Steven Alexander James,

FRSA The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), also known as the Royal Society of Arts, is a London-based organisation committed to finding practical solutions to social challenges. The RSA acronym is used m ...

(born 21 November 1968) is an English musician, best known as the bassist of the

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band Blur, he has also played with temporary bands

Fat Les Fat Les was a British band consisting of Blur bassist Alex James, actor Keith Allen, and artist Damien Hirst. Vocals on their singles were provided by Keith Allen (all), Alex James ("Vindaloo"), Lily Allen ("Who Invented Fish & Chips?"), An ...

, Me Me Me,

WigWam A wigwam, wickiup, wetu (Wampanoag), or wiigiwaam (Ojibwe, in syllabics: ) is a semi-permanent domed dwelling formerly used by certain Native American tribes and First Nations people and still used for ceremonial events. The term ''wickiup' ...

and

Bad Lieutenant ''Bad Lieutenant'' is a 1992 American neo-noir crime film directed by Abel Ferrara. The film stars Harvey Keitel as the titular "bad lieutenant" as well as Victor Argo and Paul Calderón. The screenplay was co-written by Ferrara with actress-mod ...

Music career

James was born in

Boscombe Boscombe is a suburb of Bournemouth, England. Historically in Hampshire, but today in Dorset, it is located to the east of Bournemouth town centre and west of Southbourne. Originally a sparsely inhabited area of heathland, from around 1865 B ...

, Bournemouth, and attended the state grammar school Bournemouth School, where he started playing in bands. He credits

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

with inspiring him to pursue music: "I was off school with chickenpox when

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

was shot in 1980. I spent the week watching a VHS recording of the Beatles film

Help! ''Help!'' is the fifth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles and the soundtrack to their film of the same name. It was released on 6 August 1965. Seven of the fourteen songs, including the singles " Help!" and " Ticket to Ride", ...

, which was broadcast on TV the day he died. I still watch it once a year. Then I bought a Beatles songbook and a guitar, figured out the chord shapes and started strumming and singing along. I never looked back." In 1988, James met future bandmate

Graham Coxon Graham Leslie Coxon (born 12 March 1969) is an English musician, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and painter who came to prominence as a founding member of the rock band Blur. As the group's lead guitarist and secondary vocalist, Cox ...

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wo ...

, where James studied French. Introductions with Coxon's old school friend Damon Albarn and Dave Rowntree soon took place; at the time Albarn and Rowntree were part of a band called Circus. In 1989, James joined Coxon, Albarn and Rowntree's new band, Seymour, which would later be renamed Blur. While he has been in the band ever since, he now describes the experience as "a past-life". Despite this, Blur got together with returning bandmate Graham Coxon to perform at Glastonbury Festival, Hyde Park,

Oxegen Oxegen was a music festival in Ireland, first held from 2004–2011 as a rock and pop festival and again in 2013 with dance and chart acts only. The event was regularly cited as Ireland's biggest music festival, and, by 2009, it was being ci ...

and

T in the Park T in the Park festival was a major Scottish music festival that was held annually from 1994 to 2016. It was named after its main sponsor, Tennents. The event was held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire, until 1996. It then moved to the disused B ...

during the summer of 2009. They also played shows at Goldsmiths College, Essex Museum and other venues around the UK and mainland Europe. Blur headlined a show at Hyde Park for the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony. In 2013, the band performed at the Rock Werchter in Belgium,Rock Werchter 2013 lineup: Blur, Depeche Mode, Phoenix, Rammstein, and more
. Consequence of Sound. 29 January 2013. Retrieved on 16 February 2019. the Spanish and Portuguese dates of the

Primavera Sound Primavera Sound (commonly referred to as simply Primavera) is an annual music festival held in Parc del Fòrum in Barcelona, Spain that takes place between the end of May and beginning of June. The first edition took place in 2001 in Poble Espanyo ...

festival,Blur Confirmed for Primavera Sound 2013
. Pitchfork. 8 October 2012. Retrieved on 22 October 2012. and the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the United States.Coachella 2013: Blur, Phoenix and Red Hot Chili Peppers to headline
. ''The Guardian''. 25 January 2013. Retrieved on 7 February 2013.

