Michael Brian Leahy (born 13 July 1966) is a British scientist, environmental campaigner and

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces or hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. It is common for people ...

, known for his series '' Bite Me'' on the

National Geographic Channel National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney Enter ...

. Leahy grew up in Steventon,

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

, and attended John Mason Comprehensive School in Abingdon. He left school at 15 and worked for ten years as a motor mechanic. He was then a student at both

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (OBU; formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic) is a public university, public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. Th ...

and

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

, where he gained a D.Phil in

Virology Virology is the Scientific method, scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host (biology), ...

and

Molecular Biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

. In his 30s, Leahy gave up his job as a researcher to become a full-time television presenter, presenting three series of the BBC's '' Rough Science''. This was followed by several TV series for the BBC including ''Bodysnatchers'' on BBC1, ''Labrats'', ''SARS: the True Story'', ''Pandemics: a Horizon Guide'', ''The World's Top Ten Natural Disasters'' and others. Following a short period presenting science, travel and wildlife shows for BSkyB, Leahy moved to the National Geographic Channel, where perhaps he is best known for the series ''Bite Me''. For this, Leahy needed to visit 25 locations in eight countries, facing snakes, fish, bugs and parasites. He was hospitalised several times and almost died after suffering an

anaphylactic reaction Anaphylaxis (Greek: 'up' + 'guarding') is a serious, potentially fatal allergic reaction and medical emergency that is rapid in onset and requires immediate medical attention regardless of the use of emergency medication on site. It typically ...

when he was bitten by South American

fire ants Fire ants are several species of ants in the genus ''Solenopsis'', which includes over 200 species. ''Solenopsis'' are stinging ants, and most of their common names reflect this, for example, ginger ants and tropical fire ants. Many of the nam ...

. The series first aired in November 2009 and is still showing on Amazon Prime and around the world.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Leahy, Mike Living people British virologists 1966 births People from Oxfordshire British television presenters Alumni of Oxford Brookes University Alumni of the University of Oxford