Julia Mary Fownes Somerville was born on 14 July 1947 and is an English consumer affairs journalist co-presenting the BBC One daytime television programme Rip Off Britain.
38 Facts About Julia Somerville
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Julia Somerville began her journalistic career with magazine publisher IPC and edited a computer group house magazine ITT Creed.
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Julia Somerville moved into broadcast newsreading and reporting, starting in radio and eventually moving to television where she was known, for many years, as a television newsreader and reporter for the BBC and Independent Television News.
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Julia Somerville joined ITN in 1987 as the reader of the ITN News at 12:30 lunchtime bulletin before becoming a co-presenter of News at Ten in 1989.
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Julia Somerville co-presented News at Ten's short-lived analyst segment Focus on Britain in late 1992 until it was dropped from the bulletin.
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Julia Somerville presented the Yorkshire Television current affairs programme 3D from 1993 to 1998.
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Julia Somerville left ITN in 2001 and rejoined the BBC in 2010 and began co-presenting Rip Off Britain.
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Julia Somerville was born in Wells, Somerset, the granddaughter of Admiral of the Fleet Sir James Fownes Julia Somerville of Dinder House in Somerset.
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Julia Somerville's father, John Arthur Fownes Somerville, was a naval officer who later rose to be deputy director of GCHQ.
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Julia Somerville was educated at Airthrie Preparatory School in Cheltenham and Headington School in Oxford, graduating from the University of Sussex with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature in 1969.
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Julia Somerville joined the BBC in 1972 as a sub-editor in the radio newsroom, and then became a reporter in 1978.
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Julia Somerville passed a film test and began an intensive news reading course at BBC Television Centre to replace Sue Lawley, before starting work in July 1984.
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Julia Somerville made her final appearance presenting the Nine O'Clock News on 14 August 1987.
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Julia Somerville moved to Independent Television News in Autumn 1987, where she presented the relaunched ITN News at 12:30 lunchtime bulletin as its sole presenter when ITV move the bulletin up by half an hour to accommodate the network's new programming for the autumn.
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Julia Somerville cited the chance to provide breaking news and live interviews to viewers.
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Julia Somerville reviewed the preceding 12 months of the activities of the British royal family in The Royal Year in December 1987.
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Julia Somerville went on maternity leave in mid-1988 and was replaced at ITN by Jon Snow until she returned to work in October 1988.
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Julia Somerville moved in April 1989 to be one of the co-presenters on News at Ten alongside Alastair Burnet and Sandy Gall.
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In November 1989, Julia Somerville became a supporter of the Pre-School Playgroups Association to help mothers with their young children throughout the 1990s.
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Julia Somerville interviewed politicians during ITN's coverage of the 1990 United Kingdom budget, and analysed ITN's exit poll for its coverage of the 1992 United Kingdom general election.
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Julia Somerville asked ITN to lower her profile because of media intrusion into her personal life.
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Julia Somerville was diagnosed with a benign brain tumour in August 1992 and after neurosurgery recovered well to return to work three months later.
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Julia Somerville returned to present to co-presented the Lunchtime News along with Nicholas Owen and later with John Suchet, plus 3D, a weekly Yorkshire Television current affairs programme from 1993 to 1998.
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Julia Somerville reported on the political response to the 1993 United Kingdom budget, and narrated the six-part documentary series Special Babies about the Maternity and Special Care Baby Unit at Watford General Hospital in 1994.
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Julia Somerville reported from Hyde Park during the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in September 1997.
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Julia Somerville provided cover for News at Ten, and was one of the launch anchors for the ITN News Channel.
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Between 1999 and 2001, Julia Somerville presented the daily LBC radio show London Life, a two-hour programme devoted to interviews with diverse artists.
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Julia Somerville has a lifelong interest in painting and in 2001 was a member of the judging panel for the National Portrait Gallery's BP Portrait of the Year; she has served as a judge for several years on the Royal Institute of British Architects Annual Architecture Award Panels.
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On 18 September 2003, Julia Somerville was appointed Chair of the Advisory Committee of the Government Art Collection, for a period of four years.
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In 2010, Julia Somerville returned to television news as a presenter on BBC News.
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Also in 2010, Julia Somerville was the narrator of the experimental film Facade by artist and filmmaker Phil Coy.
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Julia Somerville joined Rip Off Britain when the show returned in Autumn 2011 for its third series.
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Julia Somerville replaced Jennie Bond to host along with Angela Rippon and Gloria Hunniford.
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Julia Somerville has been married twice, to Stephen Band and to BBC Radio Foreign Service journalist Ray Gowdridge.
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Julia Somerville is currently the partner of the architect Jeremy Dixon.
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Julia Somerville suffered a brain tumour in 1992, for which she successfully underwent neurosurgery.
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When Dixon arrived at Boots to collect the prints the police were waiting and later his and Julia Somerville's house was searched but nothing was seized.
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Julia Somerville said he had visited her home, followed her and made nuisance phone calls.