Collaborations

Unlike Albarn, Coxon and Rowntree, James has not released any solo material, although he has been involved in other collaborative side projects. In 1998, James formed

with actor Keith Allen and artist

Damien Hirst Damien Steven Hirst (; né Brennan; born 7 June 1965) is an English artist, entrepreneur, and art collector. He is one of the Young British Artists (YBAs) who dominated the art scene in the UK during the 1990s. He is reportedly the United Kingd ...

, releasing the unofficial theme song (excluding three others) "

Vindaloo Vindaloo or vindalho is an Indian curry dish, which is originally from Goa, based on the Portuguese dish carne de vinha d'alhos. It is known globally in its British Indian form as a staple of curry house and Indian restaurant menus, and is ofte ...

" for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, which reached number 2 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. He also worked on side project Me Me Me with

Stephen Duffy Stephen Anthony James Duffy (born 30 May 1960 in Alum Rock, Birmingham, England) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. He was a founding member, vocalist, bassist and then drummer of Duran Duran. He went on to record as a solo perform ...

, co-wrote songs for

Marianne Faithfull Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (born 29 December 1946) is an English singer and actress. She achieved popularity in the 1960s with the release of her hit single " As Tears Go By" and became one of the lead female artists during the British I ...

(appearing in drag playing a double bass in the music video for her single "Sex With Strangers") and Jane McDonald, and worked with Florence and the Machine and

Gene Loves Jezebel Gene Loves Jezebel are a British rock band formed in the early 1980s by identical twin brothers Jay (born John) and Michael Aston. Gene Loves Jezebel's best-known songs include "Heartache", "Desire (Come and Get It)" (1986), "The Motion of L ...

. James worked with

Sophie Ellis-Bextor Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded Ellis-Bextor went solo and ach ...

on her solo debut '' Read My Lips'', co-writing and co-producing "

Move This Mountain "Get Over You" and "Move This Mountain" are two songs by British pop singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor. In most countries, "Get Over You" was released as the sole single, but in the United Kingdom, the two tracks were released as a double A-side singl ...

", and co-producing "I Believe" with Ellis-Bextor and producer

Ben Hillier Ben Hillier is an English songwriter and pop-rock record producer who is part of the creative team 140 dB. He produced the notable albums ''Playing the Angel'', ''Sounds of the Universe'' and ''Delta Machine'' by Depeche Mode, ''Think Tank ...

. He also played bass on both tracks. Ellis-Bextor's 2003 album, ''

Shoot from the Hip ''Shoot from the Hip'' is the second studio album by English singer Sophie Ellis-Bextor, released on 27 October 2003 by Polydor Records. It was produced by Gregg Alexander, Matt Rowe, Jeremy Wheatley and Damian LeGassick. Background The album ...

'' also featured James as bass player and co-writer on the track "Love Is It Love". He also joined his friend and singer-songwriter

Betty Boo Alison Moira Clarkson (born 6 March 1970 in Kensington, London), better known as Betty Boo, is an English singer, songwriter and rapper. She first came to mainstream prominence in the late 1980s following a collaboration with the Beatmasters ...

in a band called

in 2005. In 2009, James appeared as bass player on debut

record ''

Never Cry Another Tear ''Never Cry Another Tear'' is the only studio album by Bad Lieutenant. It was released on 12 October 2009. Ex-New Order member Bernard Sumner formed the group with Jake Evans and Phil Cunningham. The three guitarists wrote and performed the alb ...

''. The band consists of New Order lead singer

Bernard Sumner Bernard Sumner (born 4 January 1956) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is a founding member of the bands Joy Division, New Order, and Electronic. Sumner was an early force in several areas, including the po ...

and guitarist Phil Cunningham, along with Jake Evans of Rambo And Leroy. In 2013, James co-wrote the song "Did I Lose You?", performed by Giorgia and

Olly Murs Oliver Stanley Murs (born 14 May 1984) is an English singer, songwriter, and television presenter. He was runner-up on the sixth series of '' The X Factor'' in 2009 and was subsequently signed to RCA Records and Sony Music in the United Kingdom ...

