28 Facts About David Dickinson

David Dickinson was born on David Gulesserian; 16 August 1941 and is an English antiques dealer and television presenter.

Between 2000 and 2004, Dickinson hosted the BBC One antiques show Bargain Hunt, where he was succeeded by Tim Wonnacott.

David Dickinson left the BBC in 2005, and between 2006 and 2024, he hosted the ITV daytime show David Dickinson's Real Deal.

David Dickinson was placed for adoption as an infant and never again met his biological mother although he corresponded with her in later life when she was living in Jersey.

Mr Dickinson died when David was 12, and as his mother worked hard to keep the family together, David was partly brought up by his adoptive paternal grandmother, Sarah.

David Dickinson began an apprenticeship at an aircraft factory when he was 14, but quickly left to work in the cloth trade in central Manchester.

At 19, David Dickinson served three years of a four-year prison sentence for mail-order fraud.

David Dickinson set up in Manchester with the assistance of an old customer as silent partner, and the business ran until 1991 when, in light of forthcoming recession, the shop was closed.

David Dickinson decided to concentrate on selling antiques at prestigious fairs, taking stands at Olympia and other major antiques fairs three or four times a year, dealing in 18th- and 19th-century furniture and works of art.

David Dickinson met his wife, Lorne Lesley, a cabaret performer, in a nightclub in the 1960s, and they married in 1968.

David Dickinson's nickname is "The Duke", a reference to his wardrobe.

For forty years he has used the same tailor, Chris Nicolaou, who appeared as a guest for David Dickinson's This Is Your Life programme, when he was surprised by Michael Aspel at an auction house in Folkestone in November 2002.

Until May 2008, David Dickinson drove a bright blue Bentley Continental GT.

David Dickinson came to public attention as an antiques expert on This Morning and BBC Two's The Antiques Show.

David Dickinson left the daytime edition of Bargain Hunt in 2003 and was replaced by Tim Wonnacott on the daytime slot while David Dickinson carried on presenting the primetime, celebrity and Christmas versions of the show.

David Dickinson went on to present a reality show, Dealing With Dickinson on BBC One in 2005 which was cancelled after only one series.

David Dickinson left the BBC once the primetime editions of Bargain Hunt were cancelled.

David Dickinson moved to ITV in 2006 to present a new daytime antiques programme, David Dickinson's Real Deal, which is broadcast on daytime weekday afternoons.

David Dickinson's job is to act as a mediator to help the sellers obtain the best prices from the dealers or to help them with the decision about whether to refuse the offer and to take the item to auction.

From 17 May 2010, The David Dickinson Show, a celebrity variety show, was broadcast on ITV for 10 episodes.

In 2002, David Dickinson appeared as a guest on Shooting Stars joining Team B led by Ulrika Jonsson with Johnny Vegas.

In 2004, David Dickinson was one of several celebrities to have their portraits painted in the BBC One television series Star Portraits with Rolf Harris, and, in 2004, he appeared in the first series of Strictly Come Dancing.

In 2005, David Dickinson appeared on the ITV reality show I'm a Celebrity.

David Dickinson presented information slots for viewers on how to bid on satellite shopping channel Bid TV.

David Dickinson appeared in one episode of the ITV drama Heartbeat, playing an antiques dealer.

David Dickinson was able to trace relatives in both the UK and Istanbul.

On one radio episode of Dead Ringers, The Doctor telephoned David Dickinson to ask him how much he could get for a magnetic core extractor that was believed to have been owned by the Doctor when he was played by Jon Pertwee.

David Dickinson described the extractor as "a bit of a bobby dazzler".