Fiona Bruce's home life from rarely-seen husband to modelling and Clarkson feud

17 October 2023 , 18:00

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Fiona Bruce has become a familiar face on telly over the years (Image: Woman & Home/ Dan Kennedy)

Television presenter Fiona Bruce shows no signs of slowing down as she continues to be a regular face on our screens. From hosting Fake or Fortune?, Question Time and Antiques Roadshow, the 59-year-old newsreader was named the sixth highest-paid BBC star last year, reportedly earning nearly £400,000.

But throughout her hugely successful career, there's a few things fans mightn't know about Fiona's life on and off-screen, like the time she was awarded female Rear of the Year in 2010 - which she called 'demeaning' - or her tiff with Jeremy Clarkson after he commented on her 'nice bottom', and how she got her revenge.

Fiona presents Fake or Fortune? with expert Philip Mould on BBC One (BBC)

She has worked on Panorama, Question Time and Antiques Roadshow (PA)

First taste of fame

Fiona was born in Singapore in Malaysia and moved to the UK for primary school. She got her first taste of fame when she modelled in the teenage girls' magazine Jackie. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in French and Italian, she struggled to find work that suited her interests, but it was someone she met at a wedding that eventually gave Fiona her big break.

Editor of BBC's Panorama, Tim Gardam, gave her a job as a researcher on the programme in 1989, and her career shot off from there. She worked her way up the ranks before becoming the face of BBC News. In 2010, she was awarded the female Rear of the Year and accepted it in person - but the following year, she declared her acceptance of it had been 'hypocritical'.

Reality TV hell

Fiona appeared on BBC's Just The Two Of Us in 2006 and it made her swear off reality TV for life. She was partnered with Alexander O'Neal on the show, which was hosted by husband and wife team Tess Daly and Vernon Kay. Following her appearance she vowed 'never again' and has turned down every other offer to take part in reality telly.

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It didn't stop her from appearing on Top Gear twice - and taking on Jeremy Clarkson when he made a comment about her 'nice bum' in 2007. Fiona shared a lift with Clarkson and had to push him out when she got stuck on a Peel P50. As she was walking away, Clarkson said - without her being aware - "She has got quite a nice bottom, I said that out loud, didn't I?"

Returning to the series the following year, along with Kate Silverton in the segment Star in a Reasonably Sized Car, she got her own back at the presenter, who was later sacked from the show. She slapped Clarkson's bottom and added that it "needs a bit of work". And that wasn't all - Fiona later stood in for Clarkson on his Sunday Times car review column and described it as the ultimate revenge for what he said about her. "Perching my bottom, nice or otherwise, on his patch," she said.

Motherhood controversy

Fiona has been married to businessman Nigel Sharrocks for almost 30 years

Away from the cameras, Fiona lives a low-key private life with her husband, businessman Nigel Sharrocks, and their two grown-up children. Fiona first met Nigel when they both worked at an advertising agency and they went on to tie the knot in July 1994. They had son Sam in 1998 and daughter Mia in 2001, and currently have two homes, one in London and the other in Oxfordshire. Fiona previously told the Guardian that Nigel is "happy to be in the background and let her get on with her thing".

Fiona encountered some public controversy after she gave birth to her youngest, as she decided to return to work on Crimewatch 16 days after she became a mum for the second time. She addressed the concerns in The Telegraph, saying: "I'm not some mad career monster. I don't want people to think I'm setting a terribly bad example here - the last thing I would advocate is women rushing back to work with a baby."

In 2021, Fiona revealed that she was able to balance work and motherhood by "having the same nanny living with us for 20 years". In a Good Housekeeping interview, Fiona spoke about spending not enough time with her children when they were young. She said: "I don't think there's such a thing as quality time with your children. I think it's quantity. But there's never been any question that they take precedence over everything in my life, and always have done."

Nia Dalton