Kimberley Walsh
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Kimberley Jane Scott ( Walsh; born 20 November 1981) is an English singer, dancer, television presenter and actress. She rose to fame in late 2002 when she auditioned for the reality series '' Popstars: The Rivals'' on ITV. The series announced that Walsh had won a place as a member of the girl group
Girls Aloud Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop music, pop girl group that was created through the ITV (TV network), ITV talent show ''Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl (singer), Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, N ...
. The group achieved large success, having twenty consecutive top ten singles (including four number ones) in the UK, six studio albums have all been certified platinum by the
British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...
(BPI), two of which went to number one in the UK, and accumulating a total of five BRIT Award nominations. In 2009, Girls Aloud won "Best Single" with their song " The Promise". During the group's hiatus, Walsh embarked on acting and presenting. In July 2010, she became a presenter on the music talkshow, '' Suck My Pop'' and presented coverage for the
BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...
. In 2011, she appeared in '' Horrid Henry: The Movie'' as Prissy Polly. Musically, Walsh has featured on Aggro Santos's " Like U Like". In 2012, Walsh made her
West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ...
debut, playing
Princess Fiona Princess Fiona is a fictional character in DreamWorks Animation, DreamWorks' ''Shrek (franchise), Shrek'' franchise. One of the film series' List of Shrek (franchise) characters#Main, main characters, Fiona first appears in ''Shrek'' (2001) as a ...
in the London production of '' Shrek the Musical''. She also fronted the 2009 Autumn/Winter collection for the fashion chain New Look and, in January 2011, she was revealed as the new face of ''
Puma AG Puma SE is a German multinational corporation which designs and manufactures athletic and casual footwear, apparel, and accessories, headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. Puma is the third largest sportswear manufacturer in the wor ...
''. In 2012, Walsh took part in ''
Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...
'', where she finished as one of the runners-up. Since 2011, after making her West End debut in ''Shrek'', Walsh has returned to perform in stage versions of films such as ''
Elf An elf (: elves) is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic peoples, Germanic folklore. Elves appear especially in Norse mythology, North Germanic mythology, being mentioned in the Icelandic ''Poetic Edda'' and the ''Prose Edda'' ...
'' in 2015, before ''
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'' and ''
Sleepless in Seattle ''Sleepless in Seattle'' is a 1993 American romantic comedy film directed by Nora Ephron, from a screenplay she wrote with David S. Ward and Jeff Arch. Starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, the film follows a journalist (Ryan) who becomes enamored ...
'' both in 2019.


Early life

Walsh was born on 20 November 1981 in
Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
, West Yorkshire, the daughter of John and Diane Walsh. She grew up with three siblings, Sally, Amy and Adam Walsh in Allerton, West Yorkshire. Sally played the character of Lyn Hutchinson on the soap opera ''
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 ...
'' between 1997 and 2000, and Amy joined the show's cast in 2014 as Tracy Shankley. Walsh attended Sandy Lane Primary School, Stoney Lee Middle School, and Beckfoot Grammar School, and had her first taste of fame appearing in an advert as a child along with sister Sally in an
Asda Asda Stores Limited (), trading as Asda and often styled as ASDA, is a British supermarket and petrol station chain. Its headquarters is in Leeds, England. The company was incorporated as Associated Dairies and Farm Stores in 1949. It expanded ...
advert. She starred as Young Cosette in a regional production of ''
Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...
'' and starred in ITV's '' The Book Tower'' in 1986. Walsh attended the Bradford theatre school, Stage 84, and briefly taught there.


