Misplaced Pages

Rebecca Lowe (born 11 November 1980) is a British television presenter and anchor who works for NBC and NBC Sports. She previously worked at the BBC, Setanta Sports UK and ESPN UK.

Early life and education

The daughter of BBC News presenter Chris Lowe, she was born in Ealing, west London, where she reportedly walked to school with footballer Peter Crouch. Lowe attended Notting Hill & Ealing High School then Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania, United States on an English-Speaking Union scholarship. She graduated with a 2:1 BA Honours Degree in Drama from the University of East Anglia in 2002.

Career

Seeking to be an actress, after graduation she worked at TalkSport while looking for an agent. In November 2002, she won BBC Television's Talent Search for a football reporter.

BBC

Lowe reported from a top Premier League match every Saturday for Final Score, was regularly a reporter on interviews and features for Football Focus, and was the presenter of a "Football in the Community" feature every Sunday morning on Match of the Day (all on BBC One).

She was a regular contributor to BBC Television's Match of the Day 2 and Grandstand. She was also one of the main sports presenters on BBC News 24 and BBC Radio Five Live, and has additionally broadcast sports news for BBC Breakfast, BBC Radio 1, 2 and 4.

Lowe worked as BBC One's England team reporter during the 2005 Women's European Championship, and was a reporter for BBC Two at the 2004 African Cup of Nations in Tunisia. She also performed the role of pitch side reporter at the FA Women's Cup Final in 2003, 2004 and 2005, which was shown live on BBC One. Lowe reported from the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

Setanta Sports

It was announced on 28 June 2007 that Lowe would leave the BBC to join Setanta Sports as a football presenter and reporter. She co-hosted Setanta's coverage of the Football Conference as well as reporting on the Premier League and co-presenting Football Matters, Setanta's Monday night football discussion and review show, alongside James Richardson.

ESPN

After the demise of Setanta, it was announced in July 2009, that she had joined ESPN's new UK sports channel, to co-host their new Premier League football coverage, alongside Ray Stubbs, who joined ESPN from the BBC. At ESPN she became the first woman in the UK to host the FA Cup Final, presenting a 7-hour broadcast pitch side from the 2012 FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Liverpool. She was also there for ESPN when the Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba collapsed on the pitch at White Hart Lane during an FA Cup quarter-final in March 2012. She co-hosted the network's telecasts of the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup alongside Bob Ley. In January 2011, she hosted the FA Cup third round game between Arsenal and Leeds United with Robbie Savage and Martin Keown. At half time Savage was showered with hot dogs and coins by Leeds fans. In June 2012 she appeared on US television as co-host of ESPN's US coverage of UEFA Euro 2012. Lowe also sporadically presented ESPN USA's Premier League coverage.

NBC

On 26 March 2013, NBC Sports hired Lowe to serve as the lead studio host for its coverage of the Premier League in the United States, beginning in the 2013–14 season. In December 2013, Lowe was named Newcomer of the Year by Sports Illustrated in their annual Media Awards. NBC later renewed her contract with the network through 2022 and 2028. Lowe is also the Daytime host at NBC for all coverage of both Summer and Winter Olympic Games. She has fronted Sochi 2014, Rio 2016, Pyeong Chang 2018, Tokyo 2020, Beijing 2022, and Paris 2024.

Personal life

On 22 December 2008, while presenting Football Matters, Lowe confirmed she is an avid supporter of Crystal Palace. She has confirmed this in several appearances with the Men in Blazers.

Lowe's brother Alex Lowe is a sports journalist for The Times.

On 12 June 2013, Lowe married former Torquay United, Luton Town and Cheltenham Town manager Paul Buckle in a private ceremony in Santorini, Greece.

Lowe gave birth to her first child, Edward "Teddy" Christopher Buckle, on 17 April 2016.

On 9 March 2022, Lowe announced via her Instagram account that both she and her husband had become naturalized American citizens, while retaining their British citizenship.

References

1. ^ "Rebecca Lowe". tvnewsroom.co.uk. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
2. ^ Glendenning, Barry (6 March 2009). "Rebecca Lowe". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
3. "Rebecca Lowe ’99 Kicks Off NBC’s Premier League Coverage", accessed 15 October 2014.
4. ^ "Sporting Chance". Daily Express. 7 June 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
5. "BBC World Cup 2006 coverage". BBC Sport. 20 June 2006. Retrieved 7 May 2009.
6. Rebecca Lowe joins Setanta TV Newsroom
7. "2011 FIFA Women's World Cup Commentators – ESPN MediaZone". Archived from the original on 14 June 2012.
8. Hawkes, Will (12 January 2012). "ESPN to continue its touchline analysis despite Keown's whack". The Independent. Retrieved 9 February 2021.
9. "NBC's Rebecca Lowe to host Olympics; Auburn-'Bama behind the scenes". SI.com. 1 December 2013. Archived from the original on 5 December 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
10. Caldwell, Dave (2 May 2017). "How Rebecca Lowe went from England to become the US's face of football". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
11. "Men in Blazers gives Rebecca Lowe a Holiday Gift". www.nbcsports.com. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
12. "Rebecca Lowe on Instagram: "🇺🇸 One of the biggest days of my life. 🇺🇸 After nearly 9 years, today my husband and I became United States citizens. It's been quite the journey since we landed on July 1st 2013. We found a country which opened its arms to us, where we brought our child into the world, where we found a home. The US is everything we hoped it would be…actually, it's more. We love so much about America; the culture, the people, the way of life. Thank you to NBC, @caa_sports and all those who believed in me. Thank you to all of you who send me messages every day on Instagram - I appreciate you all so much. And thank you to the wonderful American friends we have made along the way…we love you. We are truly honoured to now be American citizens. And an American family. Let the next chapter begin! 🇺🇸"".

Bibliography

• "BBC TV World Cup Team" (PDF) (Press release). British Broadcasting Corporation. 4 April 2006. Retrieved 1 July 2006.

External links

• Rebecca Lowe (biography) – NBC Sports Group

• 1980 births
• Living people
• People from Ealing
• English sports broadcasters
• Alumni of the University of East Anglia
• English women television presenters
• BBC newsreaders and journalists
• English association football commentators
• People educated at Notting Hill & Ealing High School
• English expatriates in the United States
• Olympic Games broadcasters