Kirsty Young

Kirsty, 44, is best known for reading the news on Channel 5. She now hosts flagship Radio 4 programme Desert Island Discs and presents BBC’s Crimewatch She has 2 daughters, Freya and Iona, with club owner husband Nick Jones.

Kirsty started her career in journalism on Scottish television as a presenter on Scotland Today while hosting her own chat show – Kirsty.

She took over presenting long running radio show Desert Island Discs in 2006. Her predecessors were Roy Plomley, Michael Parkinson and Sue Lawley. Kirsty Interviewed Mary Berry on the show in 2012.

She replaced Fiona Bruce as the presenter of BBC’s Crimewatch in 2007 and is currently the main presenter of the show.

• She’s a great cook but leaves the baking to her daughter Freya.

• Although Kirsty had Home Ec lessons at school, she says it wasn’t a good standard with some odd choices. The only thing she really remembers being taught was how to make cheese on toast with apple grated on it.

• Both Kirsty’s grans were great bakers but she’s not picked up their skills. Her paternal gran made her royal iced birthday cakes each year of a near professional standard while her maternal gran made clootie dumplings.

• She’s a huge Bake Off fan and describes the tent as iconic.

• She’s only told her immediate family she’ll be taking part and her daughters can’t stop laughing at the thought of it.

• Kirsty says she’s hopeless at both sports and baking however she was on the basketball team as she’s ‘tall for a Scot’.

• Cooking is one of her favourite pastimes and she has a big collection of recipe books – but doesn’t bake.