Laura Whitmore is an Irish presenter on British television, model and actress, known for presenting I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! and Survival of the Fittest. In January 2020, Whitmore began presenting Love Island and its spinoff series, .
Early life
Laura Whitmore was born in Dublin, Ireland. She has two half brothers. Whitmore attended Loreto Bray, where she was awarded Culture Student of the Year upon graduating, before attending Dublin City University where she studied journalism, including a year studying abroad at Boston University in the United States. In 2003, Whitmore was a contestant in a modelling talent search on RTÉ's The Late Late Show with Pat Kenny, reaching the final 15 of the competition. She lives in Camden, north London, as of 2018.
Career
Television
In April 2008, MTV Networks Europe launched a campaign Pick Me MTV where Whitmore battled it out against other contestants to become the face of MTV News in MTV Europe. Between 2008 and 2015, she hosted news bulletins for MTV in Ireland, the UK and pan-European MTV channels. She was regularly seen on MTV News hosting special events in Ireland and elsewhere in Europe. For 5 series from 2011, Whitmore hosted I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! NOW! on ITV2 airing immediately after I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. Whitmore announced on 14 April 2016 that she had decided to leave the show. In the summer of 2012, Whitmore appeared on Miriam O'Callaghan's show Saturday Night with Miriam after carrying the 2012 Summer Olympics torch. A pilot episode of songwriting-based talent showThe Hit aired in September 2012 on RTÉ Two, hosted by Whitmore. On 15 March 2013, RTÉ announced that the show had been ordered for a full series which was broadcast in the summer, but Whitmore would not host due to conflicting schedule in London. Aidan Power and Nicky Byrne presented the full series. In April 2014, Whitmore co-hosted the 11th Irish Film & Television Awards with Simon Delaney. In 2014, Whitmore joined the BBC Eurovision team as a commentator for the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 semi-finals in Copenhagen, Denmark alongside Scott Mills on BBC Three. She replaced Ana Matronic in the role, but did not return in 2015. In 2014, she was an occasional presenter of "The Hub" section on ITV's This Morning. On 24 October 2014, Whitmore appeared in Channel 4's The Feeling Nuts Comedy Night to raise awareness of testicular cancer. In February 2015, Whitmore announced that she was leaving MTV News after seven years presenting on the TV Channel, but would continue to present irregular segments and specials. Her last bulletin with the station was recorded on 26 February 2015. On 10 August 2016, Whitmore was announced as taking part in the fourteenth series of Strictly Come Dancing, beginning September 2016. She was partnered with Italian dancer Giovanni Pernice and was the sixth contestant to be voted out, on 5 November 2016 follow a dance off with eventual series champions Ore Oduba and Joanne Clifton. In 2018, Whitmore presented Survival of the Fittest, a new reality series for ITV2, alongside comedian Brennan Reece. On 20 December 2019, it was announced that Whitmore would host the sixth series of ITV2's Love Island in 2020 after Caroline Flack's exit.
Other work
In August 2009, Whitmore launched a self-branded clothing range available at A Wear. In 2011, Whitmore appeared on the September cover of FHM. Whitmore is a spokeswoman for the Because I Am a Girl charity clothing campaign. Laura collaborated with Daisy London on a collection in October 2015. The collection was inspired by music and features the recurring shape of the plectrum throughout. In October 2014, Whitmore launched Misstache for Movember, a campaign for women to support and raise awareness of the men's health charity. Whitmore appeared on FHM 100 Sexiest 2015 list at number 37. Whitmore features in the music video for "Skip to the Good Bit", a song by Rizzle Kicks and the music video for "Mark My Words" by The Coronas. In 2017, she played Cleo Morey alongside Shane Richie, Bill Ward and Stephen Billington in the stage adaptation of the Peter James book Not Dead Enough. Whitmore has had a weekly Sunday morning radio show on BBC Radio 5 Live since 2018.
