Alistair Appleton is presenter of BBC2's Escape to the Country. This much-loved show regularly pulls in ratings of 2 million viewers. He is also hard at work as a teacher of Mindfullness - a form of Buddhist meditation and is training to become a clinically-accredited psychotherapist.
Alistair's TV career includes Escape to the Country, Cash in the Attic and House Doctor. All of these shows ran for 10+ series with Alistair at the helm.
He began his presenting career in Berlin in the 1990s with a live, internationally broadcast current affairs show which threw him into the presenting deep-end: no auto-cue, simultaneous translations into German, self-penned scripts on a dizzying array of subjects. His two year stint in the news room of Deutsche Welle also gave him a strong journalistic training in saying things accurately but using few words!
Once he returned to the UK, his experience landed him the presenter job on Five's hit property show House Doctor alongside Anne Maurice. He then presented BBC Breakfast live from Bath, the Tate Modern and the BBC Proms. He travelled widely hosting BBC Holiday and showcasing beautiful beachside properties in UKTV Home's Fantasy Homes by the Sea, as well as shopping for homes and bargains in Uncharted Territory and Foreign Exchange, both for the BBC.
Alongside the many series that Alistair has fronted he's also pursued his great love of classical music, hosting three seasons of the BBC Proms for BBC4 and presenting the Radio 3 weekend breakfast show. He is also the permanent host of the format-breaking Nightshift, a popular late night concert series by the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment which brings baroque music to the Roundhouse and underground Shoreditch venues.