Mark Thomas Rhodes (born 11 September 1981) is an English singer, actor and television presenter.

Career

Born in

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...

, England, Rhodes finished in second place in the second series of ''

Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show was to decide the best new young pop singer (or "pop idol") in the UK based on viewer voting and par ...

'' in the United Kingdom, runner-up to

Michelle McManus Michelle McManus (born 8 May 1980) is a Scottish singer, columnist, and television presenter who won the second and final series of the UK talent show ''Pop Idol'' in 2003. McManus's debut single, " All This Time", entered the UK Singles Cha ...

. After ''Pop Idol'', he teamed up with third-place

Sam Nixon Sam Nixon is an English singer and television presenter. He came third on the ''Pop Idol'' television series in 2003 and is now one half of the duo Sam & Mark, with the other being Mark Rhodes. Early life He was originally a catering student ...

, releasing two singles under the name

Sam & Mark Sam Nixon and Mark Rhodes, known collectively as Sam & Mark, or simply Smark, are an English popular music and television presenting duo. They previously competed on the second series of ''Pop Idol'' in 2003, where they finished third and s ...

. In February 2004, their cover of the song "

With a Little Help from My Friends "With a Little Help from My Friends" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, from their 1967 album '' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney and sung by drummer Ringo Starr (as Sgt. Pe ...

" reached number 1 in the UK singles chart, remaining there for one week. Their second single 'The Sun Has Come Your Way" reached 19 in the singles chart. The pair were subsequently encourage by manager Simon Fuller to pursue a career in TV. Rhodes went on to co-present ''

Top of the Pops Reloaded ''Top of the Pops Reloaded'' (''TOTP Reloaded''), is a weekly children's music show broadcast as part of the Saturday morning CBBC schedule on BBC Two. It was based on the show, ''Top of the Pops'', and was originally known as ''Top of the Pops ...

'' with Nixon and

Fearne Cotton Fearne Wood ( Cotton; born 3 September 1981) is an English broadcaster and author''.'' She began her career in the late 1990s presenting various children's television shows for GMTV, CITV and CBBC. In 2007, she presented '' The Xtra Factor'', ...

in 2004. From April 2006, Rhodes co-hosted the weekday children's breakfast show ''

Level Up Level Up may refer to: Film and TV *Level Up (2016 film), a British thriller film * ''Level Up'' (American TV series), a Cartoon Network live action series ** ''Level Up'' (2011 film), the movie pilot for the Cartoon Network series * ''Level Up' ...

'' on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

alongside Nixon and Ayesha Asantewaa. ''Level Up'' finished its first series in September 2006. In September 2006, Rhodes began presenting BBC Two's Saturday morning show ''

TMi TMI may refer to: Organizations * TMI Associates, a Japanese law firm * TMI Episcopal, formerly Texas Military Institute, a preparatory school affiliated with the Episcopal Church * Taiwan Music Institute, a musical institute` in Taiwan * Teen ...

'' alongside Nixon and

Caroline Flack Caroline Louise Flack (9 November 1979 – 15 February 2020) was an English television and radio presenter and actress. She won the twelfth series of BBC’s ''Strictly Come Dancing'' in 2014 and presented ''The X Factor'' and later '' Love Isl ...

. He had his own short segment on the show called "Question Mark", a feature where he tried to answer viewers' questions, but Flack and Nixon talk through it. In later series, Flack left and the show moved to Fridays. The show's final episode aired on 17 December 2010. He also co-presented ''

Do Something Different ''Do Something Different'' is a show produced and broadcast by CBBC. It was hosted by music duo Sam and Mark. The show aims to get one million children to try out new things; literally to "do something different", also referred in the programme a ...

'' with Nixon and Ayesha Asantewaa. Nixon and Rhodes have produced children's reality series, ''Who Wants to Be a Superhero?'' and ''Sam and Mark's Guide to Dodging Disaster''. In 2009, Rhodes co-presented the show '' Skate Nation'' on BBC Two. He presented The duo were contestants on a celebrity version of 2010 ''

Total Wipeout ''Total Wipeout'' is a British game show, hosted by Richard Hammond and Amanda Byram, which first aired on the BBC on 3 January 2009. In each episode, contestants competed in a series of challenges in an attempt to win £10,000. These challen ...

'' Celebrity Special, which aired on 2 January 2010. Rhodes fell at the quarter-final stage, losing out to eventual winner

Danielle Lloyd Danielle Lloyd (formerly O'Hara; born 16 December 1983) is an English model and television personality. A former Miss England (2004) and Miss Great Britain (2006), Lloyd first rose to prominence when she was stripped of her Miss Great Britain tit ...

. They subsequently took part in two episodes of '' Hole in the Wall'', airing on 11 October 2008 and 14 November 2009. Rhodes competed in the 2012 series of ''

Dancing on Ice ''Dancing on Ice'' is a British television series presented by Phillip Schofield alongside Holly Willoughby from 2006 to 2011, who then returned in 2018, and Christine Bleakley from 2012 to 2014. The series features celebrities and their profe ...