Music career


Girls Aloud

Walsh auditioned for the reality television show '' Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002 with the song "
Where Do Broken Hearts Go "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" is a song by American singer Whitney Houston, written by Frank Wildhorn and Chuck Jackson and produced by Narada Michael Walden. The song was the fourth single released from Houston's second studio album, '' Whitney' ...
". Several thousand applicants attended auditions across the UK in hope of being selected. Ten girls and ten boys were chosen as finalists by judges
Pete Waterman Peter Alan Waterman (born 15 January 1947) is an English record producer, songwriter, and television personality. As a member of the Stock Aitken Waterman production and songwriting team, he co-wrote and co-produced many UK hit singles. An av ...
,
Louis Walsh Michael Louis Vincent Walsh (born 5 August 1952) is an Irish music manager and television personality. He has managed Johnny Logan (singer), Johnny Logan, Boyzone, Jedward and Westlife, four of Ireland's most successful pop acts in the 1990s an ...
and Geri Halliwell. Walsh did not initially make it into the group of ten female contestants who were to appear on the show. However, when another contestant was disqualified on a technicality, she found herself on the show. These finalists then took to the stage participating in weekly Saturday night live performances which alternated weekly between the girls and boys. Each week, the contestant polling the fewest phone votes was eliminated, until the final line-ups of the groups emerged. Walsh joined
Nadine Coyle Nadine Elizabeth Louise Coyle (born 15 June 1985) is an Irish singer. In 2002, she was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: The Rivals''. T ...
,
Sarah Harding Sarah Harding (born Sarah Nicole Hardman; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV (TV channel), ITV reality series ''Po ...
,
Nicola Roberts Nicola Maria Roberts (born 5 October 1985) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2002, Roberts was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: Th ...
, and Cheryl Tweedy to comprise the new girl group Girls Aloud, formed through the show by a public vote on 30 November 2002. The group's debut single, " Sound of the Underground", peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the 2002 Christmas number one. Girls Aloud hold the record for the shortest time between formation and reaching number one. The group released their debut album, '' Sound of the Underground'', in May 2003, which entered the charts at number two and was certified platinum by the
British Phonographic Industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Limited, trading as British Phonographic Industry (BPI), is the British recorded music industry's trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards; is home to the Mercury Prize; co-owns the Official Charts C ...
(BPI) later the same year. Their singles " I'll Stand by You", "
Walk This Way "Walk This Way" is a song by the American rock band Aerosmith. Written by Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, the song was originally released as the second single from the album '' Toys in the Attic'' (1975). It peaked at number 10 on the ''Billboa ...
", and " The Promise" have charted at number one. Two of their albums have reached the top of the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...
: their greatest hits album ''
The Sound of Girls Aloud ''The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits'' is the first greatest hits album of British girl group Girls Aloud. It was first released in the United Kingdom through a limited edition on 23 October 2006, while the standard version was release ...
'' and 2008's '' Out of Control'', both of which entered the chart at number one, with over one million copies of the former being sold. They also achieved seven certified albums and have been nominated for five Brit Awards, winning the 2009 Best Single for "The Promise". The group's musical style is pop, but throughout their career they had experimented with
electropop Electropop is a popular music fusion genre combining elements of the electronic and pop styles. It has been described as a variant of synth-pop with emphasis on a hard electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a rev ...
and
dance-pop Dance-pop is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit ra ...
. Girls Aloud's collaborations with Brian Higgins and his songwriting and production team Xenomania earned the group critical acclaim, due to an innovative approach to mainstream pop music. The group became one of the few UK reality television acts to achieve continued success, amassing a fortune of £30 million by May 2010. ''
Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...
'' lists them as "Most Successful Reality TV Group" in the 2007 edition. They also hold the record for "Most Consecutive Top Ten Entries in the UK by a Female Group" in the 2008 edition, and are credited again for "Most Successful Reality TV Group" in the 2011 edition. The group was also named the United Kingdom's biggest selling girl group of the 21st century, with over 4.3 million singles sales and 4 million albums sold in the UK alone. In July 2009, Girls Aloud announced they would take a year-long hiatus to pursue solo projects. Walsh revealed that she does not think it is possible Girls Aloud will ever "officially break up". She explained that they are planning to tour again and will probably take breaks from time to time, doing solo projects but they will never permanently go their separate ways. After Girls Aloud's three years of hiatus, the group reunited for their 10th anniversary. The group released their new single, " Something New" on 18 November 2012. The music video for the song was filmed in October 2012, and premiered on YouTube on 19 October 2012. The song was also the official charity single for
Children in Need ''BBC Children in Need'' is the BBC's UK Charitable organization, charity dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children and young people across the country. Established in 1980, the organisation has raised over £1 billion by 2023 through its ...
in 2012. The group released their second greatest hits compilation, '' Ten'' on 26 November 2012. In 2013, the group embarked on Ten - The Hits Tour 2013. They announced their disbanding shortly after the tour ended. In May and June 2024, Walsh and her
Girls Aloud Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop music, pop girl group that was created through the ITV (TV network), ITV talent show ''Popstars: The Rivals'' in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl (singer), Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, N ...
bandmates got back together for an arena tour titled The Girls Aloud Show in memory of their late bandmate
Sarah Harding Sarah Harding (born Sarah Nicole Hardman; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV (TV channel), ITV reality series ''Po ...
.


