Michael Rory Absalom was born on 13th April, 1980 in Falkirk, Scotland to Halina (Kandulska) and Peter Absalom. They lived in Scotland briefly before moving to King's Lynn (Norfolk), Barrow-in-Fu ...Show More
Michael Rory Absalom was born on 13th April, 1980 in Falkirk, Scotland to Halina (Kandulska) and Peter Absalom. They lived in Scotland briefly before moving to King's Lynn (Norfolk), Barrow-in-Furness (Cumbria), Wimborne Minster (Dorset) and Rowland's Castle (Hampshire). All before Michael was 8 years old.Michael started boarding school aged 8 at Dumpton School, Wimborne Minster (Dorset) before earning a Bursary to Millfield School (Somerset) in 1993 for his Cricket and Hockey abilities. He studied both his GCSEs and A-levels (Geography, French, Theatre Studies) at Millfield School but decided not to attend University. Instead he opted for a more "hands on" approach and in the Summer of '98 Michael accepted a 4 month contract as a 'Runner' at Virgin Radio, where he got his first real taster of 'The Industry'. After this Michael spent 3 seasons in Mont Tremblant, Quebec (Canada) where he qualified as a Ski Instructor and took a job at the 'L'ecole de Ski' teaching kids of all ages (4-18 years old) how to ski.Michael has played hockey for both club and country. England U18 - U21 (1998 - 2001), Havant H.C. (1998 - 2002), Hounslow H.C. (2003 - 2007), Richmond H.C. (2008 - Present), England +35's (Hockey World Cup 2018).Presenter: In 2002 Michael got his first break onto Television, courtesy of Children's BBC, where he became a regular 'On Air' Presenter, working across multiple platforms (BBC 1, BBC 2 and The CBBC Channel). During this time he also hosted Children's TV shows 'Best of Friends', 'X-change', and 'Sportsround'.Charity: Michael completed the London Marathon (2003) in a time of 3 hours 30 minutes, and in the process raised two and a half thousand pounds for 'The Children's Trust'. He is a proud supporter of many charities, including: 'First Touch - supporting sick and premature babies at St George's' and 'Chestnut Tree House - The children's hospice for Sussex'.Michael lost both his elder Sister, Lisa (died age 6) and younger Brother, Joseph (died age 13) to the same life limiting illness (neuroaxonal dystrophy). Michael's blog in 2017 on 'Mental Health' openly talks about the challenges he faced growing up in this "very chaotic, life and death environment", and how these issues continue to affect him as an adult. He is a massive advocate of 'Mental Health' and the importance of talking openly about these issues as well as the issues that arise from experiencing any level of childhood trauma.Michael has a younger Sister, Ella (From the same Mother) and two younger Brothers, Rory & Lyon (From his Father's second marriage) Commentator: In 2008 Michael evolved his skill set to include Sports Commentary, sighting London 2012 as an event he wanted to work on. Over a 4 year period he established himself as a familiar voice across multiple sports including Hockey, Skiing, and Formula 1, working for some of the most respected Broadcasters in the UK (Eurosport, Sky Sports, BBC Sport and BT Sport).In 2017 Michael joined the English Commentary team at Star Sports, Mumbai (India) to host 'Vivo Pro Kabaddi - Season 5'. It reached 313 million viewers across the season, with 1.2 billion minutes viewed online. Live Events: Michael is in his element hosting Live Events and in 2012 Michael was asked to host a series of live Olympic Torch Relay Events across the UK in front of crowds of up to 80,000 people. He then moved to London's Riverbank Arena within the Olympic Park to host the Olympic Hockey event for the duration of The Games. In 2015 Michael helped do the same for the Rugby World Cup, working at multiple stadiums and venues across the UK.Actor: Michael is also an Actor who has added a number of commercials to his portfolio over the years, with Television campaigns across the UK & Europe for household names including Colgate, Nescafe and Dreams.In 2018 Michael made his Feature Film debut in Director Ben Young's Sci-Fi film 'Extinction' (Universal Pictures) acting alongside Lizzie Caplin & Michael Pena.Documentary Maker: Michael has written and produced his own documentary. A 9 part Star Wars fan documentary all about chasing a childhood dream of appearing in a Star Wars Film as a Stormtrooper. This entertaining series follows Michael and a group of his closest family and friends on an incredible 3 year journey. The audience discovers what it takes both physically and emotionally to achieve a childhood dream. Designed to inspire and motivate others to follow through on their own aspirations and goals. #maybejustmaybe Hide
