Barnaby John Harwood was born on 7 November 1979 in Blackpool and is a British actor and television presenter. He is probably best known for his work with CBBC beginning in 2002.
Harwood presented Prank Patrol for the BBC and was a voice-over commentator for The Smokehouse, while on BBC Two, he co-presented Basil’s Swap Shop (a remake of Multi-Coloured Swap Shop), alongside Basil Brush. Previous work for CBBC included gameshow Crush in 2004, Sport Relief Gets Sub’d!, a Sport Relief 2006 show and as co-presenter of Smile, which aired each Sunday on BBC Two until 26 August 2007 and saw him win a Children’s BAFTA for best presenter. He also co-hosted the Doctor Who tie-in programme Totally Doctor Who until it was cancelled after series three in 2007. Harwood was also the Control Voice in an episode of the Doctor Who spin off animated series The Infinite Quest. As an extra, he appeared in the Doctor Who episode “Love & Monsters”, which was first transmitted on 17 June 2006. In July 2007, Harwood fronted The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, a daily reality series following a group of children learning magic at a Harry Potter-style boarding school. Bear Behaving Badly, a 26-part sitcom starring Harwood and Nev the Bear from Smile, was broadcast on BBC One between September and October 2007. In February 2008, Harwood starred as the ‘hidden’ celebrity in an episode of Hider in the House. He worked on the series Inside Life which is the children’s companion series to the BBC Natural History Unit’s Life. Harwood narrates all ten programmes.
On 13 December 2010 it was revealed on the BBC’s Blue Peter that Harwood would be the new presenter on the show, taking over from Joel Defries. Harwood had a successful career on the show becoming one of the longest serving presenters at 6.5 years. He soon became popular and renowned for his bad jokes and mischievous behaviour. Through the years he grew his famous catchphrase, “I want one”, as well as growing to call over to “Camera Two” to get a shot of him and giving away strange prizes in the show’s game “Spot Shelley”, including a house in Spain, a unicorn called Colin and a life-times supply of chutney. His various hairstyles often added to his fame among viewers. Barney is particularly good at cycling, doing well in various challenges with bikes, a big fan of coffee, as well as music and has interests in photography and camping out in his campervan. He, however, has a fear of frogs; on his first show, Steve Backshall got him to hold one and on his last show he was made to kiss a frog, conquering fear in both.
In early 2016, Harwood took a break from Blue Peter; he returned later that year. It was announced in August 2017 during the show’s summer break that Harwood would leave the show after six and half years and his final show aired on 14 September 2017 where Harwood would move on from Blue Peter and “onto new adventures”. Harwood announced during his last Blue Peter episode that after 16 years working with CBBC, he would also leave the channel. On his last show he was awarded a Blue Peter Gold Badge, the highest accolade, for his work on the programme. When awarded by co-presenter Radzi Chingyanganya, he was described as being “at the very top of the list”. In August 2017, he appeared as a contestant on Celebrity Masterchef.
The featured image shows Barney Harwood at the British Academy Children’s Awards in 2007 at the London Hilton, 25 November 2007.
Barney Harwood and Mr Bloom children’s TV presenter
