Jake Humphrey is a household name for fans of CBBC. He grew up in Norfolk, his first ever job was as a paperboy - earning a massive £6 per week! School days were spent at the Hewett in Norwich, but the call of work was far louder than that of university life. "I went to the Hewett School in Norwich and I suppose media was kind of my thing. It's just something I kind of fell into more than anything else." Jake spent time presenting for Hospital Radio Norwich and writing for the EDP, but he soon felt the need to get into TV. "After I left school I didn't go to uni. I went straight to Anglia TV, got a job with them and things just went from there. "One of the most popular questions for me is 'How do you become a TV presenter?' There is no answer, for me it was just hard work and being in the right place at the right time." Working as a presenter for CBBC, Jake now lives in London near all his showbiz mates. Parking in the city might be a nightmare, but he still loves nothing better than zooming around in his prize possession - a green MG sports car. Jake bagged showbiz heaven towards the end of September 2002 by landing the gig to work on the massively popular reality TV show Fame Academy. "I worked on Fame Academy right from the start with a show called CBBC At The Fame Academy. "It was a live show on BBC TWO at 8am, a live show on BBC ONE at around 5.20pm and then a show on the CBBC channel. "It was a really long show, but an amazing thing to be involved with. I would say that the final five were good enough to grace any TV screen. "Not wanting to knock any other reality TV shows, I think the people that we had on that show were a cut above. They could write, they could really sing very well indeed, they were just great all round performers. "It was amazing fun. Where else can you live in a mansion in Highgate in North London for ten weeks and get visited by the likes of Mariah Carey, Shania Twain and Lionel Richie. 
Lionel Richie lends a hand at the Fame Academy |
"I was a little bit naughty. "I was chatting to Lionel Richie because we had him in the studio - big moment for me as I'm a big fan - and I asked him what he thought of Norwich City. "He said 'I don't actually know that football team', so I told him they were like Manchester United only they play in green and yellow." While working with some of the biggest names in showbiz is all part of the job life as a children's TV presenter, Jake still finds spending time with top celebs is a bit weird. "It's very surreal when you find yourself sat there at 8.30 on a Wednesday morning drinking coffee in a very cold mobile studio chatting to Mariah Carey - you think what am I doing here?" "I remember once getting stuck in London traffic and ran into work 20 seconds before I was live on BBC2," reveals Jake.
Life at CBBC and in the Fame Academy, join in the fun and ask Jake a question. |
Jake enjoys the hustle and bustle of life with CBBC, but looks forward to getting home to Norfolk whenever he can.
"It's really nice to get back. I watch Norwich play on a Saturday and loads of kids come up and say 'Hello Jake' and it's nice to see them." "I'm involved in something called the WHAM project which is supported by PACT which is about crime prevention in Norfolk. It's about getting young people involved in doing stuff locally." Jake also admits that coming home is a good excuse to get his mum to whizz up a little culinary masterpiece. "When it comes to food I loved anything by my mum. I'm sure we all feel the same, but my mum's cooking is just out of this world - mmmmmmm!" Now ask Jake a question » | 
View 
