Zoe Hardman’s a presenter who’s tried her hand at most things. Be it presenting sport, quizzes or selling used cars, Zoe’s is a face you’re bound to have seen.
This year though she’s seen success with Take Me Out: The Gossip, the behind the scenes spin off of ITV’s smash show that she presents with Mark Wright.
Now the presenter’s getting involved in both the Olympics and we had a talk with her as she launched the City Beach Volleyball Championship on behalf of charity Action For Kids about the campaign, being at the Olympics and Fernandos.
So, can you just explain a little bit about what you’re doing with Action For Kids
So, basically Action for Kids is fantastic charity based in North London and they do an annual volleyball tournament. They’re in their fourth year at the moment at the moment and that’s happening in September.
I’m one of the in-venue presenters for the 2012 Olympics so, the correlation was there and it’s a fantastic charity to be involved with and these kids are incredible. So I just came down today and, well, I would say I’ve been teaching them how to play, but they’ve been teaching me, they’re amazing! It’s fantastic because the GB team are now playing in the Olympics for the first time since the sport came in in 1996
Had you worked with them before or is this your first time with them?
I’d heard of the charity before and even though this is the first time I’ve worked with them, but I’m absolutely going to be going down and seeing them, it sounds like an incredible centre and they do a lot of good. And they get kids to play sport, my thing is getting kids to play sport will keep their brains active and keep them feeling positive, that’s my ethos on sport anyway.
Have you ever played beach volleyball before?
I have, my parent live in Kenya, so every Wednesday when I’m down there we play on Nyali beach. It’s really quite a ridiculous affair, we have a good time when we play, but we’re down on the beach and it’s brilliant.
So, thinking of entering the tournament yourself?
Well, I don’t anyone else who plays! If I can get some people together who play beach volleyball then it’ll be a right laugh. It’s quite tough on the legs, but it’s really good for fitness. I mean, you see some of the players and their bodies are absolutely incredible, so it’s definitely worth it. If I can drag some of my friends along, then I will do. It’s super easy to sign-up too, so I’ll be spreading the word. You just need to visit the Action for Kids website really.
You’re one of the in-venue presenters for London 2012, what’s that all about?
It’s so exciting. They basically put presenters at the sports themselves because we want to give those people who’ve paid to be there a really fantastic experience. So, I went along to a couple of meetings and I’m super passionate about sports so I’m doing the beach volleyball, the triathlon and the marathon swim. So that’s about 14 days shooting and it’s going to be amazing.
So, if you could only be at one sport at the Olympics, what would it be?
I think I’ve got a really great sport with beach volley ball, but it would be incredibly exciting to be at the 100m final because Usain Bolt is on fire and it would be an amazing thing to be a part of. I’m thrilled to be a part of the Olympics in any way though.
So, most of our readers will know you from presenting Take Me Out: The Gossip, what’s that like presenting in comparison?
There is no comparison, it is the most fun show I’ve ever worked on. Mark and I have such a great relationship, the people we get in are hilarious and the show just works because it’s so gossipy, light-hearted and fun. It was a real pleasure. We had a great first series, it was really successful and we’re currently sitting on the hotline to see if we’ve been green –lit for a second series.
So, what is Fernando’s really like?
Club Fernando’s where we film is all neon and it’s really cheesy. The island, I’ve only been there once, but sun shines, the cocktails flow and the dates either fall for each other or don’t. It’s brilliant.
After the Olympics then, what have you got lined up?
Well, we’re just sitting to hear about The Gossip, but I’m feeling pretty confident. We’ve not had any official word yet, but both me and Mark are keen to do it if it comes back so we should both hear over the next few weeks I hope.
For more info and to join up, visit the Action For Kids website at www.actionforkids.org/citybeachvolleyball.asp
FemaleFirst Cameron Smith
Tagged in London 2012 Charity Zoe Hardman