Brian Ormond (born 8 August 1979) is an Irish television presenter, businessman and reality TV star.

Early career

''Popstars''

In 2001 Ormond auditioned for the Irish version of '' Popstars,'' the television programme which created the pop band, Six and first introduced the world to Nadine Coyle. Ormond reached the final twelve contestants but was not selected as one of the eventual six members of the group.

''You're a Star''

In 2002 Ormond auditioned for the first season of the singing competition show, ''

You're a Star ''You're a Star'' is an Irish music competition series broadcast by RTÉ One from 2002 to 2008. Produced by the broadcaster and Screentime ShinAwiL, the series was similar to formats such as ''Idol'' and ''The X Factor''. For its first three se ...

'' – the winner of which would earn a record deal and the opportunity to represent Ireland at the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

. Ormond reached the live shows of the competition after he was selected as judge Louis Walsh's "wildcard". He would go on to eventually finish in sixth place.

''Pop Idol''

In 2003 Ormond auditioned for the second season of the British singing competition '' Pop Idol.'' After progressing through the audition stages, Ormond was selected as one of the final fifty contestants. On 20 September 2003, Ormond featured in the second 'heat' of the show performing '' Amazed'' by

Lonestar Lonestar (formerly known as Texassee) is an American country music group from Nashville, Tennessee. The group consists of Drew Womack (lead vocals, acoustic guitar), Michael Britt (lead guitar, background vocals), Dean Sams (keyboards, acousti ...

. Ormond finished in second place in the heat, receiving 16.8% of the public vote and advancing to the top twelve. He featured in the finalists' compilation album, Pop Idol: The Idols – Xmas Factor, with a solo track '' I Believe''. In the first live show, on 25 October, Ormond performed '

A Different Corner "A Different Corner" is a song written and performed by George Michael that was released on Epic Records (Columbia Records in the US) in 1986 . Background & Writing "A Different Corner" was written by Michael while Wham! were at their peak as a ...

' in honour of his musical hero,

George Michael George Michael (born Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou; 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016) was an English singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the most significant cultural icons of the MTV generation and is one of the best-selling musici ...

. Ormond was saved by the public vote. The following week, Ormond performed ' Honesty' by

Billy Joel William Martin Joel (born May 9, 1949) is an American singer, pianist and songwriter. Commonly nicknamed the "Piano Man (song), Piano Man" after his album and signature song of the same name, he has led a commercially successful career as a solo ...

, however, this would be Ormond's final performance, he was eliminated in a double elimination that evening, ultimately finishing in ninth place.

Television career

In 2005 Ormond returned to ''

,'' this time fronting the 'sidekick' show, ''You're a Star Plus'' on

RTÉ2 RTÉ2 is an Irish free-to-air television channel operated by public service broadcaster RTÉ. It was launched in 1978 as the Republic of Ireland's second television channel. History In the 1970s, the Irish government considered three options ...

for three years. In 2016, Ormond became host of the audition rounds of the fifth season, with Keith Duffy taking over for the live shows. However, the following year Ormond was made permanent host with Duffy returning as a judge. In 2007, Ormond hosted the third edition of the celebrity version of the show, ''

Charity You're a Star ''Charity You're a Star'' (initially known as ''You're a Star Charity Special'') is a talent contest created by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), in which various Irish celebrities sang to raise money for the Charitable organization, charity of ...

.'' From 2006 to 2007 Ormond hosted

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...

Young Peoples' programme Saturday morning show, ''S@ttitude'' alongside Sinead Kennedy and Liam McCormack. From 2007 to 2008, Ormond and Kennedy joined Rob Ross as hosts of the daily Young People's programme ''ICE''. In 2011, Ormond hosted a revamped version of the classic RTÉ music game show, ''The Lyrics Board'' called ''Sing!'' Later that year, Ormond and his wife-to-be Pippa O'Connor appeared in an authored documentary in the lead up to their wedding day called, ''Brian and Pippa Get Married''. In 2012 Ormond teamed up with Kennedy once again, this time, to take over as hosts of the National Lottery game show ''

The Big Money Game ''The Big Money Game'' is a game show, broadcast on RTÉ One on Saturday nights during the summer months of June, July and August as a seasonal replacement for ''Winning Streak''. The successor to '' Fame and Fortune'' (1996–2006) and '' The Tr ...

.'' The show was axed in 2013. In 2012 Ormond and his wife, Pippa O'Connor appeared as contestants on the fifth season '' Celebrity Bainisteoir''. This season, renamed "''Celebrity Bainisteoir: The Rivals"'' saw Ormond's team face-off against O'Connor's in the first round. O'Connor's team won, meaning Ormond and his team were eliminated. In 2015 Ormond co-hosted ''The TV3 Toy Show'' on

TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to: Television *Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso *Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala *Channel 3 (Algeria), a public Algerian TV channel owned by EPTV ...

alongside Maria Walsh.

Other work

Ormond is co-owner and director of his wife's fashion brand 'POCO'. In 2021 Ormond launched his own sustainable footwear brand, 'Movrs'.

Personal life

On 18 June 2011 Ormond married model, Pippa O'Connor in a lavish ceremony in the Ritz Carlton Hotel in

Co. Wicklow County Wicklow ( ; ga, Contae Chill Mhantáin ) is a county in Ireland. The last of the traditional 32 counties, having been formed as late as 1606, it is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is bordered by t ...

. Ormond's best man was his friend and ''You're a Star'' winner, Mickey Joe Harte while Big Brother UK winner, Brian Dowling served as O'Connor's honorary bridesmaid. Ormond and O'Connor have three sons together. Ormond also has a daughter, Chloe, from a previous relationship. In 2011 Ormond's home was the target of a

nail bomb A nail bomb is an anti-personnel explosive device containing nails to increase its effectiveness at harming victims. The nails act as shrapnel, leading almost certainly to more injury in inhabited areas than the explosives alone would. A nail ...

attack.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ormond, Brian 1979 births People from Clondalkin Living people Irish singers Participants in British reality television series Irish radio presenters Irish television personalities Irish game show hosts Irish television presenters Pop Idol contestants