Mariella Frostrup

Mariella Frostrup is a writer and broadcaster , firmly established as an intelligent and accessible commentator in a wide range of programmes and publications.

At the top end of opinion forming journalists and TV presenters in the UK, she has defied any attempt to pigeonhole herself. She regularly writes for the Observer and other publications.

Recent broadcasting projects include SexBox on Channel 4, an innovative format in which couple discuss their feelings and sensations about their love life after having sex; Bringing Up Britain, the Radio 4 series which looks at the challenges of modern parenting; and Objects of Desire for Sky Arts, a 6 part series exploring the world’s most desirable objects.

Born in Oslo and brought up in Ireland, Mariella has lived in London since the age of sixteen.

Between 1980 and 1990, she worked as a public relations executive for Parlophone Records, most famously working on the Live Aid concert at Wembley in 1985. After leaving Parlophone, Mariella swiftly broke into television as a film critic, presenting Thames Television's Video View from 1990 and - after Thames lost the London ITV franchise, reprised the role straight afterwards on The Little Picture Show for Carlton Television from 1993.

During her 15 year career in television, Mariella has impressed audiences with her friendly, intelligent and accessible screen presence.

Mariella's projects run the gamut from current affairs (Panorama, Question Time and Backlash) to movies and the arts. She has interviewed many different celebrities, writers and other artists and has presented a variety of different TV programmes, including one on travel, and has appeared in other TV shows such as the series Have I Got News for You and the sitcom Absolutely Fabulous. She made several guest appearances as herself in the series Coupling including an episode where one of the characters fantasizes about her, then meets her in person.

She presents Open Book and fronted the recent Memory Season on Radio Four. Mariella presented her own series for Artsworld The Book Show. She combines her television and radio career with that of a prolific journalist. Mariella was the film critic for Harpers And Queen and has a weekly dilemma column in The Observer Magazine for whom she also writes major interviews.

Mariella is passionate and knowledgeable about the arts, including film, literature, music and popular culture, as well as politics and current affairs, and over her career has interviewed many famous figures from Paul McCartney to Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Susan Sarandon to Nick Clegg.

Mariella is also a respected arts critic and has sat on the judging panels of various awards including the Booker Prize, the Orange Prize for Fiction, the Evening Standard Film Awards, the Amnesty International Media Awards, the Whitbread Book Of The Year, the London Film Festival and the RIBA Stirling Prize Awards 2006.