Devin Joseph Jordan Griffin (born 23 December 1984) is a British

radio presenter A radio personality is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host (North American English), radio presenter (British English) or radio jockey. Radio personali ...

, DJ and actor, who is most commonly known for presenting

Heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ found in humans and other animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels. The heart and blood vessels together make the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrie ...

's evening show since January 2022 and Heart's Feel Good Weekend since January 2021. He is also known for his former weekend afternoon shows on

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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

Early and personal life

Griffin was born on 23 December 1984 in

Hackney, London Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Queen ...

, United Kingdom, to an Irish mother and a

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

n father. He and his twin sister are the youngest of four siblings. He was educated at The Ravenscroft School in Barnet, and attended the after-school drama club at the Anna Scher Theatre School, where he met friend and future co-host

Reggie Yates Reginald Yates (born 31 May 1983) is a British television presenter, actor, writer and director with a career spanning three decades on screen as an actor, television presenter and radio DJ. Yates played Leo Jones in ''Doctor Who'' and has wo ...

Career

Early career

Griffin began his radio career in 2000, aged 16 on

pirate radio Pirate radio is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license, whether an invalid license or no license at all. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are rec ...

station Freek FM, specialising in garage and jungle. Here he was known as DJ Devstar and presented with Yates (who used the moniker MC Nobizzi). In 2002, whilst studying for his A Levels at The Ravenscroft School, Griffin landed a job co-presenting the children's interactive TV show ''

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses d ...

'' (credited as DJ Devstar) alongside Yates,

Fearne Cotton Fearne Cotton (born 3 September 1981) is an English broadcaster and author. She began her career in the late 1990s as a children’s television presenter for GMTV, CITV and CBBC. She went on to present various television shows, including ''To ...

and

Nev the Bear Nev the Bear is a small, blue puppet bear that originally appeared in the CBBC television programme ''Smile''. Since 2007, Nev has starred in his own CBBC show '' Bear Behaving Badly'', alongside Barney Harwood. His name was created from the na ...

. Six months into filming, he was approached by

BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts Black music and urban music, including hip hop and R&B and is a sister station to Radio 1. Launching at 18:00 on 16 August 2002, it had been ...

to present a Saturday afternoon show with Yates. In 2003, Griffin left ''Smile'' to concentrate on his radio career.

Acting

In 2006, Griffin created and starred in children's sitcom ''

The Crust ''The Crust'' is a British television series about a pizza parlour which was originally shown by CBBC. It was produced by Darrall Macqueen Darrall Macqueen Ltd is an independent children's television production company based in London, En ...

''. He has starred as himself in '' Friday Download: The Movie'', as a result of campaigning at length on air to get himself a role in a

B movie A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second ...

DJ

Griffin was a member of the Rebellious music collective and played in venues at

Ayia Napa Ayia Napa ( , ), officially Romanization, romanised Agia Napa, is a Tourism in Cyprus, tourist resort at the far eastern end of the southern coast of Cyprus. Etymology The name Ayia Napa is derived from a Venetian Cyprus, Venetian-era monaster ...

and

Faliraki Faliraki () is the primary seaside resort village on the Greek island of Rhodes, in the Dodecanese. It is situated on Faliraki Bay, on the northeastern coast, about 14 km south of the town of Rhodes and 10 km southeast of the airport. ...

. He opened for

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

at the

Hammersmith Apollo The Hammersmith Apollo, currently called the Eventim Apollo for sponsorship reasons, and formerly and still commonly known as the Hammersmith Odeon, is a live entertainment performance venue, originally built as a cinema called the Gaumont Pa ...

and

Jurassic 5 Jurassic 5 (stylized JuraSsic 5) is an American alternative hip hop group formed by rappers Charles Stewart (Chali 2na), Dante Givens (Akil), Courtenay Henderson (Soup (Jurassic 5), Soup, Zaakir), and Marc Stuart (Marc 7); and disc jockeys Mar ...

at the

London Astoria The London Astoria was a music venue at 157 Charing Cross Road, in London, England, that operated from 1976 to 2009. Originally a warehouse during the 1920s, the building became a cinema and ballroom. It was converted for use as a theatre in t ...

