Jason Manford joins the cast of Death in Paradise on Thursday (January 21 2021) as Craig Mackenzie, a lottery winner who is involved in a murder.
But Jason’s career didn’t always look so peachy.
The comedian was once involved in a scandal that threatened his career and his marriage.
So is Jason still married?
Here’s everything you need to know!
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Who is Jason Manford?
Jason came to fame as a likeable stand-up comedian.
He went on to become a singer, TV presenter, radio presenter and actor.
He was team captain on C4 panel show 8 Out of 10 Cats from 2007 until 2010, and has presented TV shows including The One Show, Show Me the Funny and Bigheads.
In 2020, he hosted The Royal Variety Performance.
The same year, he amazed audiences when he revealed himself to be The Hedgehog on The Masked Singer.
He has appeared in numerous stage musicals such as Sweeney Todd, The Producers, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Guys and Dolls and Curtains.
As an actor, Jason has portrayed Mike in Scarborough, André in Benidorm and Marty in Ordinary Lies.
He now guest stars in episode three of Death in Paradise on BBC One.
How old is Jason?
Jason John Manford was born on May 26 1981.
He is currently 39 years old.
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Where is Jason from?
Jason was born and raised in Salford, Greater Manchester, with his four siblings.
He comes from a family of singers and musicians.
He attended the University of Salford.
Is Jason married?
Jason is currently married to his second wife Lucy Dyke.
He wed his first wife, Catherine, in October 2007.
In May 2013, they announced they had separated and divorced the same year.
The marriage was beset with problems from the start.
Jason was embroiled in a sexting scandal just weeks before their wedding (see below).
At the time he claimed then-wife Catherine had forgiven him.
But it obviously wasn’t to be.
How many kids does Jason have?
Jason has six children.
He has twin daughters with his first wife Catherine.
She gave birth to their third daughter in December 2010, and a son in 2012.
He also has two children with second wife Lucy Dyke.
Jason Manford sexting scandal
In 2010, Jason quit The One Show on BBC One after admitting that he shared sexual messages online with female fans.
He and Alex Jones had taken over from Adrian Chiles and Christine Bleakley.
Jason said: “I have decided after careful consideration to step down from The One Show to concentrate on my family and tour commitments.”
The comedian resigned, saying that he wanted to leave “to ease the situation surrounding newspaper allegations”.
The BBC said: “We have got nothing to say except that we accept Jason’s decision.”
Jason told The Sun: “I have only myself to blame. I have never felt so low.”
Jason issued an apology, saying: “I can see now that what started out as a bit of messing about and having a laugh on Twitter has been misjudged.
“I’d like to apologise to anyone that this has offended as that was the last thing I ever intended to do.”
He was also accused of having phone sex with a fan just five weeks before he got married.
Jason Manford is Craig in Death in Paradise
He stars as Craig Mackenzie in episode three of Death in Paradise.
The mystery centres around a couple of lottery winners and their friends, one of whom dies – only for the body to disappear into thin air.
Cherry dies at her luxurious villa, much to the horror of her husband.
DI Neville and team must work out how to draw up a suspect list when there’s no actual corpse.
Kelvin Fletcher and Faye McKeever also guest star.
Death in Paradise airs on Thursday nights at 9pm on BBC One.
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