Ex -Car trader Mike Brewer has spent most of his 43 years selling thousands of motor vehicles and is perhaps best known as the star of Channel 4’s second-hand car show Deals On Wheels and the top-rated motoring programme Driven.
The baby of six, Mike had a South London upbringing and eventually the family settled down in Surrey where, during school holidays, you could hear Mike shouting as he was selling fruit ‘n’ veg on a stall. Mike got into the motor trade in his late teens and quickly built a reputation for being sharp and honest, Mike set up and ran the biggest 4×4 centre in the south of England importing cars from around the globe. Mike embarked on his television career through pure luck. He answered a friend’s telephone and discovered he was talking to a television producer. A long chat and a few anecdotes ensued and he was hired for the first series of Deals On Wheels. His success in this role led him into the presenter’s position on Driven.
2003 Mike presented the final series of Driven for Ch 4 (over 100 episodes in total) but also branched out and recorded several other programmes for the Discovery Channel and ITV.
Mike was seen presenting several specials including Driven at Le Mans. As well as The British Rally Championships for Ch 4 Sports and now Sky sports, at all the meetings around the country for the sixth year running, and has been re-commissioned for 2008.
Mike had so much fun fronting a series about celebrities and their gadgets, called He’s Gotta Have It, For Discovery channel as well as a new 10 part motoring series called ‘Wheeler Dealers’ which had massive success for discovery and has been re-commissioned for a fifth series, aired to run in the Autumn 2008.
Mike has also had his own format commissioned. Called Remote Madness it will be shown on the Discovery Channel in 2003. It’s a game show that’s made up of radio-controlled craft racing each other over obstacles.
Mike was also thrilled to be asked to present Channel Four’s flagship programme about overcoming disability in Britain called Celebrity Wheelchair Challenge. Mike oversaw Gaby Roslin, Tanya Strecker and Sean Hughes to travel from Edinburgh to London in a wheelchair. This was a pioneering show, which attracted huge ratings for Channel Four, and it was a departure from the type of programme he normally presents.
2004 was a busy year for Mike with Wheeler Dealer’s, British Rally, a new house Building programme ‘House Race’ for ITV1 Central, and his own Motoring programme for ITV1 national, called ‘Wrecks to Riches’ that was aired this spring. ITV1 also commissioned Mike to front up another motoring series called ‘Revved-Up’ for transmission autumn 2004.
