Ashley Banjo on fame, 'I focus on what matters, what can’t be taken away'

Ashley Banjo reveals his entire world perspective has changed as he’s got older, confessing life has got to be “bigger and deeper” than his success. Since having kids and closing in on 40, the Diversity star and TV presenter says he realises success can be gone in a flash. He says: “I think what motivates me now is different. My perspective has changed, my idea of success is different. “I'm super blessed, super privileged, and have been super successful in the sense of career and everything else. But I think that at the end of the day, we're in such a troubled world at the moment that all of those successful things could be taken away in one afternoon. “Then all of a sudden, you're not successful anymore. So it's got to be bigger than that. It's got to be deeper than that. I'm just focused on the stuff that can't be taken away, regardless of what happens in such a world of turmoil.” Ashley, 38, is about to co-host The Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards, in partnership with P&O Cruises, for the sixth year, alongside longtime host Carol Vorderman. He admits that the ITV show, which honours the nation’s unsung heroes, has also given him a new perspective, and is the job he would always say yes to, “even if I had to pay money”. He says: “I love it. It’s one of those things that’s bigger than a job, bigger than a show. Just to have that moment in that room is so humbling and just a privilege. Pride of Britain makes me realise that I just don’t do enough. I can’t just keep talking about something, I need to actually do something to help.” Ashley has recently become official patron of the The One Love Project, a Southend-based charity near his dance studio that supports vulnerable people through a soup kitchen, food bank and emotional support services. He’s also backing the Julia Rausling Sky Arts bursary programme to support and fund aspiring dancers, breaking down financial barriers to a career in dance. He says: “What's the point of being successful and having all of this good stuff if you can't pass it on?” Ashley, who co-parents his daughter Rose, now seven, and son Micah, six, with his ex-partner Francesca Abbott, says the kids always watch Pride of Britain. In fact, Rose was so inspired by a young winner, who was just a littler older than her and battling leukaemia, that she got out her arts and crafts box to get in touch. Ashley says: “The awards show has a big impact on them and they’re only little. Rose wrote a letter and drew a little picture and when I got home she said, ‘Daddy, next time you see Florrie can you give this to her?’ She was only five. “I said, ‘Absolutely, of course I can sweetheart’. I haven’t seen Florrie yet. I’ve still got the letter and I have promised I will give it to her.” Florrie Bark won a Child of Courage award at our star-studded event in 2024, for her incredible bravery facing acute myeloid leukaemia and her uplifting social media activism, supporting other children with cancer - gaining over 150,000 TikTok followers and setting up the Be More Fab charity. Ashley says Florrie is the winner who “really got to him,” as she reminded him of his own kids. He says: “Florrie’s story always sticks with me because she reminds me of a cross between my little girl Rose and little boy Micah. “She's cheeky and she's funny and she loves to host and she's really creative. I look at her and think, you could be my little girl. My little girl could be in exactly that same position. And I look at the strength and the determination and the positivity that her family faced that situation with. “I’ve seen Florrie for a couple of years because last year she came back to host an interview corner, and when I see her I just think, ‘wow, honestly she’s such a bright light.’ When I see people going through situations like that - that are so relatable, mainly kids, you know - it just gets me every time.” Florrie, ten, is now thriving at home and regaining her independence, following a successful life-saving double-lung transplant earlier this year. She will be back at the Awards this year, nabbing celebrities for interview. Ashley, meanwhile, will be swotting up, learning everything he can about the winners in advance - especially in the face of technical difficulties. He says: “It’s a really weird thing that happens, and it happens only at Pride of Britain to me almost every year. “We get ear pieces so that producers can give us cues, tell us when to start, when to stop, if something’s going wrong. It’s like your lifeline. And every year, it works, until the moment I walk on and say, ‘Welcome to the show’. Then it breaks. “At one point we were trying to work out if the bone in my ear was too dense. They’ve moved the receiver around the room. They replace it, it breaks. They’ve done everything. So every time I have to do the show in the moment and remember everything with no one in my ear to help me. “I get so nervous every year because I want to get it right for the winners. My lesson was to pay attention, know everything, then you don’t need it.” Presenting struggles aside, Ashley admits he’s never done anything brave like the Pride of Britain winners. He says: “I’ve not saved anyone’s life! Probably the bravest thing I do is to admit when I’m wrong. Just being able to say I made a mistake.” Ashley talks to his kids a lot about morality. He explains: “We talk about what it means to be kind and good and what it means to start to understand the idea that you should, in most cases, put other people before yourself. “I say there are a lot of people that might need your help, and sometimes that will mean putting yourself in a position that isn't as easy or as nice. But that's what helping others is all about.” The doting dad is clearly so proud of his kids. Asked if there was a small act of kindness he remembers, Rose and Micah were the first people to spring to mind. He says: “I’m so proud when I see it in my kids. Only the other day, I was working at my desk and Micah kept saying, ‘Daddy, can you play?’ “He kept asking for about two hours and I kept saying, ‘When I’m finished’. And then he just walked in and brought me a drink. That's it. It's nothing big, but I was so proud of him because I knew he wanted to play and I was just ignoring him, but he thought, ‘How can I help?’ “It wasn’t an exam result. We didn't win a football match, but just bringing me that drink, I was just like, ‘Thank you, son. Yeah, so proud of you.’” Ashley adds: “I learn a lot from the people on Pride of Britain. In the face of life-changing situations, they hang on to a boldness and a happiness and a joy that you can't quite comprehend how they still have that, being in such a seemingly dire situation. “But, actually, sometimes it's in those situations you find the happiest stuff. That's why shows like Pride of Britain are my absolute favourite, because it's me doing TV presenting but with a fresh perspective.” He adds: “The show is a brutal reminder that you don’t need to be famous or have a profile to make a huge impact. Nothing compares to some of the things that they’ve done, but it’s amazing that Pride of Britain gives them the recognition and we applaud them on the night. That’s the least that should be done.” *Don’t miss The Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards on Thursday 22 October at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX.