Entertainment Team

Rachel Tregenza

Despite having a degree in music, Rachel decided that journalism was the career for her.

Rachel put her piano playing on the back burner, and instead follows the lives of the good and great of the entertainment world.

Rachel grew up in Sussex, but spent three years in the bright lights of London whilst studying at King's College and the Royal Academy of Music. She went on to qualify from the National Broadcasting School.

She was first starstruck when she met James McAvoy during a work placement at Radio Clyde - they discussed all things Narnian, life with a Shameless co-star, and working with the Last King of Scotland. Since then, she's been reading the news and reporting from across the south coast for Original 106.

When she's not got her teeth into a juicy showbiz story, she likes going shopping, recreating Gordon Ramsey's culinary delights, spending time with friends, and watching the latest Hollywood blockbuster!

Bethany Blakely

Bethany fled her home town of Nottingham to study Media and Culture at U.W.E in Bristol.

As part of her course she spent 6 months in the States at Indiana University of Pennsylvania where she studied journalism and became a reporter for the student TV Station WIUP-TV.

Bethany's professionalism was immediately tested when she had to deliver her first report on Groundhog Day from a place called Gobbler's Knob!

After various stints travelling and living overseas, Bethany felt she had finally got the travel bug out of her system and returned to the UK to study for a Masters in Broadcast Journalism at Falmouth College of Arts in Cornwall

During the course Bethany joined the Entertainment News team for a two week placement interviewing the original Willy Wonka - Gene Wilder - and getting celebrity interviews from the red carpet at the Glamour Magazine Awards from the likes of Usher, Elle McPherson and Teri Hatcher - not bad for work experience!

Bethany's first break in radio came courtesy of Chiltern FM where she was thrown in at the deep end covering the Buncefield Oil Depot explosion on her very first day. She quickly realised this was a taste of things to come and  spent the next 14 months reading the news for 5 different stations including Horizon FM, Planet Rock and Classic Gold.

Although Chiltern was an amazing training ground, Bethany was keen to pursue her real passion for all things celebrity and jumped at the chance to return to the Entertainment news team as a permanent member of the team.

Tessa Bickers

While most teens celebrate their birthday with a disco at the village hall or a trip to the local bowling alley, Tessa celebrated her thirteenth by taking a bus load of friends to London to meet her favourite boy band at the time, Upside Down.

She's pretty sure she was alone in her excitement as she waved at Giles and screamed that she loved him. "He waved back," she screamed, tears running down her cheeks. Just a year earlier at a signing for his new single, Mysterious Girl, Peter Andre had kissed her on the cheek and said "I love you babe".

She was pretty sure her life would never be the same again... And so began her obsession with celebrities.  With her head firmly set on the fact that one day she would not only meet the stars at signings, but would chat to them for a living, Tessa set off to Bournemouth University to study multi-media journalism.

In her three years there she interviewed celebrities including Julian Clary for the University magazine, and her morning show on the Uni radio station. As Julian Clary dead-panned into her microphone "you're listening to Tess's morning show... it's a shame you've got nothing better to do" she realised combining celebrities and radio was her ultimate dream.

After graduating Tessa stalked her local radio station 107.5 3TR FM until they gave in and gave her a job. During her five years there she worked her way up from tea girl to News Editor and co-presenter of the breakfast show. While her job mainly involved reporting on local news, she used her position to blag her way backstage at T4 on the Beach and Guildford Festival to interview stars including Rachel Stevens, Chrissie Hynde and The Darkness.

Tessa's biggest regret is asking Chrissie Hynde if she liked the UK before discovering she'd lived here for over twenty years... that and the fact she has Peter Andre to thank for kick starting her choice of career.