Solo work

It was first rumoured that Walsh was about to make a record deal with her band's record label, Fascination Records, although nothing has been confirmed. Soon after the rumour, Walsh confirmed on '' Suck My Pop'', a programme that she co-hosts on the television channel Viva in the United Kingdom, that she will feature on English
rapper Rapping (also rhyming, flowing, spitting, emceeing, or MCing) is an artistic form of vocal delivery and emotive expression that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and ommonlystreet vernacular". It is usually performed over a backing ...
Aggro Santos' upcoming single, " Like U Like". The track will be her first step away from Girls Aloud as a singer. Walsh was asked for OK! Magazine: "Kimberley, there are rumours, that you will be releasing a solo album..." and Walsh said: "Gosh! I haven't got any plan to do that. Gary Barlow signed Aggro Santos and he asked me to sing Like U Like, and I've done a song for the Horrid Henry film that I'm in titled "Everybody Dance". I'm not sure about doing anything big on my own just yet." In 2012 she made her West End theatre debut, playing
Princess Fiona Princess Fiona is a fictional character in DreamWorks Animation, DreamWorks' ''Shrek (franchise), Shrek'' franchise. One of the film series' List of Shrek (franchise) characters#Main, main characters, Fiona first appears in ''Shrek'' (2001) as a ...
in the London production of '' Shrek the Musical''. The announcement came after
Amanda Holden Amanda Louise Holden (born 16 February 1971) is an English media personality, actress and singer. Since 2007, she has been a judge on the television talent competition show '' Britain's Got Talent'' on ITV. She also co-hosts the national ''H ...
announced her pregnancy in August 2011. Walsh teamed up with Alfie Boe to record a version of Queen's "One Vision" as the Official Olympic Team Great Britain Single. Walsh has also performed with several artists including Neyo with "Hate That I Love You", Ronan Keating's "No Matter What" and James Cullum with "Rainy Days and Mondays". In August 2012 it was announced that Walsh is in discussions with
Gary Barlow Gary Barlow (born 20 January 1971) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He is the lead singer of the pop group Take That. Barlow is one of the United Kingdom's most successful songwriters, having writ ...
to release a solo album for a 2013 release. On 7 September 2012, Walsh was announced as one of the 14 celebrities, competing in tenth series of ''
Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...
''. Her professional partner is last year's runner-up Pasha Kovalev. She received 3 perfect 40s during the series, and she finished as one of the runners-up alongside presenter Denise Van Outen, behind the winner Olympian Louis Smith. On 4 February 2013 Walsh released, through
Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...
, her debut album, '' Centre Stage'', which features a series of popular musical tunes as well as two brand new tracks. Walsh has written her own autobiography, called ''A Whole Lot of History''. The book was released on 26 September 2013. In March 2014, Walsh took part in recording England's 2014 World Cup song. She collaborated with the likes of fellow pop stars
Melanie C Melanie Jayne Chisholm (born 12 January 1974), commonly known as Melanie C or Mel C, is an English singer and songwriter. She rose to fame in the mid-1990s as a member of the pop group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Sporty Spice. W ...
,
Eliza Doolittle Eliza Doolittle is a fictional character and the protagonist in George Bernard Shaw's play '' Pygmalion'' (1913) and its 1956 musical adaptation, ''My Fair Lady''. Eliza (from Lisson Grove, London) is a Cockney flower seller, who comes to Prof ...
,
Emma Bunton Emma Lee Bunton (born 21 January 1976) is an English singer, songwriter, media personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the Pop music, pop group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Baby Spice, reflecting the ...
,
Conor Maynard Conor Paul Maynard (born 21 November 1992) is an English singer. Born and raised in Brighton, he signed a recording contract with Warner Music Group in 2011. Maynard rose to fame in 2012 when he was nominated for, and subsequently won, MTV's ' ...
, Katy B and
Pixie Lott Victoria Louise "Pixie" Lott (born 12 January 1991) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. Her debut studio album, ''Turn It Up (Pixie Lott album), Turn It Up'' (2009), reached number six on the UK Albums Chart and sold over 1.5 millio ...
, on "Greatest Day", a track originally performed by British band,
Take That Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer ...
. The track was produced by
Gary Barlow Gary Barlow (born 20 January 1971) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He is the lead singer of the pop group Take That. Barlow is one of the United Kingdom's most successful songwriters, having writ ...
and recorded at Sarm Studios in London. The track also featured past footballers such as
Gary Lineker Gary Winston Lineker ( ; born 30 November 1960) is an English Sports broadcasting, sports broadcaster and former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Lineker is the only player t ...
,
Michael Owen Michael James Owen (born 14 December 1979) is an English former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker for Liverpool F.C., Liverpool, Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid, Newcastle United ...
,
Geoff Hurst Sir Geoffrey Charles Hurst (born 8 December 1941) is an English former professional Association football, footballer. A Striker (association football), striker, he became the first player to score a Hat-trick#Association football, hat-trick in a ...
,
David Seaman David Andrew Seaman (born 19 September 1963) is an English former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. In a career lasting from 1981 to 2004, he is best known for his time playing for Arsenal. He won 75 caps for England, and is the country ...
,
Peter Shilton Peter Leslie Shilton (born 18 September 1949) is an English former professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. His 31-year career included spells at 11 clubs and he has the uni ...
,
Glenn Hoddle Glenn Hoddle (born 27 October 1957) is an English former football player and manager. He currently works as a television pundit and commentator for ITV Sport and TNT Sports. He played as a midfielder for Tottenham Hotspur, Monaco, Chelsea and ...
and
Dion Dublin Dion Dublin (born 22 April 1969) is an English former professional footballer, television presenter and pundit. He is a club director of Cambridge United. As a player he was a centre-forward, notably playing in the Premier League for Manches ...
on backing vocals.


