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Charley Marlowe is poised to become one of Britain’s next big broadcasting stars.
In just two years, the Liverpool-born presenter and content creator has gone from making digital sketches to interviewing Idris Elba, Lindsay Lohan and Orlando Bloom, becoming the voice of BBC Three’s I Kissed a Girl, appearing on both the BAFTA red carpet and at Wimbledon for BBC Sport, and now stepping into one of BBC Radio 1’s most exciting new roles as co-host of Life Hacks.
“It’s been a crazy couple of years,” she grins. “Loads of junkets, red carpets, Radio 1 – and I Kissed a Girl, of course. It’s all gone by in a blur.”
Broadcasting, she says, was always the dream. “When I was at uni I couldn’t wait to start the presenting modules – I just knew that’s what I wanted to do. Even though back then it was very shopping channel or the news,” she laughs. “I wanted to find a way to make it my own.”
After graduating, she began working behind the camera in production. “It’s such a hard industry to get into,” she explains. “Budgets are tight, there’s not the time or staff to train people up, so you really have to fight for your place.”
Her break came when she began creating her own online content, showing off the warmth, humour and quick wit that have since become her trademarks. That self-starter attitude led to opportunities on screen, on the red carpet and, eventually, on air. “I never take it for granted,” she says. “Sometimes I’m on air and forget for a second that it’s Radio 1 – then it hits me, like, wow, I’m broadcasting to the nation. It’s surreal.”
Charley’s mix of genuine curiosity and cheeky humour makes her interviews stand out – and the A-listers clearly agree. “I’ve been so lucky with the people I’ve met,” she says. “You can always tell why some people are so successful – people like Davina McCall, Emma Willis, Alison Hammond. They’re so warm and welcoming. Davina gives you a hug and looks straight into your soul. She makes you feel like you’re the only person in the world. I remember thinking, that’s exactly how I want to make people feel.”
Her red-carpet style – part playful fan, part professional interviewer – has made her a social-media favourite. “I think being a fan helps,” she adds. “I don’t care about trying to get the scoop of the day. I just want to give them five minutes of fun. If you’ve been sat doing interviews for eight hours straight, you deserve that.”
Marlowe is passionate about using her platform to open doors for others. “I’d love to do a Friday-night or late-night show, ideally back in Liverpool on the docks where they used to film This Morning,” she says. “Something regional, something me – with a scheme to recruit local people trying to get into telly. Because behind the camera, there’s still hardly any diversity. It’s mostly white, non-disabled teams. We need wider representation at every level, not just in front of the lens. It makes the work better, the stories better. And TV could do with more of that energy again – that sense of fun, of chaos.”
She still has a few dream gigs in mind. “Oh, I’d bloody love to do Strictly,” she says, beaming. “As a Scouse girl, that glam – it’s just everything. It’s such a British institution.”
Her ambitions don’t stop there. “Oh, I’d love a cameo in Corrie,” she grins. “Just a little one – maybe pulling a pint behind the bar or walking through the Rovers Return. That’d be iconic.”
And when it comes to television, she’d love to revive the kind of unapologetically fun, queer-friendly late-night shows that used to dominate Friday nights. “Alan Carr’s Chatty Man was iconic. He was just himself – funny, chaotic, authentic. Davina once told me TV isn’t as anarchic as it used to be, and she’s right. I’d love to bring some of that energy back. It doesn’t even need A-listers – just people up for a laugh.”
First though, her attention is firmly on Children in Need, where she’ll be presenting backstage this November. “It’s amazing,” she says. “I was lucky enough to do it last year too. Everyone involved is just so lovely.”
At the end of the year, she’s looking forward to a well-deserved break as she jets off to Africa on holiday. After that, she says her goal is to “just keep going – to keep learning and keep doing what I love.”
