Charlie Ottley

Poet and presenter

Charlie Ottley is a presenter, writer and after dinner speaker with a wealth of experience in arts and entertainment. Nine years ago, Charlie gave up his job as a Hollywood correspondent for an international news wire to pursue a more creative career. On returning to the UK he tried his hand at being a professional poet and rapidly became the country’s first full time wedding bard. Travelling the length and breadth of Britain, clad in doublet and hose, Charlie has performed hundreds of specially commissioned ballads in various exotic locations. From the battlements of Old Wardour Castle to the Natural History Museum he has waxed lyrical for marriages, birthdays and corporate occasions. Charlie was resident poet with Virgin Brides, and was the in-pod minstrel for the first ever wedding held live on the London Eye for GMTV.
Also specialising in writing satirical verse, Charlie is a veteran of the London comedy circuit and has had regular commissions from the BBC, sending up conferences for Newsnight, summarising the news as Radio Five’s rent-a-bard and attacking Westminster on the Daily Politics programme. During his time in Los Angeles, he performed alongside Charlie Sheen at Sean Penn’s exclusive nightclub, Macinerneys. Charlie, 35, was City Bard for Carlton Television’s Bulls & Bears and has written verses for GMTV, Meridian, the Big Breakfast and Bremner, Bird & Fortune. He was also staff poet for Tiscali for two years with his weekly column entitled the News In Verse. Last year he was recruited by Five Live to be the alternative Poet Laureate for the Royal Wedding of Charles and Camilla and was broadcasting live outside the Town Hall in Windsor, in tights. Over the years Charlie’s work has earned him praise from fellow pundits including Quentin Letts, John Julius Norwich, Jonathan Dimbleby, Boris Johnson and Ian Hislop.

Charlie also works in the travel industry having first had a column on the Daily Express (Weekender) which he later developed into a TV series for the Travel Channel. He has hosted a stage at the Daily Telegraph Destinations Show and last winter wrote and presented a four part documentary called Flavours of Chile which is currently screening on the Travel Channel.

Most recently Charlie has written a book called Cautionary Verses & Ruthless Rhymes for Modern Times, published by Constable & Robinson, and has been resident poet with Radio Four’s Saturday Live Show with Fi Glover. Charlie has just returned from filming a seven part travel series in South America, titled Flavours of Peru, to be aired on the Travel Channel in November.