Other ventures

Writing

Alex James is a food writer for '' The Sun'' and has a weekly column, 'Alex James on All Things Food'; as well as a regular column on farm and family life in The Sunday Telegraph titled 'Mucking In'. He also writes a monthly column on cheese for Esquire Magazine. Alex contributes to a number of other British newspapers including ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'', ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'', ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'', and ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...

'', as well as '' Q'' magazine, ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...

'' and '' The Idler''. An autobiography of James's experience with Blur, ''Bit of a Blur'', was published in June 2007 by

Little, Brown & Company Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emily ...

. It has since been described as "the definitive guide to Britpop". James published a follow-up entitled ''All Cheeses Great and Small: A Life Less Blurry'' in September 2011, charting his transformation from rock star to cheesemaker as he moves to a farm in Oxfordshire.

Television appearances

In 2001, James and

appeared in the Channel 4

Pixies A pixie (also pisky, pixy, pixi, pizkie, and piskie in Cornwall and Devon, and pigsie or puggsy in the New Forest) is a mythical creature of British folklore. Pixies are considered to be particularly concentrated in the high moorland areas aro ...

documentary "Gouge". James represented ''The Idler'' on BBC Two's '' University Challenge: The Professionals'' in 2005 with John Moore of

Black Box Recorder Black Box Recorder were an English indie rock band. They debuted in 1998 with '' England Made Me'' and followed this up with '' The Facts of Life'', which gave them their first hit with the single of the same name in April 2000. Their third ...

. They secured a heavy win over the ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Ni ...

'' in their heat, but did not score highly enough to return for the tournament's later stages. In 2007, James was a judge on the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

show Orange unsignedAct and, in November 2007, appeared as a panellist on the

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

satirical news quiz, '' Have I Got News for You''. He also appeared in episode #3.4 of Gordon Ramsay's The F Word TV series as a participant in the Recipe Challenge which occurs in each episode. In August 2008, James appeared in reality TV series, ''

Maestro Maestro (; from the Italian '' maestro'' , meaning "master" or "teacher") is an honorific title of respect (plural: maestros or maestri). The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera, in line with the ubiqu ...

'' on '' BBC Two.'' He was voted out in the fourth episode of the series. In September 2008, a documentary television series, ''Cocaine Diaries: Alex James in Colombia'', premiered on

BBC America BBC America is an American basic cable network that is jointly owned by BBC Studios and AMC Networks. The channel primarily airs sci-fi and action series and films, as well as selected programs from the BBC (such as its nature documentary seri ...

, in conjunction with the BBC America Reveals program. As the documentary progresses, James – who admits to having used cocaine extensively during Blur's Britpop heyday – learns about Colombia's violent drug export trade. In October 2009, James presented an episode of ''

Never Mind the Buzzcocks ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first hos ...

'' and, in January 2010, he participated in the

ITV1 ITV1 (formerly known as ITV) is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the British media company ITV plc. It provides the Channel 3 public broadcast service across all of the United Kingdom except for t ...

reality television programme ''

Popstar to Operastar ''Popstar to Operastar'' is a British television programme in which pop stars were trained to sing opera. The show began airing on ITV on 15 January 2010 at 9pm. The show was repeated on TV3 Ireland on Saturday evening. The programme was produc ...

''. On 4 March 2012, James appeared on ''Top Gear'' as a guest for their 'star in a reasonably priced car' segment, clocking in at 1:45.2. On 3 December 2011, he appeared on ''The Chase'' with

Sara Cox Sara Joanne Cyzer (née Cox; born 13 December 1974) is an English broadcaster. She presented ''Radio 1 Breakfast'' on BBC Radio 1 from 3 April 2000 until 19 December 2003. Since January 2019 she now hosts the BBC Radio 2 drivetime show, Monday ...

