, Purden appeared in a cinema advertising campaign against the arms trade for Amnesty International.[5][7]

Purden, alongside Lorraine Kelly presented the six-part psychology series, Make Me Happier for STV, which was broadcast in November/December 2009,[3] then appeared as a guest presenter on STV's daily lifestyle show The Hour on occasion – his first show being in February 2010, alongside main anchor Michelle McManus. In April 2010, he presented STV gameshow Postcode Challenge, replacing Carol Smillie until the show was cancelled. Purden read psychology via the Open University[3] and in Edinburgh where he gained an honours degree. He subsequently retrained, worked at Hinchley Wood School for 2 years and is now head of psychology at an all boys private school in London.

Selected work
Year(s)
of appearance		 TV programme or series
2002–present Cash in the Attic
2004
(Series 1–3)		 Room for Improvement[8]
2005 2005 BAFTA/LA Cunard Britannia Awards[9][10]
2005 Derek Acorah's Quest for Guy Fawkes[11]
2005–2006
(22 episodes)		 Derek Acorah's Ghost Towns[12]
2007–present People's Postcode Lottery
February 2008 Ready Steady Cook
(participant)
[Currently unknown] TV We Love to Hate
2006 Watch to Win
November/December 2009 Make Me Happier
February 2010 The Hour
(guest host)
April 2010–present Postcode Challenge (main host)

Some information in this table was obtained from Angus Purden: Filmography, Internet Movie Database (IMDb), retrieved 16 November 2007.

Personal life

Purden is interested in interiors and architecture.[5] In January 2004 it was reported that he and his partner owned a 1722 five-storey Georgian townhouse in the East End of London which had taken seven years to renovate and furnish from its original near-derelict state.[4] He later moved to Notting Hill.[1][5][13]

By April 2006 Purden had returned to Glasgow's West End after having spent 12 years in London. He said that being back in Scotland was a "breath of fresh air" and added: "Life seemed too hard in London. I needed to be there initially because of my career but now that I'm more established I feel it's going to be easier to commute. I'm elated to be back."[14] In Glasgow, he acquired and renovated two B-listed properties.[5][13] He later renovated a property in Edinburgh.[3]

Purden lists his other main interests as including food, travel (he speaks fluent Italian) and consumer issues.[5] However, in February 2008 he was branded a 'kitchen calamity' after recording the lowest-ever score on the BBC programme Ready Steady Cook.[15]

References
  1. Lisa Adams (14 February 2007), "Hunk Angus back on home territory", Daily Record.
  2. This is an estimate based on information in a Sunday Mail article that Purden was 32 years old in 2006: Natasha Weale (30 April 2006), "Wearing a kilt makes you feel like George Clooney; TV hunk Angus says ladies go tartan barmy for Scots gear", Sunday Mail.
  3. "A piece of my mind: Angus Purden, TV presenter". The Herald. 9 November 2009. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  4. Sally Raikes (31 January 2004), "Work ethic", The Scotsman (Scotsman Magazine), archived from the original on 2 February 2013 .
  5. Angus Purden, RDF Management, archived from the original on 11 December 2007, retrieved 16 November 2007.
  6. He was the presenter of the STV show Watch to Win: Lisa Adams (14 February 2007), "Hunk Angus back on home territory", Daily Record. From 2007, he also hosted Postcode Challenge: Paula Murray (6 November 2007), "People's Postcode Lottery launched in Scotland: Postcode game will raise millions", Daily Record.
  7. Lesley Roberts (29 January 2006), "Every home should have gun: Exclusive shopping channel ad attacks arm trade", Sunday Mail.
  8. Room for Improvement at IMDb. Retrieved on 16 November 2007.
  9. 2005 BAFTA/LA Cunard Britannia Awards at IMDb. Retrieved on 16 November 2007.
  10. Paul English (3 December 2005), "On the phone with: Angus Purden: The Glaswegian Cash In The Attic presenter on his red carpet debut at the BAFTAs in Los Angeles", Daily Record.
  11. Quest for Guy Fawkes at IMDb. Retrieved on 16 November 2007.
  12. Ghost Towns at IMDb. Retrieved on 16 November 2007.
  13. Nichola Hunter (21 July 2007), "Rooms for improvement", The Scotsman.
  14. Natasha Weale, Natasha (30 April 2006), "Wearing a kilt makes you feel like George Clooney; TV hunk Angus says ladies go tartan barmy for Scots gear", Sunday Mail.
  15. Beverley Lyons; Laura Sutherland (23 February 2008), "Angus Purden in a stew on Ready Steady Cook", Daily Record; Heather Greenaway (24 February 2008), "Angus Purden has kitchen nightmare on Ready Steady Cook", Sunday Mail.

Sources

Further reading
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