Olly Smith
Introduction
Olly Smith (born 18 September 1974) is a British TV presenter, wine expert, columnist and author.
Education
Smith attended Charterhouse School on a music scholarship. He was a chorister at King's College, Cambridge, and gained a Master's degree in English Literature at Edinburgh University.
Family background
His brother is the comedian and writer Will Smith. Smith was born in Jersey, and as a child was a chorister in the Choir of King's College, Cambridge. He lives in Sussex with his family.
Writing
Smith is wine editor of The Mail on Sunday's Event Magazine and writes a weekly wine column. He has formerly written columns for Wine & Spirit, Men's Health, and Waitrose and Sainsbury's supermarket magazines, and features for such publications as The Independent on Sunday, London Lite, and Country Life.
Smith has written five books, Eat & Drink: Good Food That’s Great to Drink With in 2010, Wine: Both Barrels in 2012, Behind Enemy Wines in 2013, Drinking For Chaps in 2018, and Fizz in 2019.
Smith previously wrote for film and TV including Pingu, Wallace and Gromit and Charlie and Lola.
Television
Smith regularly appears as a wine expert on BBC1's Saturday Kitchen and is a frequent guest on ITV's This Morning. In September 2014 Smith presented a four-part series Last Taste of Summer, which aired on This Morning.
Smith was host of the short-lived Iron Chef UK during 2010.
In 2011, Smith presented a ten-part series for Channel 4 entitled The Secret Supper Club. Outside of the UK, he presented a documentary series about Chilean wine, Uncorking the South, for Canal 13.
He is also a voice-over artist, narrating Chic Eats for The Discovery Channel, performing voices for ITV show The Amazing Adrenalini Brothers as well as writing and presenting Dude, Where's My Title? for BBC Radio 4. He also performed alongside Roger Moore in The Fly Who Loved Me Christmas cartoon for UNICEF.
Awards
In 2011, Smith was named by Off License News among the top 75 most influential people in the UK wine trade.
- United Kingdom Vineyards Association Communicator of the Year 2012
- Roederer Awards Finalist for International Columnist of the Year 2012
- Wines of Portugal Journalism Award 2012
- International Wine & Spirits Communicator of the Year Award 2009
- Drinks Business Young Achiever of the Year Award 2009