. He also played at the Radio 1 Teen Awards.

Radio

Griffin joined

at the launch in August 2002, where he and Yates presented ''The Lowdown with Reg and Dev'' on Saturday afternoons. In August 2004, the show moved to Saturday mornings, with Griffin additionally doing the show by himself on Sunday mornings. Yates left 1Xtra in December 2004, leaving Griffin to present both Saturday and Sunday morning shows by himself. Following further schedule changes in September 2005, Griffin moved to Saturday afternoons where he stayed until 2007, when he became presenter of the weekday early morning show. In July 2009, he moved to

to take on the weekend breakfast show. In September, he moved from the weekend slot to replace

Greg James Gregory James Alan Milward (born 17 December 1985) is an English broadcaster and author. He has been a presenter on BBC Radio 1 since 2007, hosting shows including his old drive-time show and the station's flagship breakfast show. Since 201 ...

as host of the weekday early breakfast show, between 4am and 6:30am. In March 2014, he left the weekday slot and returned to the weekend breakfast show, taking over from

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 cultural ...

. He regularly presented ''

The Radio 1 Breakfast Show ''Radio 1 Breakfast'', also known as ''The Radio 1 Breakfast Show'', is a radio show that is broadcast across the UK on BBC Radio 1. It is hosted by Greg James since 20 August 2018 as the show's 16th presenter. The show ran six days a week u ...

'' (sitting in for

Nick Grimshaw Nicholas Peter Andrew Grimshaw (born 14 August 1984), nicknamed "Grimmy", is an English broadcaster and author. He became known for having hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1. He is also known as a television presenter for his Channel 4 rol ...

), the Scott Mills show and the Greg James show as a relief presenter. In 2018, he and

Alice Levine Alice Levine (born 8 July 1986) is an English radio and television presenter, writer, narrator and comedian. Early life and education Levine was born in Beeston, Nottinghamshire. Levine studied English at the University of Leeds, where she me ...

began hosting their own show, ''Dev & Alice,'' in the weekend breakfast slot. The duo were moved to the weekend afternoon show the same year. On 9 August 2020 the final show aired, following the announcement of Levine's departure from Radio 1. In November 2020,

announced major scheduling changes for the end of 2020 and 2021. Griffin, along with

Huw Stephens Huw Meredydd Stephens (born 25 May 1981) is a Welsh radio and television presenter, currently broadcasting on BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio 6 Music. Stephens founded the Sŵn music festival with John Rostron and the yearly s ...

and Phil Taggart would not be rejoining the lineup in 2021. The latter two are not leaving the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

all together, and are instead returning to their former shows on

BBC Radio Cymru BBC Radio Cymru is a Welsh language radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts across Wales on FM, DAB, digital TV and BBC Sounds. The station broadcasts general factual and entertainment pro ...

BBC Radio 6 Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It primarily plays a wide range of alternative music, from established and emerging artists and bands. In 2002 it was the first national music radio station t ...

and

BBC Radio Ulster BBC Radio Ulster is a Northern Ireland, Northern Irish national radio station owned and operated by BBC Northern Ireland, a division of the BBC. It was established on New Year's Day 1975, replacing what had been an opt-out of BBC Radio 4. Acc ...

respectively. Instead, Dev departed the BBC, and joined

after 18 years with the corporation. His last show was 13:00 – 16:00 on 20 December 2020. He made his Heart debut on Saturday 2 January 2021, when he launched his brand new show 12:00-16:00. As of January 2022, Dev presents Heart's Evening Show from 7-10pm Monday to Thursday, replacing Mark Wright, who has moved back to weekends.

Television

In 2016, Griffin and Alice Levine competed in a BBC Bargain Hunt Children in Need special. They took on Radio 4's Nick Robinson and Aasmah Mir. Griffin reached the final of the 2017 series of ''

Celebrity Masterchef ''MasterChef'' is a British competitive cooking reality show produced by Endemol Shine UK and Banijay and broadcast in 60 countries around the world. The show initially ran from 1990 to 2001 and was revived in 2005 as ''MasterChef Goes Large' ...