Acting

Before Walsh became a member of Girls Aloud, she had worked in theatre and acting. In 2000 Walsh appeared in the television series '' This Is Personal: The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper'' as Gillian Oldfield, and starred in a BBC Educational Schools programme called ''Focus''. In the same year, Walsh applied for the role of Maria Sutherland in ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
''. However, she lost out to Samia Ghadie. In 2001, Walsh played Tracy in ''Dream Back''. In 2007, alongside her bandmates she appeared in St. Trinian's playing a school band member. In 2008 she and bandmate
Nicola Roberts Nicola Maria Roberts (born 5 October 1985) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2002, Roberts was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: Th ...
had small parts in '' Britannia High'', in which they played themselves. Walsh stated that she would like to star in a musical in the future, playing a stage role. In October 2007, she successfully auditioned for the role of a cast member of ''
Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...
'', and was also allowed to sing an encore of " On My Own" in character. The process was shown on the reality TV series ''The Passions of Girls Aloud'' which aired in March 2008. In late 2010, Walsh landed a role in the live-action 3D family comedy film '' Horrid Henry: The Movie'' as the titular character's overactive cousin Prissy Polly, with the film being released on 29 July 2011. Walsh also appeared in the 2013 movie All Stars, alongside Theo Stevenson once again, who she appeared with first in Horrid Henry: The Movie. She plays the minor role of his character's mother. On 5 October 2011 through 21 May 2012 she made her
West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ...
debut, playing
Princess Fiona Princess Fiona is a fictional character in DreamWorks Animation, DreamWorks' ''Shrek (franchise), Shrek'' franchise. One of the film series' List of Shrek (franchise) characters#Main, main characters, Fiona first appears in ''Shrek'' (2001) as a ...
in the London production of '' Shrek the Musical''. The announcement came after
Amanda Holden Amanda Louise Holden (born 16 February 1971) is an English media personality, actress and singer. Since 2007, she has been a judge on the television talent competition show '' Britain's Got Talent'' on ITV. She also co-hosts the national ''H ...
announced her pregnancy in August 2011. Originally signed on until 27 February 2012, she extended her run to 21 May 2012. She subsequently returned to the West End stage in October 2015, playing the role of Jovie in Elf: The Musical. In 2018, she appeared in the second series of the
Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
school drama '' Ackley Bridge'' as Claire Butterworth. On her casting, she commented: "It was nice to hear the northern accent everywhere you turn. A lot of the kids were really excited that I was there because I was from Bradford. It's a very small town and a lot of the kids came from there that were in the show." In 2019, she returned to theatre where she played Susan in the Original London Cast of Big (musical) alongside Jay McGuiness as Tom Hank's character of Josh. In 2020; Walsh reunited with McGuiness to originate the role of Annie in Sleepless: The Musical, based on
Sleepless in Seattle ''Sleepless in Seattle'' is a 1993 American romantic comedy film directed by Nora Ephron, from a screenplay she wrote with David S. Ward and Jeff Arch. Starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, the film follows a journalist (Ryan) who becomes enamored ...
which, due to Covid restrictions, only ran for a limited season.


