Davina McCall

Desert Island Discs

Davina McCall is an English television presenter. She began her career on MTV before moving to Channel 4 with the cult hit Streetmate.

She was the presenter of Big Brother during its run on Channel 4 between 2000 and 2010 and enjoyed it so much that she planned her family around the transmission schedule. All three of her children were born in September.

Davina hosts a variety of prime time and popular programmes including ITV's Long Lost Family which seeks to reunite family members.

Her own childhood was complicated. Her French mother was an alcoholic and drug user, and Davina was largely brought up by her father and grandparents. After a difficult childhood, she moved to London with her father and step-mother, and during some wild teenage years, she became a drug user. She has been clean since she was 25.

Alongside her television presenting career, she has a large following with her fitness DVDs and healthy food cookbooks.

In 2014, she undertook a 500 mile triathlon for Sport Relief raising more than two million pounds.

Producer: Sarah Taylor.