''. He was eliminated by the judges on 22 January after a skate off with ''

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

'' actress

Charlene Tilton Charlene L. Tilton (born December 1, 1958) is an American actress and singer. She is widely known for playing Lucy Ewing, the niece of brothers J. R. Ewing and Bobby Ewing (played by Larry Hagman and Patrick Duffy), on the television seri ...

. Hosts of family favourite

CBBC CBBC (initialised as Children's BBC and also known as the CBBC Channel) is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the bran ...

family game show ''

Copycats ''Copycats'' is a children's game show which aired on CBBC and was presented by double act Sam & Mark (Sam Nixon and Mark Rhodes). It involved two teams of friends and family, each of six contestants, battling against each other in a series of ...

''. Mark is perhaps best-known for presenting the return of the iconic Crackerjack (CBBC), eight series of Sam & Mark’s Big Friday Wind Up (CBBC), as well as the much loved Saturday morning live show'' TMi Friday'' on the

CBBC Channel CBBC (initialised as Children's BBC and also known as the CBBC Channel) is a British free-to-air public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content for children aged 7– ...

. Other very recent TV credits include

The One Show ''The One Show'' is a British television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on BBC One weeknights at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. It is currently co-hosted by Alex Jones, Jermaine Jenas, and Ronan K ...

and All Star Games for

Sport Relief ''Sport Relief'' was a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, established in 2002. It was the idea of Kevin Cahill, CBE, who had joined Comic Relief in 1991 to establish a new department as Director of Educati ...

, both on

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, p ...

. Alongside an illustrious career in TV, Mark has also enjoyed much success with a weekend radio show on Free Radio. He has delighted fans with the live Sam and Mark On The Road Show across the UK at summer festivals,

Butlins Butlin's is a chain of large seaside resorts in the United Kingdom. Butlin's was founded by Billy Butlin to provide affordable holidays for ordinary British families. Between 1936 and 1966, ten camps were built, including one in Ireland and o ...

and as part of the Underbelly Festival, as well as across the world whilst touring with P&O Cruises. As co-author of three children’s books published by Scholastic The Adventures of Long Arm, The Adventures of Long Arm 2: Revenge of the Supply Teacher and The Stink Before Christmas published in over six languages, Mark has also been a part of the UK Productions family for the past seven years and has appeared in pantomimes across the UK, this Christmas appearing in The Return of Captain Hook Croydon's Fairfield Halls theatre. Outside of presenting and performing, Mark is a long-term ambassador for the Wolves Foundation as well as a patron of Whizz Kids and Kicks Count, all charities that are very close to his heart. With numerous awards and award nominations under his belt, Mark has twice won ‘Best Presenter’ at the BAFTA Children & Young People's Awards in 2013 and 2015 respectively.

Awards and Nominations

BAFTA Best Children’s Presenter Winner: 2013 ( Sam and Mark’s Big Friday Wind Up) 2015 (Sam and Mark’s Big Friday Wind Up) Nominations: 2007, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019 BAFTA Best Children’s Entertainment Show Winner: 2016 (Sam and Mark’s Big Friday Wind Up) Nominations: 2014, 2015 and 2016

RTS RTS may refer to: Medicine * Rape trauma syndrome, the psychological trauma experienced by a rape victim * Revised Trauma Score, a system to evaluate injuries secondary to violent trauma * Rubinstein–Taybi syndrome, a condition characterized by ...

North West Awards Best Entertainment Show Winner: 2015 (Sam and Mark’s Big Friday Wind Up) 2021 ( Crackerjack) Nominations: 2013, 2015 and 2021

Arqiva Arqiva () is a British telecommunications company which provides infrastructure, broadcast transmission and smart meter facilities in the United Kingdom. The company is headquartered at the former Independent Broadcasting Authority headquarters ...

Commercial Radio Awards Best Newcomer: Nomination: 2011

Personal life

Rhodes attended Darlaston Comprehensive High School in

Darlaston Darlaston is an industrial town in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in the West Midlands of England. It is located near Wednesbury and Willenhall. Topography Darlaston is situated between Wednesbury and Walsall in the valley of the River T ...

. Rhodes splits his time between his house in St Margarets,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and his family house in

, where he is regularly seen socialising in the village of

Wombourne Wombourne is a large village and civil parish located in the district of South Staffordshire, in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is 4 miles (6 km) south-west of Wolverhampton and just outside the county and conurbation of the W ...

. He got engaged in March 2011 and married his girlfriend Harriet Wilson on 2 June 2012. They now have a daughter, Scarlett and a son, Teddy, born at the end of April 2016. Rhodes is a

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

fan and played on the All Stars side at Matt Murray's testimonial match in 2011. He also played in

Jody Craddock Jody Darryl Craddock (born 25 July 1975) is an English former professional Association football, footballer and artist who played as a centre back in the Premier League for Sunderland A.F.C., Sunderland and Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C., Wolverh ...

's testimonial match as part of a Wolves XI at Molineux in 2014.

''Pop Idol 2'' performances

Filmography

Discography

Singles

;as

" (February 2004) *" The Sun Has Come Your Way" (May 2004)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhodes, Mark 1981 births Living people 21st-century British singers People from Darlaston Pop Idol contestants Top of the Pops presenters