BBC presenter Jay Blades has pleaded not guilty to engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour towards his wife as he appeared at Worcester Crown Court today.
Mr Blades, who has fronted of primetime show The Repair Shop since 2017, was charged by West Mercia Police with one count of engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour by police last month.
The charge, relating to his wife Lisa-Marie Zbozen alleges that his behaviour had a “serious effect” on his partner “namely that it caused her to fear on at least two occasions that violence would be used against her”.
Fitness instructor Ms Zbozen, who announced that the pair’s relationship was over in an Instagram post in May, alleges that the behaviour took place between 1 January 1 2023 and 12 September this year.
Police previously confirmed an investigation had been launched after they were called to an address on 3 May, the day after Ms Zbozen’s Instagram post.
Mr Blades, 54, appeared at Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court on 13 September in relation to the charge and was bailed until his next court appearance. He is expected to face trial in May next year.
He appeared before the Recorder of Worcester, Judge James Burbidge KC wearing a dark suit and tie, and spoke only to confirm his name and to enter his plea.
A furniture restorer who was made an MBE for services to craft in 2022, Mr Blades found fame on The Repair Shop, which sees members of the public take worn-out family heirlooms to be restored by a team of experts.
He last year won a daytime Bafta TV award along with other members of the BBC programme for a special featuring King Charles III, who was at the time the Prince of Wales, titled The Repair Shop: A Royal Visit.
In the one-off special, Mr Blades and the restorers visited the King at Dumfries House in Scotland, with the programme also winning the daytime prize at the National Television Awards the same year.
Mr Blades also presented the BBC’s Money For Nothing until 2020, appeared on Celebrity Masterchef and Celebrity Bake Off as well as Comic Relief and delved into the history of the West Midlands and the East End for two Channel 5 documentaries.
In 2022, he became Buckinghamshire New University’s first chancellor, having studied for a degree in criminology and philosophy from 2001. In light of the charge against him, Mr Blades resigned from the role, as well as his position as an ambassador to the King’s Foundation.
