Biography:
This year's 'IPR Northern Ireland Entertainment Journalist of the Year'
and face of 4 Music, Colin started as a news reporter in Belfast before
launching music publication Blank. He went on to co-present the weekly
Session on Radio 1 Northern Ireland whilst also filling in for Steve
Lamacq, Jamie Theakston and Emma B nationwide on the station.
Belfast born and bred, Colin began his working career as a gravedigger
at sixteen, but after three long weeks realised he needed a rethink. His
love of music and his ability to pass comment – good or bad – on any
tune that may pass his ear, turned him to journalism. As a freelance
Mirror Group columnist in Ireland, he continued (and still does) to
write about quality music in tabloids that usually house Westlife
pullouts and, before long, was snapped up to co-present the Weekly
Session on Northern Ireland's Radio 1.
Now well established within the Radio 1 ranks, he regularly fills in for
Steve Lamacq, guests on "Newsbeat" and other national
programmes hosted by the likes of Emma B and Jamie Theakston. Colin
hopes to progress to his own national show in the future!
He was the roving reporter on Channel 4's "The Cut" with Jo
Whiley and is one of the team on Channel 4's brand new breakfast show,
"Rise" (Princess Productions & Sky News).
Murray currently presents BBC Radio Five Live's Fighting Talk, a sport related, comedic panel game of competitive banter, similar in style to ESPN's Around the Horn, and has deputised for both Simon Mayo and Julian Worricker on Five Live.
On 30 April 2007, he won a gold award at the 25th Sony Radio Academy Awards for Music Broadcaster Of The Year. He is one of the various people thanked on the Final Straw and Eyes Open albums by Belfast band Snow Patrol, being one of the first DJs to give the band national airplay.
Television
TV work has included presenting shows on BBC Three - including Glastonbury coverage - and on Channel 4, where he reported for RI:SE and presented Born Sloppy with Sara Cox. In 2005 he became the new co-presenter of late night American Football on five, with expert pundit Mike Carlson. However he had to leave in the 4th week of the 2006 season due to his new work commitments at Radio 1 with a show that finishes at midnight (an hour before the NFL on five starts).
He also commentates broadcasts of the European Poker Tour, alongside John Duthie. He appeared alongside Edith Bowman on Sky Sports 1's hit show Soccer AM. He has presented reports for Jo Whiley's The Cut and presented EastEnders Revealed on BBC Three. He has also recently begun presenting Sudoku Street-Cred on UKTV G2. When the Red Bull Flug Tag was held in Belfast Colin Murray was the presenter.
He is also the anchorman for Five's UEFA Cup coverage, often alongside Pat Nevin, moving John Barnes to a roving reporter
role.
He performed in Comic Relief does Fame Academy in March 2007 where he finished fourth. Johnny Vaughan took over the Fighting Talk hotseat for one day only in place of Colin Murray on 10th March 2007 and Nihal stood in for him on Radio 1 from 7 March to 15 March.
In May 2007 Colin filmed a series of twenty new quiz shows with production company Twofour for Channel Five, called Payday, in which 8 contestants battle to win a years salary.
Other activities
While in Canada, he became a fan of baseball's Toronto Blue Jays and the CCRFC, the rugby team of Christ's College,
Cambridge. His passions involve the aforementioned NFL (specifically, the Chicago Bears), Poker, Watersports, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestling, Boxing and his love of Liverpool F.C. Murray had 5 stars tattooed on his left wrist when Liverpool F.C. won the European Cup for the 5th time. His love for WWE was evident when on an edition of the Colin & Edith show, when Edith was off, Murray co-hosted the show with a cardboard cut-out of Trish Stratus.
He co-directed Chris Cox 2007 Edinburgh Fringe Festival Show, Everything Happens For A Reason.
He also DJs at student union events around the country. He was the first ever act to perform (DJ) at the University of Central Lancashire's new Students' Union building, 53 Degrees, at its opening in
2005.
Colin has also compered at the Leeds leg of the last three Carling Weekend music festivals.
Colin has been the main driving force behind the campaign to get the song We're All Going To Die by Malcolm Middleton to Christmas Number One single. He appeared on BBC news to promote the single.
During a radio broadcast of Fighting Talk, Colin once hit Tom Watts for constantley interupting during questions.
On his current radio 1 show, he spoke about his dislike for pan pipe music and people that talk at gigs.
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