Tom Daly to Host New Knitting TV Show

Olympic diver Tom Daley is to front a new Channel 4 show where knitters compete to become the first TV knitting champion in the UK.

It will be the first major presenting role for the 30-year-old retired springboard diver and YouTuber who won the men’s synchronised 10-metre platform medal at the Olympics in 2020.

Challenging Knitting

Daly has won five Olympic medals in total and is a double world champion but is now taking the plunge with Game of Wool, created by Hello Halo for Channel 4. As part of the show, he will welcome 10 knitters who will complete complex challenges over eight one-hour episodes.

Many knitters enjoy the freedom to take their favourite knitting kit from companies such as woolcouturecompany.com/collections/knitting-kits wherever they go, and Game of Wool will take contestants to rural Scotland. Every episode will see the knitters take on two challenges. They will have to complete a group knit and an individual knit when they will complete briefs designed to test their skills and capabilities.

The competitors will make everything from jewellery, clothing and home accessories to sculptures and furniture, showing the versatility of knitting to viewers. They may even try some ‘yarn bombing’, which is a type of street art where knitted items are made and displayed in the community, such as the post box toppers that have popped up around the country.

Talent on Show

The contestants will be put through their paces by Sheila Greenwell and Di Gilpin, who have knitted for big brands like NIKE, Paul Smith, Vivienne Westwood and Chanel. Sheila will focus on technique, while DI will judge creativity.

Daley said he was very excited about his first ever hosting role but is also ‘slightly nervous’. He is thrilled to be combining his passions, however, and wants to encourage everyone to pick up a knitting kit or grab themselves a pair of needles.

Daley started knitting in 2020 and has been regularly seen knitting in public, including at major sporting events.