Aled Haydn Jones (born 9 August 1976) is a Welsh radio executive, former presenter and former radio producer. In June 2020 he was appointed head of

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

, succeeding

Ben Cooper Ben Cooper (September 30, 1933 – February 24, 2020) was an American actor of film and television, who won a Golden Boot Award in 2005 for his work in westerns. Stage Cooper appeared on Broadway in '' Life With Father'' (1939). He debuted in ...

. From 2004 until 2012 he worked on ''

The Chris Moyles Show ''The Chris Moyles Show'' is the title given to two differing versions of a radio programme hosted by Chris Moyles, originally broadcast as Radio 1 Breakfast from 5 January 2004 to 14 September 2012 before transferring three years later on 21 ...

''. He was a presenter on ''

The Surgery ''The Surgery'' was a British radio show that aired on BBC Radio 1 weekly from 1999 to 2017. It was most recently hosted by Katie Thistleton and Doctor Radha Modgil, prior to its merger in November 2017 with a new show entitled '' Radio 1's ...

'' on

between 2009 until 2015. After a stint as an editor, Jones was appointed Head of Programmes in 2017.

Personal life

Jones was born to Hayden and Ann Jones in Aberystwyth,

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, in 1976. He has a younger sister named Meleri. Jones is a fluent Welsh speaker. He attended Ysgol Gymraeg Aberystwyth, a Welsh medium primary school, and Ysgol Gyfun Penweddig Welsh medium secondary before going on to complete a BTEC qualification in Media Studies at Swansea College. He currently lives in London. Jones is openly gay. In August 2016 Jones confirmed on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that his long-term partner, Emile, proposed to him on his 40th birthday. In February 2021 S4C broadcast the Welsh-language documentary ''DRYCH: Ti, Fi a'r Fam Fenthyg'' ("You, me and the surrogate") which tracked Jones and Emile were trying to become parents with the help of Surrogacy UK. The follow up documentary ''DRYCH: Ti, Fi a'r Babi'' ("You, me and the baby"), broadcast in June 2022 revealed all that had happened since.

Radio career

Jones started his radio career at the age of 14 when he presented a slot on Radio Bronglais Bronglais General Hospital Bronglais hospital radio. He later moved to a commercial radio station called

Radio Ceredigion ''Radio Ceredigion'' () was an Independent Local Radio station that was broadcast to Ceredigion. It was broadcast across the county on 96.6, 97.4 and 103.3 FM. On May 31, 2019, the station became a relay of Nation Radio Wales. History From its ...

which was launched in 1992. Jones joined

in 1998 when he worked as a broadcast assistant on the Roadshow. He joined just as the show was in its final year and was soon to meet Chris Moyles as he was booking bands and transport for the Roadshow. As well as working as a producer of The Chris Moyles Show, Jones has presented Radio 1's Surgery on Sunday night as part of the

BBC Switch BBC Switch was the brand for BBC content aimed at UK teenagers. The brand was launched on Saturday 20 October 2007 on BBC Two and ceased broadcasting on 18 December 2010. It included a block of television programmes on BBC Two, an online porta ...

strand.

The Surgery

'' was a British radio show that aired on BBC Radio. In 2008, Jones was a regular presenter on Radio 1's Sunday Surgery, providing cover for

Kelly Osbourne Kelly Michelle Lee Osbourne (born 27 October 1984) is an English television personality, singer, actress, model, and fashion designer. The daughter of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, she appeared on the reality show '' The Osbournes'' (2002–2005) w ...

while she was ill. In Autumn 2008, it was announced that Osbourne would be taking a break from the Sunday Surgery in order to film Osbournes: Reloaded in the USA with the rest of her family, and Jones became the regular presenter. In 2013 Jones was given a co host, Dr Radha Modgil. In April 2015 it was announced Jones would be stepping down from his role, being replaced by

Gemma Cairney Gemma Cairney (born 19 March 1985) is an English television and radio presenter best known for her work on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music. She most recently presented '' The Leisure Society'' on BBC Radio 6 Music where she interviewed cultura ...

from June 2015.

Working with Chris Moyles

Jones's first role with

Chris Moyles Christopher David Moyles (born 22 February 1974) is an English radio and television presenter, author and presenter of '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on Radio X. Previously he has presented '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on BBC Radio 1 from 2004 to ...

was doing general tasks behind the scenes on Chris's One Big Belly Tour. In 2001, whilst discussing the events of an episode of ''Big Brother'' Series 2, Chris asked Jones to present it in the form of a proper review. This developed into a daily review spot, earning Jones the nickname "BB Aled" and an invitation to the official eviction press conferences on Friday night. In August 2002, Jones joined Chris's afternoon show on a permanent basis, taking over from Lizzie Buckingham as a Broadcast Assistant. Jones then gained his second nickname "FA Aled" shortly after, as he reported on the events of reality show

Fame Academy ''Fame Academy'' was a British television talent competition to search for and educate new musical talents. The winner received a chance to become a successful music artist and part of the international franchise ''Star Academy'' known under va ...

in the same way. Jones worked closely with the show's main producer, Rachel Jones, to oversee the launch of The Chris Moyles Show in its new breakfast slot. In 2005, he was given the role of Day Head Producer and in 2009 took over Rachel's position of Head Producer of The Chris Moyles Show. Jones's role as producer ended on 14 September 2012 when Nick Grimshaw replaced Chris Moyles on the Radio 1 Breakfast Show.

Film and television

In addition to his career on Radio 1, he has also been a judge on the S4C

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language of the Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has ...

talent show, '' Wawffactor''. He appeared as an extra in season four of '' 24'', in episode 23, and was voted

Rear of the Year Rear of the Year was a British award for celebrities who were considered to have an attractive posterior. It was created by publicity consultant Anthony Edwards in 1976. Initially, it was awarded only to women, but in 1986 the first award was ...

in 2004. In November 2007, Jones appeared as a contestant in the

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, cur ...

series ''

Celebrity Scissorhands ''Celebrity Scissorhands'' is a reality television show that is part of the BBC's '' Children in Need'' charity campaign, in which celebrities attempt to cut people's hair to raise money for the campaign while trained and watched by professional ...

'', in aid of charity Children in Need. The contestants had to learn how to cut hair and give various beauty salon treatments on volunteers, with the minimal amount of training. Jones eventually finished second in the contest, losing in the final to comedian

Ninia Benjamin Ninia Benjamin is a British comedian"Introducing... Sta ...

. In March 2011, Jones was part of the ITV2 show, ''OMG with

Peaches Geldof Peaches Honeyblossom Geldof (13 March 1989 – 6 or 7 April 2014) was an English columnist, television personality, and model. Born and raised in London, Geldof was educated at Queen's College after her parents' divorce in 1996, and later move ...

'' in which he, alongside Geldof looked at understanding alternative lifestyles and subcultures. In November 2011, Jones was a panellist on ITV2's '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! Now!'' for one week giving his views on life in the jungle.

References

External links

*
Biography
at BBC Wales {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Aled Haydn 1976 births BBC Radio 1 presenters BBC Radio 1 controllers British LGBT broadcasters LGBT DJs Welsh radio DJs People from Aberystwyth People educated at Ysgol Gyfun Gymunedol Penweddig Living people 21st-century LGBT people