Mr Motivator opens up on racism he faced while trying to break into the TV industry

Fitness guru was told ‘a black guy on TV would never work’

Mr Motivator has described the racism he experienced while trying to break into the TV industry, revealing that it took him a decade to make it on-screen.

The fitness instructor, whose real name is Derrick Errol Evans, rose to fame in 1993 through appearances on breakfast television show GMTV, where he performed live fitness sessions and offered advice to viewers.

However, the 67-year-old says getting on to our television screens was a huge challenge as he struggled to make it in the world of entertainment due to the colour of skin.

“When television came along, it took me 10 years to get a break as an on-screen fitness trainer,” Mr Motivator told Radio Times magazine.

“Every time I went to the studios, the guys would say, ‘Look, for a white lady with two kids, a black guy on TV would never work.’ But I kept on persevering.”

Speaking about his experiences outside of television, he recalled: “When I came to Leicester aged 10 from Jamaica, everyone would look at me as I walked by. So I would turn around, smile and wave.

“Later, when I walked into my very first job interview and the guy said to me, ‘Why didn’t you tell me you were black?,’ I replied, ‘Why didn’t you tell me you were white?’”

Mr Motivator worked on GMTV for seven years and eventually left the show in 2000 to go back to Jamaica to take care of his daughter who was suffering from health problems.

However, the fitness guru returned to our screens in March to help keep the nation fit throughout lockdown on HealthCheck UK Live, a coronavirus-commission on BBC Breakfast.

Mr Motivator opened up about life during lockdown and the Black Lives Matter movement, describing racism as “stupid” and “wrong”.

“Surviving lockdown is about being positive, but we have also been learning about what really matters,” he said. “Racism is always stupid and wrong, but it seems especially so in a time dominated by illness, a time when we should all be realising that we all need each other.

“Imagine if a racist person was badly injured and needed a blood transfusion to survive.

“I don’t think that person would hesitate to take my blood and, when they recovered, would be happily walking around with it inside of them. Blood does not discriminate.”

The full interview with Mr Motivator is available to read in Radio Times magazine, out now.