Presenting

Walsh appeared in '' Let's Dance for Sport Relief'' as a panellist and also fronted coverage of the
BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTAs or BAFTA Awards, is an annual film award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best Cinema of the United Kingdom, British and Worl ...
for
MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...
on her own programme ''Kimberley Walsh at the BAFTAS'' in 2010 and in the summer of 2010 hosted sky 1 documentary "Girl in the Blue Jeans". She also presented coverage for ''
The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...
'' live from
South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England; it is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. The town was once known in Roman Britain, Roman times as ''Arbeia'' and as ''Caer Urfa'' by the Early Middle Ag ...
on the day of the final in 2009 for Joe McElderry. On 17 – 18 June 2010, Walsh hosted Channel 4's '' The 5 O'Clock Show'' with Stephen Mulhern. Walsh appeared in her own documentary for Sky 1 named ''Kimberley Walsh: Blue Jean Girl'' which aired on Wednesday, 17 June 2010. On the same day, Walsh appeared on '' This Morning'' to promote the show. Walsh later became a presenter of new music talk-show, titled '' Suck My Pop'', on Viva. Walsh also starred as a judge for ITV's entertainment show '' Born to Shine''. On 9 April 2016, Walsh co-presented ''Weekend Brunch'' the Grand National Day special with
Tim Lovejoy Timothy Paul Lovejoy (born 28 March 1968) is an English television presenter best known for hosting Saturday morning football programme '' Soccer AM'' with Helen Chamberlain for over a decade and ''BT Sports Panel'' on Saturday mornings. He ...
. Walsh has co-presented
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 ...
's '' Morning Live'' since 2022.


Commercial advertising and promotions

Walsh was the face of high-street fashion chain New Look. She was also named as the new face and hair of '' Schwarzkopf'' for a reported 6 figure deal. In January 2011, Walsh was revealed as the new face of ''
Puma AG Puma SE is a German multinational corporation which designs and manufactures athletic and casual footwear, apparel, and accessories, headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. Puma is the third largest sportswear manufacturer in the wor ...
'' BodyTrain fitness toner wear. In May 2011, Walsh was named as the face of '' Right Guard''s Xtreme Dry Range. In September 2019, she signed with outdoor clothing company ''Regatta''. In March 2022, Walsh started working with DIY chain, Wickes. She has helped develop and launch new interior paint colours. Speaking to ''Ideal Home'' in 2024 she revealed DIY had been an interest since childhood. As part of her involvement with Wickes Community Programme she assisted with the renovation of the parish hall in Walton, Aylesbury.


Charitable activities

Walsh climbed
Mount Kilimanjaro Mount Kilimanjaro () is a dormant volcano in Tanzania. It is the highest mountain in Africa and the highest free-standing mountain above sea level in the world, at above sea level and above its plateau base. It is also the highest volcano i ...
in aid of
Comic Relief Comic Relief is a British charity, founded in 1986 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Sir Lenny Henry in response to the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. The concept of Comic Relief was to get British comedians to make t ...
in March 2009. The climb, organised by
Gary Barlow Gary Barlow (born 20 January 1971) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He is the lead singer of the pop group Take That. Barlow is one of the United Kingdom's most successful songwriters, having writ ...
, was also undertaken by fellow ''Girls Aloud'' member Cheryl, Alesha Dixon, Fearne Cotton, Denise Van Outen,
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 presented '' The Chris Moyles Show'' on BBC Radio 1 from 2004 to 2012 ...
, Ben Shephard, Ronan Keating and Barlow himself. Between 3 February and 23 March 2009, Walsh, Cole, Barlow, Moyles and Cotton also raised money for Comic Relief by providing the voice for the
BT Speaking Clock A speaking clock or talking clock is a live or recorded human voice service, usually accessed by telephone, that gives the correct time. The first telephone speaking clock service was introduced in France, in association with the Paris Observa ...
. In March 2011, Walsh teamed up with
Tess Daly Helen Elizabeth "Tess" Daly (born 29 March 1969) is an English television presenter and former model. Since 2004, she has co-presented the BBC One dancing competition show '' Strictly Come Dancing''. Early life Helen Elizabeth Daly was born o ...
and Joanna Page to work with Maltesers to promote '' Red Nose Day 2011''.