Ann Widdecombe Ann Noreen Widdecombe (born 4 October 1947) is a British politician, author and television personality. She was Member of Parliament (MP) for Maidstone and The Weald, and the former Maidstone constituency, from 1987 to 2010 and Member of the ...

and

Eamonn Holmes Eamonn Holmes (; born 3 December 1959)Holmes receives honorary degree
BBC ...

against chaser

Anne Hegerty Anne Solway Hegerty (born 14 July 1958) is an English quizzer and television personality. Since 2010, she has been a "chaser" on the ITV game show '' The Chase'' as "The Governess", and was a contestant on the 2018 series of the ITV reality sh ...

, but he was caught by the chaser. On 16 March 2012, James appeared on ''The Bank Job'' and made the final, where he was beaten by

Rachel Riley Rachel Annabelle Riley (born 11 January 1986) is a British television presenter. She co-presents the Channel 4 daytime puzzle show ''Countdown'' and its comedy spin-off '' 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown''. She is a mathematics graduate. Her t ...

. He is also the first Bank Job contestant to find two "bankrupts" in a single game. James has been a participant in

programme ''10 Things You Need to Know About Losing Weight''. On 26 December 2014, he appeared as one of the celebrity homeowners on ''

Through the Keyhole ''Through the Keyhole'' is a British comedy panel game show created by the TV producer Kevin Sim and originally presented by Sir David Frost in the studio and Loyd Grossman on location. The location presenter goes around celebrities' houses and ...

'' with

Keith Lemon Keith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Keith (given name), includes a list of people and fictional characters * Keith (surname) * Keith (singer), American singer James Keefer (born 1949) * Baron Keith, a line of Scottish barons ...

. In August 2015, he won the Channel 4 programme '' elebrity Fifteen to One'. A 2016 documentary titled ''Alex James: Slowing Down Fast Fashion'' examined the fashion industry and how "consumers' seemingly unquenchable thirst for cheap clothing is having a huge effect on the environment and workers, both at home here in the UK and abroad".

Radio

In 2007, James presented the

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

programme ''On Your Farm''. He presents ''Alex James's Date Night'' on Classic FM every Saturday at 7-10pm. James presented ''The A-Z of Classic FM Music''. The show was named Commercial Radio Programme of the Year at the Arqiva Commercial Radio Awards on 5 June 2009. He has also contributed to the show's accompanying memorabilia, writing the foreword to both the book and CD box set, published by ''

Reader's Digest ''Reader's Digest'' is an American general-interest family magazine, published ten times a year. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, it is now headquartered in midtown Manhattan. The magazine was founded in 1922 by DeWitt Wallace and his wif ...

'' in 2010.

Cheesemaking

;Artisan cheeses James has become notable for his production of cheese. After his success with Blur, he moved to the Cotswolds, purchasing a farmhouse and renovating it into a burgeoning cheese farm. The 200-acre cheese farm in Kingham, Oxfordshire, now produces award-winning cheeses including 'Alex James Presents' – a range of British artisan cheeses – 'Good Queen Maude', 'Blue Monday', 'Little Wallop', 'Farleigh Wallop', and most recently 'Goddess'. All are distinct in their flavour: "Blue Monday" (named after his favourite New Order song) is a creamy Shropshire Blue, sharp with a very faint sourness; "Little Wallop" is a soft goats' milk cheese, washed in

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

cider brandy and wrapped in vine leaves; and "Farleigh Wallop" is a

goat's cheese Goat cheese, or chèvre ( or ; from French ''fromage de chèvre'' 'goat cheese'), is cheese made from goat's milk. Goats were among the first animals to be domesticated for producing food. Goat cheese is made around the world with a variety o ...

made with sprigs of

thyme Thyme () is the herb (dried aerial parts) of some members of the genus '' Thymus'' of aromatic perennial evergreen herbs in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are relatives of the oregano genus ''Origanum'', with both plants being mostly indigen ...

