One of the nation's most popular broadcasters Clare Balding is also an accomplished author. Previously, she has had an equestrian sporting career, competing in events such as dressage, show-jumping.
Now, she is presenting some of the Paris 2024 Olympics for the BBC alongside Gabby Logan, JJ Chalmers, Jeanette Kwakye, Hazel Irvine, Isa Guha and Mark Chapman.
Here's everything you might want to know about the author and broadcast journalist.
How old is Clare Balding?
Clare Balding was born on the 29th January 1971, making her 53 years old currently. Her parents are Emma Hastings-Bass and British horse trainer, Ian Balding and her broth Andrew followed in their father's footsteps.
Clare herself was an amateur jockey, gaining first-hand experience that would later enrich her broadcasting credentials.
“As a child, I was so obsessed with animals that I even went through a stage of thinking I was a dog!” she laughs. “My brother and I were very much below the dogs in the pecking order of family structure. The dogs were way more important than us. But we were very lucky and also had ponies. My dad was a racehorse trainer but we weren’t allowed near the Thoroughbreds until we were older.”
It was surely a labour of love, then, for Clare to pen one of her book, Heroic Animals: 100 Amazing Creatures Great and Small in which she tells the stories of 100 incredible animals who have left their mark on the world.
Is Clare Balding married?
In 2015, Clare Balding married her wife Alice Arnold, who's also a broadcaster and journalist. They met in 1999 through a mutual friend at the BBC.
The pair have appeared on episodes of Celebrity Gogglebox on Channel 4. Comedy fans and eagle-eyed viewers may recognise Alice from her appearance as Aunt Lizzy on Peep Show, or as a continuity announcer on BBC Radio 4.
Is Clare Balding related to Queen Elizabeth II?
On her episode of Who Do You Think You Are, Clare found out that she has royal blood, as her great-great-grandparents Edward Stanley, 17th Earl of Derby and Lady Alice Montagu were descendants of Henry VII. This means that she is distantly related to the late Queen.
Clare Balding met Queen Elizabeth II on several occasions, as her dad trained racehorses for Her Majesty, as did her uncle, the 17th Earl of Huntingdon and her maternal grandfather, Peter Hastings-Bass. On one occasion, she got to have breakfast with her and she even attended her 90th birthday in 2023.
During her sporting career, she competed against Royals Princess Anne and Zara Tindall.
Clare Balding books
As well as being a brilliant broadcaster, Clare Balding has added 'author' to her list of accomplishments. She has written a selection of non-fiction and non-fiction books - mostly about animals, of course - and stories for children.
AmazonIn this autobiographical book, Clare Balding talks about her childhood, where "she and her younger brother came very low down the pecking order.
"Left to their own devices, they had to learn life's toughest lessons through the animals, and through their adventures in the stables and the idyllic Hampshire Downs. From the protective Candy to the pot-bellied Valkyrie and the frisky Hattie, each horse and each dog had their own character and their own special part to play."
AmazonEver since Alexander the Great named a city after the horse who saved his life in battle (and another after his dog), human history wouldn't be the same without the awe-inspiring tales of amazing animals. Now BAFTA-winning presenter, no. 1 bestselling author and all-round national treasure Clare Balding picks out the most heroic and heartwarming (and sometimes hilarious) animals from history and tells their stories. From Simon the sea cat to Greyfriars Bobby's 14-year vigil over his master's grave, to the elephant that saved a small girl and Paul the World-Cup-predicting octopus, Heroic Animals brings to life incredible feats and moving moments which highlight the timeless special bond between human and animal.
AmazonTen-year-old Charlie Bass has always dreamed of having her own pony and her wishes finally come true. However, there's just one problem... He won't gallop!
Telling history through animals
We chatted to Clare Balding about why she's mad about animals, and how she was inspired to write her book 'Heroic Animals: 100 Amazing Creatures Great and Small'.
“I wanted to find a way of celebrating all sorts of animals, from giraffes and rhinos to cats and dogs, and even the rats who were trained to sniff out unexploded bombs during the Second World War,” she says. “Heroic Animals is a tribute to their intelligence, loyalty, bravery, kindness and beauty. Animals bring out the best of us as human beings. If we are kind and consistent, patient and clear, they will respond by helping us as best they can.
“We can tell history in so many ways – although most often it is stories retelling the lives and deeds of powerful men. I think telling history through animals is a different and lovely way to reflect on our development. Animals bring so much to our lives yet at times, humankind has treated them so badly. Think Laika, the poor, stray dog from Moscow who the Soviets sent into space and Ham the Chimpanzee who suffered the same fate and never came back.
“But, of course, there are happier stories, too. For instance, the Tamworth Two – a pair of pigs that escaped while being unloaded from a lorry at an abattoir in Wiltshire in 1998. The pigs – later named Butch and Sundance – were on the run for more than a week but eventually found a forever home.”
Clare wrote the book during the early days of lockdown. “I loved writing it and putting it together during lockdown. I had lots of time as so many events and broadcasts have been postponed until next year.”
Clare on losing her own dog, Archie
It was during lockdown that Clare and her wife Alice suffered the loss of a very personal animal hero – their Tibetan Terrier, Archie.
“That was very tough,” she says. “Archie was 15 and we’d had him since he was a little puppy. He brought us so much joy and made us smile every day. But you can’t stop a dog from ageing. I was very glad I was here and not in Tokyo when it happened. It would have been awful for Alice to have to have made the decision to let him go alone and then have to go through losing him alone.
“Now he’s gone there is a gaping dog-shaped hole in our lives. Will we get another dog? I think we will but we’ll wait a while. I don’t want to be away when we get one and, potentially, I have many work commitments that will see me having to travel next year. I don’t want to be an absent parent!”
Coping with Archie’s loss was in some ways eased by the arrival of five British Blue kittens shortly before he passed away. Clare and Alice acted as midwives to Button, their cat and the kittens’ mother.
“What an experience!” Clare recalls. “We stayed up all night to help deliver them. It was quite a responsibility having to oversee the births of these tiny things. Luckily Alice was far more decisive than me and, to be honest, I left it mainly to her! We’ve had a cycle of birth and death this year but that’s the way life is with animals – us, too. We’ve kept one kitten for ourselves whom we’ve named Eric, the others have gone to friends and family.
“Spending time with those adorable, gorgeous kittens was another positive to lockdown. Actually, I’ve enjoyed being at home so much – I never do usually. Once I accepted there was nothing to be done about it, I embraced it. And, oh, what joy it has been not to have to wear make-up and heels."
Life in lockdown
“I haven’t missed having to perform in front of the camera but I have greatly missed live sport – the adrenalin rush, the elements of unpredictability, feelings of excitement and simply not knowing what is going to happen next.
“That’s one of the reasons I love playing golf. It’s my escape and also great fun. I love the fact you have to concentrate really hard on something that doesn’t actually mean anything.”
Is she competitive? “I have to admit that I am. Maybe it comes from growing up with animals in a sporting environment. I’m proud to say my handicap is now 18 rather than the 23 it was before lockdown. Speaking of which, it’s time I was off!”
Stephanie Anthony is the Deputy Digital Editor of Yours.co.uk. Having worked across a variety of topics, from travel and food to pharmaceuticals, she also has a particular interest in mental health and wellness. She has a house full of pets with two dogs and two cats.