'', alongside

Ulrika Jonsson Eva Ulrika Jonsson (born 16 August 1967) is a Swedish-British television presenter and model. She became known as a TV-am weather presenter, and moved on to present the ITV show '' Gladiators'', and later featured as a team captain on the BBC T ...

and eventual winner,

Angellica Bell Angellica Bell (born 24 March 1976) is a British television presenter, television and radio presenter, best known for her presenting on CBBC between 2000 and 2006. She is also known for providing occasional cover on ''The One Show'' and for c ...

. Griffin participated in the 17th series of ''Strictly Come Dancing'', partnered with professional dancer Dianne Buswell. They became the third ''Strictly'' couple to leave the show after losing a dance-off to

Emma Weymouth Emma Clare Thynn, Marchioness of Bath (''née'' McQuiston; born 26 March 1986), styled as Viscountess Weymouth from 2013 to 2020, is a British socialite and fashion model. She is married to Ceawlin Thynn, 8th Marquess of Bath. In 2020, she beca ...

and

Aljaž Skorjanec Aljaž may refer to *Aljaž (name) *Aljaž Lodge in the Vrata Valley, a mountain hut in Slovenia *Aljaž Tower Aljaž Tower () or the Triglav Tower () is a tower, a storm shelter and a triangulation point on the summit of Mount Triglav in northwes ...

. His elimination caused controversy and complaints from the viewers as his voting lines weren't even open in that week's public vote which meant that the elimination was 'fixed'. In April 2019, Griffin took part in the first series of '' Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins''. In October 2020, Dev participated in a celebrity edition of '' The Chase''. In July 2023 Griffin was the subject of an episode of '' Who Do You Think You Are?'', where he discovered that a maternal great-uncle had participated in the

Easter Rising The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...

at Dublin City Hall.

Radio presenting

''Heart’s Evening Show'' 7-10pm, January 2022 – Present (Heart) *''Heart's Feel Good Weekend'' 12-4pm, Saturday, 2 January 2021 – Present (Heart) *''Weekend Afternoon Show'' 1-4pm, Friday. Saturday and Sunday, 17 November 2018 – (9 August 2020 with

) – 20 December 2020 (BBC Radio 1) *''Weekend Breakfast Show'' 6-10am, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 29 March 2014 – 11 November 2018 (BBC Radio 1) *''Early Breakfast'' 4-6:30am, Monday-Friday, 21 September 2009 – 28 March 2014 (BBC Radio 1) *''Weekend Breakfast Show'' 7-10am, Saturday-Sunday, 4 July 2009 – 20 September 2009 (BBC Radio 1) *''Early Show'' 6-8am, Monday-Friday, 8 October 2007 – 1 July 2009 (BBC Radio 1Xtra) *''Weekend Afternoon Show'' midday-2pm, Saturdays, September 2005 – 6 October 2007 (BBC Radio 1Xtra) *''Weekend Morning Show'' 9am-midday, Saturday'Sunday, 8 August 2004 – September 2005 *''Lowdown with Reg & Dev'' midday-3pm, Saturdays, 17 August 2002 – 31 September 2004 (BBC Radio 1Xtra)

Television presenting

*''

'' (BBC2) *''Bring It On'' (BBC1)

Television acting

*''

'' *''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British television soap opera that is broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a List of fictional towns and villages, fict ...

'' *''I Bring You Frankincense'' *''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' *''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which originally began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera ''Brookside (TV series), Brookside''. From 2005 to 2023, episodes h ...

'' *''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'' *'' Almost Never''

References

External links

* *
Dev Griffin on Heart Radio

o
The Radio 1 Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dev 1984 births English people of Irish descent English people of Jamaican descent BBC Radio 1 presenters BBC Radio 1Xtra presenters English male television actors Heart (radio network) presenters Actors from the London Borough of Hackney Actors from the London Borough of Barnet Living people Male actors from London People from Hackney, London People from Mill Hill