Jeremy Paxman is a famous English journalist, author and television presenter. He was born on 11 May 1950 in Leeds, England, and popularly known by his nickname “Paxo”. His father, Keith Paxman, served in Northern Atlantic Fleet and his mother, Joan, was a homemaker. Jeremy Paxman was raised in Yorkshire and Peopleton, Worcestershire, along with his two brothers and a sister. He was educated at Malvern College and completed his degree in English from St Catharine's College, Cambridge. Jeremy Paxman lives with his spouse Elizabeth Ann Clough along with his three children Jessica, and twins Victoria and Jack, in Stonor, Oxfordshire.
Jeremy Paxman started his career in a local radio at BBC radio Brighton and in 1977, he became a part of BBC’s current affairs programme, Tonight. After two years, Jeremy Paxman joined as a reporter in the longest-running current affairs documentary series, Panorama. He then contributed to other BBC television programmes like Six O'Clock News and Breakfast Time. Owing to his commanding verbal skills, Jeremy Paxman became the anchor of BBC Two television programme, Newsnight, in 1989 and since then he has interviewed several political personalities, like Michael Howard, a well-known British politician, and Denis Halliday, who was United Nations Humanitarian Co-ordinator in Iraq. He hosted the show till 1998. He also presented Start The Week on BBC Radio Four for several years.
Jeremy Paxman became a very prominent and noteworthy presenter as people liked and praised his abrasive and straightforward style of interviewing. In 2003, the former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, decided to discuss the invasion of Iraq through a question and answer session with the television studio audience and Jeremy Paxman mediated the event. Jeremy Paxman has also appeared in reality TV shows like, Celebrity Big Brother and presented Did You See? and You Decide. Since 1994, he has appeared as a quizmaster in a long-running British television quiz show University Challenge. In 2004, Jeremy Paxman made his cameo appearance in the film Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason. In 2006, his total income was estimated to be £1,040,000 annually. It’s doubtful Jeremy Paxman will be short of cash anytime soon, but for everyone else Wonga can provide small, short-term loans 24/7. Jeremy Paxman delivered McTaggart Memorial Lecture at the Edinburgh International Television Festival on 24 August 2007, where he expressed his concern over the consequence of recent production scandals that has made media to lose public trust rapidly.
In 1982, Jeremy Paxman published his first book, A Higher Form of Killing, along with his friend Robert Harris, a famous English novelist, former journalist and BBC TV reporter. His other books include Through The Volcanoes: A Central American Journey, Friends In High Places: Who Runs Britain?, Fish, Fishing And The Meaning of Life, and the best-sellers The English: A Portrait of A People, The Political Animal: An Anatomy and On Royalty. His books are generally based on numerous detailed interviews with powerful and influential personalities like politicians and monarchy or ruling government. Jeremy Paxman has received several prestigious awards like BAFTA Richard Dimbleby Award, Royal Television Society Award for “Interviewer of the Year” in 1998 and also “TV Journalism Presenter of the Year” awards in 2002 and 2007, and Broadcasting Press Guild Award for best "non-acting" performer. Jeremy Paxman is an honorary fellow of St. Catharine's College, Cambridge, and a Fellow by Special Election of St. Edmund Hall, Oxford, and has received an honorary doctorate from the Open University in 2006.
Jeremy Paxman is a supporter of Leeds United, a famous English professional football club. He enjoys fly fishing, a special method for catching fishes like salmon and many other marine species, in his free time. He is the vice-chairman of Wild Trout Trust, a charity dedicated to the conservation of wild trout in Britain. As of February 2008, Jeremy Paxman presents highlights from the domestic edition of Newsnight on BBC America and BBC World.