. The latter was voted Best Goats' Cheese at the 2008 British Cheese Awards, where James himself was a judge in 2010. ;Everyday cheeses James's range of everyday cheeses hit the shelves of

Asda Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...

in 2011. The flavour combinations include 'cheddar and tomato ketchup', 'cheddar and salad cream', and 'cheddar and tikka masala'. Tim Chester, writing in ''The Guardian'', described James's cheese as "bizarre flavour mash-ups in sliced, processed, plasticky form". Jeremy Bowen of cheese sellers Paxton and Whitfield said "They are cheeky price points, they are yummy, they are not difficult to understand. He wants to introduce the great and the good".

Music & food festivals

James announced he would open his Oxfordshire farm to host an annual food and music festival. The event, titled Alex James Presents Harvest, took place from 9 to 12 September 2011, in conjunction with promoter Big Wheel Promotions. However, the event had a shaky start when Big Wheel Promotions went bankrupt leaving the ticketing company out of pocket and stallholders and performers unpaid. The local primary school, Kingham Primary, were also owed £7000 for the entertainment they organised, with the headteacher telling the Guardian that "We are either going to have to lose the music teacher or take it from other budgets which will reduce other parts of the curriculum". Then, in December 2011, a concert was staged locally to settle the debt. "I pledged to match the funds raised from my own pocket ... I was very happy to do that" said James. Big Wheel Promotions, the company behind 'Harvest', then abruptly ceased trading even though it had already taken ticket fees for 2012. 'Alex James Presents Harvest' will also be remembered for a photograph of Alex James with David Cameron and

Jeremy Clarkson Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born 11 April 1960) is an English broadcaster, journalist, game show host and writer who specialises in motoring. He is best known for the motoring programmes '' Top Gear'' and '' The Grand Tour'' alongside R ...

. Since 2012, James, along with

Jamie Oliver James Trevor Oliver MBE OSI (born 27 May 1975) is an English chef, restaurateur and cookbook author. He is known for his casual approach to cuisine, which has led him to front numerous television shows and open many restaurants. Oliver reac ...

, has hosted The Big Feastival, an annual food and music festival, on his Oxfordshire farm. On joining forces with James, Oliver said "The Big Feastival was a great success in South London last year and I cannot wait to take this celebration of the greatest chefs, the best local produce and suppliers and some fantastic entertainment to a more rural location at Alex's." Along with live musical performances from

Paloma Faith Paloma Faith Blomfield (born 21 July 1981) is an English singer and actress. Her debut studio album, '' Do You Want the Truth or Something Beautiful?,'' was released in 2009 and was certified double platinum in the UK. The album spawned the sin ...

Gaz Coombes Gaz Coombes (born 8 March 1976) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. He is best known as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the English alternative rock band Supergrass. He first entered the music scene aged 14 as the lead singer of the ...

, The Cuban Brothers,

Noisettes Noisettes are an English indie rock band from London, currently composed of singer and bassist Shingai Shoniwa and guitarist Dan Smith. The band first achieved commercial success and nationwide recognition with the second single of their se ...

Razorlight Razorlight are an English indie rock band, formed in 2002 in London by lead singer and guitarist Johnny Borrell. Along with Borrell, the current line-up of the band is composed of founding members Björn Ågren on guitar and bassist Carl Delemo ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

, and Sahand, there has been cooking demonstrations and masterclasses, Q&As and book signings with well-known chefs, as well as family entertainment from Peppa Pig, Slow Food Kids' Taste Adventure and Chipping Norton Theatre. 'The Big Feastival' returned to James's farm on 31 August and 1 September 2013 with a line-up including KT Tunstall,

The Feeling ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

Rizzle Kicks Rizzle Kicks are a British hip hop duo from Brighton, England, consisting of Jordan "Rizzle" Stephens (born 25 January 1992) and Harley "Sylvester" Alexander-Sule (born 1991). Their debut album, ''Stereo Typical'', was released in 2011. As o ...

and Basement Jaxx. The festival attracted over 30,000 attendees in 2014 and has continued to be held annually on

