Munyaradzi Chinyanganya (born 12 September 1987) is a British television presenter and broadcaster. He co-presented the BBC children's TV programme Blue Peter from 2013 until 2019, and the ITV game show Cannonball in 2017. Previously he presented Wild on CBBC and was the host of Match of the Day Kickabout from 2013 until 2014, when Ben Shires took over. He provided the commentary for the 2018 World's Ultimate Strongman.
Early life Chinyanganya was born in Oxford, Oxfordshire, and lived there for his first ten years, subsequently moving to Wolverhampton where he spent his teenage years. He was born to a Scottish mother and a Zimbabwean father. He attended Adams' Grammar School in Newport, Shropshire. A graduate of Loughborough University, he worked on Loughborough University's TV and radio station while a student.
Following university he pursued an attempt to join the British skeleton bobsleigh team for the 2014 Winter Olympics, although he was unsuccessful in qualification rounds.
Career
Sports hosting At a screen test in The O2 Arena, he was selected as the official weightlifting presenter at the London 2012 Olympics. He hosted the weightlifting tournament, spoke on stage at the Excel Arena, interviewed athletes, introduced the weight categories and entertained the crowd. He was invited back to present the London 2012 Paralympic Games. He was a presenter with the BBC coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea and the 2020 Snooker World Championship, Sheffield. He was also the official commentator of the 2018 World's Ultimate Strongman Competition in Dubai.
In 2021, Chinyanganya was part of the Eurosport presenting team at the Tokyo Olympics. It was later announced he would become the main presenter for snookers' Triple Crown events on Eurosport, taking over from Colin Murray who had departed the role at the end of the 2020–21 snooker season.
Television Chinyanganya presented Your Body: Your Image for BBC Two, an educational series about body image in schools. He co-presented Wild on CBBC with Naomi Wilkinson and Tim Warwood which first aired in 2013. In October 2013, he became the 37th presenter of Blue Peter after being announced following the departure of Helen Skelton. He was a reporter and presenter of CBBC's Match of the Day Kickabout.
In January 2020, he competed in the twelfth series of Dancing on Ice alongside professional partner Jess Hatfield.
Other work He was a contestant in Sky One's Gladiators in 2008 and reached the semi-finals and was the only contestant in history to attempt the eliminator wearing a swimming cap. He was selected to attend Kiss FM's Presenter Academy, and spent the whole summer online reporting for Bauer Media radio station. In this role he interviewed artists and the public and sampled Olympic entertainment in London.
He has a cameo as Mi in Kung Fu Panda 3.
Personal life He is a Christian, and has said that his faith is one of his driving passions. He has described his parents as being Christians, but from different Christian denominations, leading to an inter-faith upbringing. In November 2020 Chinyanganya announced on the BBC's Songs of Praise programme that his own baptism had taken place at the Roman Catholic church of St Leonard and St Fergus in Ardler, a suburb of Dundee, his mother's hometown.
Filmography Television Year Title Role Channel 2008 Gladiators Contestant Sky One2012 2012 Summer Olympics Weightlifting host BBC Red Button Your Body: Your Image Presenter BBC Two2013–14 Wild PresenterCBBC Match of the Day Kickabout Presenter 2013–2019 Blue Peter Presenter 2014 Gareth's All-Star Choir Himself BBC One 2014; 2016–17 The Dog Ate My Homework Panelist; 3 episodesCBBC 2014 Hacker Time Guest 2015–present Songs of Praise Co-presenterBBC One 2015 Celebrity Mastermind Contestant2016 London Marathon 2016 Reporter Rank the Prank Himself CBBC Great South Run 2016 Presenter Channel 52017 Remotely Funny ContestantCBBC Art Ninja Himself; Cameo Celebrity Eggheads Contestant BBC Two Cannonball Co-presenter ITV Strictly Come Dancing: Children in Need 2017 Contestant BBC One2018 2018 Winter Olympics Presenter BBC One, BBC Four Ninja Warrior UKContestant ITV The Crystal Maze Channel 42018–2020 NXT UKBackstage Interviewer WWE Network2019 Crufts Channel 4 2020 Dancing on Ice Contestant ITV World Snooker Championships Presenter BBC2021Beat The Chasers: Celebrity SpecialContestantITV 2022 World Snooker Championships Presenter EurosportFormula EPresenterChannel 4, Formula E TV2023Good Morning BritainGuest Entertainment Presenter - AprilITV2025 Trooping the Colour Presenter BBC
Film Year Title Role 2016 Kung Fu Panda 3 Mi (voice)
References
External links Sochi 2014: Blue Peter's Radzi Chinyanganya on the skeleton Pyeongchang 2018: Winter Olympics 2018 on the BBC