Other ventures

Walsh became ''
OK! ''OK!'' is a British weekly magazine that primarily specialises in royal and celebrity news. Originally launched as a monthly magazine, its first issue was published in April 1993. In September 2004, ''OK''! launched in Australia as a monthly ...
'' magazine's new weekly columnist in August 2010. The column is called "''Kimberley Calls The Shots''". In 2017, Walsh launched a children's clothing line called "Kimba's Kids" which she runs with her brother. In 2022, Walsh appeared ln S.11 Ep.20 of
Celebrity Antiques Road Trip ''Antiques Road Trip'' (also known as ''Celebrity Antiques Road Trip'') is a BBC television series produced by STV Studios. It was first shown on BBC Two from 2010 to 2012, and has been shown on BBC One since 2013. Format Regular In the progr ...
, broadcast on
BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...
, competing against actor Ryan Thomas who won the challenge.


''Strictly Come Dancing''

In September 2012, Walsh was revealed as one of the 14 celebrities, competing in the 10th series of the BBC reality dancing competition, ''
Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (commonly referred to as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly Ballroom dance, ballroom and Latin dance, Latin dance. Each couple is ...
''. Her professional partner was Pasha Kovalev. On 22 December 2012, Walsh and Kovalev became the joint runners-up in the final, along with
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
star Denise van Outen and James Jordan, behind Olympic gymnast Louis Smith and Flavia Cacace. ;''Strictly Come Dancing'' performances


Personal life

Walsh married long-term partner Justin Scott, a former member of the British
boy band A boy band is a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their Teenage, teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform love songs marketed towards girls and young women. Many boy bands ...
Triple 8 Triple 8 (a.k.a. 888 or Triple Eight) was an English boy band signed to Polydor Records and Osmosis Records. The group was marketed as the British equivalent of NSYNC, and rivals to manufactured boy bands such as Five (group), Five, Westlife and ...
, on 30 January 2016. Together, the couple have three sons.


Discography


Studio albums


Singles


As lead artist


As featured artist


Filmography


Awards

She placed number 37 in FHM's annual list of " 100 Sexiest Woman in the World" in 2009 ahead of bandmates
Nadine Coyle Nadine Elizabeth Louise Coyle (born 15 June 1985) is an Irish singer. In 2002, she was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: The Rivals''. T ...
,
Nicola Roberts Nicola Maria Roberts (born 5 October 1985) is an English singer and songwriter. In 2002, Roberts was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a Pop music, pop girl group created through ITV (TV network), ITV's reality competition show ''Popstars: Th ...
and
Sarah Harding Sarah Harding (born Sarah Nicole Hardman; 17 November 1981 – 5 September 2021) was an English singer, model and actress. Her professional career began in 2002 when she successfully auditioned for the ITV (TV channel), ITV reality series ''Po ...
who were placed at 57, 58 and 87 respectively. Walsh also won the Yorkshire Woman of the Year award 2009 in recognition not only of her professional success but also for her role as celebrity ambassador for the Breast Cancer Haven charity, which has a branch in Leeds. She was too, awarded the Cosmopolitan Ultimate Woman's award in 2009.


See also

* List of ''Strictly Come Dancing'' contestants


References


External links

* *
''Morning Live''
(BBC One) {{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Kimberley 1981 births Living people Musicians from Bradford Actresses from Bradford English women pop singers English female dancers English women television presenters English musical theatre actresses English people of Irish descent Girls Aloud members Popstars winners Alumni of Leeds Trinity University 21st-century English women singers 21st-century English actresses