David Frost (1939)
Sir David Paradine Frost was born at Tenterden, Kent, the son of a Methodist
minister, the Rev. W.J. Paradine Frost.
He is married to Lady Carina Frost, a daughter of the 17th Duke of Norfolk. He
was previously married (1981-82) to Lynne Frederick (widow of Peter Sellers).
From early on, Frost allegedly declared his ambition to become a TV personality.
Frost's well-known ability to network with the right people was in evidence at
Cambridge, where he edited the student newspaper Varsity and the literary
magazine Granta as well as taking on the role of secretary of the famous
Footlights drama society, which included people of note such as Peter Cook and
John Bird.
After leaving university, he became a trainee at Associated-Rediffusion and
worked for Anglia Television. At the same time, he kept up his cabaret
performances.
After several others declined the role, he was chosen by writer and producer Ned
Sherrin to host a pioneering satirical programme called That Was The Week That
Was. This caught the wave of the satire boom in 1960s Britain and became
enormously popular as well as influential, although it often riled politicians.
In 1963 a moving tribute to recently-assassinated President John F. Kennedy on
That Was The Week That Was had seen Frost's fame spread to the USA.
Frost is the only person to have interviewed all of the past six British prime
ministers and the past seven US presidents. He was also the last person to
interview Mohammad Reza Shah, the last Shah of Iran.
Sir David's latest project is to present a live weekly current affairs programme
for Al Jazeera English, the English language version of the Arabic broadcaster,
starting when the network launched in November 2006.
|