August Bank Holiday A bank holiday is a national public holiday in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and the Crown Dependencies. The term refers to all public holidays in the United Kingdom, be they set out in statute, declared by royal proclamation or held ...

weekend. On 19 June 2019, James visited Bledington Primary School and invited the children to submit a fun, colourful, festival-inspired design. The winning entry was displayed as a stage backdrop at The Big Feastival. The 2019 festival took place on 23–25 August. The music line-up included

Elbow The elbow is the region between the arm and the forearm that surrounds the elbow joint. The elbow includes prominent landmarks such as the olecranon, the cubital fossa (also called the chelidon, or the elbow pit), and the lateral and the me ...

Lewis Capaldi Lewis Marc Capaldi ( ; born 7 October 1996) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. He was nominated for the Critics' Choice Award at the 2019 Brit Awards. In March 2019, his single " Someone You Loved" topped the UK Singles Chart wher ...

, Jess Glyne,

Rudimental Rudimental are a British drum and bass band, signed to Asylum Records, Atlantic Records and Black Butter Records. The band consists of Piers Aggett, Kesi Dryden and Leon "Locksmith" Rolle. They were nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2013, and w ...

and

Jonas Blue Guy James Robin (born 2 August 1989), known professionally as Jonas Blue, is an English DJ, record producer, songwriter, and remixer based in London. He is known for recruiting young artists for his dance-pop and tropical house productions, wh ...

, with chefs including

Prue Leith Dame Prudence Margaret Leith, (born 18 February 1940) is a South African restaurateur, chef, caterer, television presenter/broadcaster, journalist, cookery writer and novelist. She is Chancellor of Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh. She wa ...

, Mark Hix and

Candice Brown Candice is a given name and a variant spelling of the name Candace. People Notable people with the name include: *Candice Accola, American actress (''The Vampire Diaries'') *Candice Carty-Williams, British writer *Candice Bergen, American actr ...

Personal life

James's father, Jason, was sales director of a company selling waste compactors and baling machines. James married Claire Neate, a music video producer, in April 2003 in Cheltenham. They have five children: three boys, Geronimo and twins Artemis and Galileo, and two daughters, Sable and Beatrix. The family live near Kingham in Oxfordshire on a 200-acre (0.81 km2) cheese farm; James is considered by the press to be a member of the Chipping Norton set. In his book, James describes a long period of decadent lifestyle. To celebrate his birthday in São Paulo one year, he got the

tour manager A tour manager (or concert tour manager) is the person who helps to organize the administration for a schedule of appearances of a musical group (band) or artist at a sequence of venues (a concert tour). In general, road managers handle tour deta ...

to find him a balthazar of champagne, which he shared with the five prettiest groupies who were at the hotel door. James estimated that he spent about 1 million pounds on champagne and cocaine; in 2015, however, he said that this story was not true. He mentions a long list of favourite bars, including the

Groucho Club The Groucho Club is a private members' club formed in 1985 located on Dean Street in London's Soho. Its members are mostly drawn from the publishing, media, entertainment and arts industries. The club has rooms on several floors, including th ...

and The Colony Room. Bournemouth University presented James with an honorary doctorate in November 2010. He also received an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from the University of Gloucestershire in November 2013.

Bibliography

* *

References

External links

Alex James
regularly contributes to ''

'' magazine
Alex James is one of the regular presenters of BBC Radio 4's ''On Your Farm''Evenlode Partnership
– Alex James and Julie Harbutt's cheese company
Alex James gives up vegetarianism after 17 yearsAlex James presents Never Mind the Buzzcocks (YouTube)Alex James's top 10 reads
''The Guardian'', 10 December 1999
Alex James presents on ClassicFM
* {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Alex 1968 births Living people Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London Blur (band) members Cheesemakers English farmers English male journalists English male singers English rock bass guitarists Male bass guitarists English songwriters English writers Ivor Novello Award winners People educated at Bournemouth School People from Boscombe Popstar to Operastar contestants Britpop musicians Dairy products companies of the United Kingdom Me Me Me (band) members