Leoš Mareš (born 27 April 1976) is a Czech television and radio presenter and singer. He has hosted a number of singer search television programmes, including '' Česko hledá SuperStar'', ''

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

'' and ''

Hlas Česko Slovenska Hlas (meaning "Voice" in Czech and Slovak) may refer to: * Voice – Social Democracy Voice – Social Democracy ( sk, Hlas – sociálna demokracia, HLAS–SD) is a social-democratic political party in Slovakia. The party was founded in June 202 ...

''. He joined ''

Česko Slovensko má talent ''Česko Slovensko má talent'' (''Czechia Slovakia's Got Talent'' or ''Czecho Slovakia's Got Talent'') is a Czech-Slovak reality television series. It is televised talent show competition which started in August 2010 and originated from the '' ...

'' as a judge in 2013. He is one of the highest-paid television presenters in the Czech Republic. A 2014 ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' report listed Mareš as one of the 50 most influential people in Czech media.

Early life

Mareš was born in the town of Beroun. He studied economics in the town of

Cheb Cheb (; german: Eger) is a town in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 30,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Ohře. Before the 1945 expulsion of the German-speaking population, the town was the centre of the German-s ...

. He moved to Prague in 1997, joining national radio station

Evropa 2 Evropa 2 is a private, commercial radio station in the Czech Republic. It was the first private station since 1989, beginning broadcasting on 21 March 1990. The station's target audience is listeners aged 12–29 years. It is owned by Czech Media ...

. At he presented programmes including the breakfast show and the Pepsi Top 20.

Music career

Mareš released three albums between 2001 and 2003 via

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

Television career and rising fame

Mareš moved into television in 2003; he was announced as the new host of TV Nova's music programme ', replacing Gabriela Partyšová. He continued in this position until ' was discontinued in 2009. Later in 2003 Mareš hosted the ''

Český slavík Český slavík ( en, Czech Nightingale) is a Czech award meant to recognize outstanding achievement and annual popularity in the Czech music industry. It was established in 1996 as the successor to the Zlatý slavík awards, which was establish ...

'' awards, describing the opportunity to do so as something which happens "once in a lifetime". In 2012 Mareš and his morning show team from Evropa 2 – Patrik Hezucký and Lucie Šilhánová – were nominated for an award at the Czech ' award. They won the award, which was announced at the end of October, ahead of presenters from rival stations including ''Frekvence 1'' and ''

Czech Radio Český rozhlas (ČRo) is the public radio broadcaster of the Czech Republic operating since 1923. It is the oldest radio broadcaster in continental Europe and the second oldest in Europe after the BBC. The service broadcasts throughout the C ...

''. Mareš served as the MC during

Slavia Prague Sportovní klub Slavia Praha – fotbal (Sports Club Slavia Prague – Football, ), commonly known as Slavia Praha or Slavia Prague, is a Czech professional football club in Prague. Founded in 1892, they are the second most successful club in ...

's 120th anniversary celebrations, held at Prague's National Theatre in 2013. He is a fan of Slavia Prague. Mareš was named as one of the fifty most influential people in Czech media in the January 2014 Czech issue of ''

'' magazine.

Personal life

Mareš entered into a relationship with Monika Poslušná in 1998. Poslušná gave birth to their first son in November 2005. The couple married in July 2008. A second son was born to the couple in June 2009. He moved out of the family home in Prague's

Smíchov Smíchov () is (since 1909) a district of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, and is part of Prague 5. It is on the west bank of the Vltava river. History Between 1945 and 1989, the district contained a monument dedicated to Soviet ta ...

district in 2010 and entered into a relationship with model Hana Svobodová, but wife Monika stated that divorce was "not on the agenda". Mareš's relationship with Svobodová, 13 years his junior, finished after 18 months in 2011.

Discography

Studio albums

*2001: ''Tři Slova'' *2002: ''Minuty Se Vlečou'' *2003: ''Nejlepší Nápad''

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mares, Leos 1976 births People from Beroun Living people 21st-century Czech male singers Czech television presenters