Harry Styles

Harry Styles

Author: BBC Radio 4 June 27, 2026 Duration: 14:52

The former boyband member and teen heartthrob, Harry Styles, is going into the final week of his sold-out residency at Wembley before continuing his world tour.

After winning music competitions while at school in Cheshire, Styles entered television’s biggest talent show, The X Factor, in 2010. While not making it as a solo star he was grouped together with four other contestants to form One Direction and becoming one of the most successful boybands of all time selling over 100 million records worldwide.

One Direction created a modern-day Beatlemania before going on permanent hiatus in 2016. Since then Style’s has released four solo albums and launched a career beyond music seeing him take on film roles, modelling gigs and become known as a fashionista. His celebrity best friend the actor James Corden, who used to ‘babysit’ the teenage Harry when he first started out in London is among the guests who speak to Mark Coles for this week’s Profile.

Production: Presenter: Mark Coles Producers: Annabel Deas, Mhairi Mackenzie and Nathan Archer Production Coordinator: Maria Ogundele and Siobhan Reed Sound: James Beard Editor: Justine Lang

Carpool karaoke: The Late Late Show (CBS) Harry Styles singing with White Eskimo (YouTube: OneDirectionNews) Harry Styles X Factor audition tape (ITV, The X Factor UK) Fans screaming at One Direction ‘This is Us’ Premier (YouTube: Poveelive) 'As It Was' by Harry Styles (Erskine and Columbia) 'What Makes You Beautiful' by One Direction ( Syco and Columbia) 'Sign of the Times' by Harry Styles (Columbia) 'Watermelon Sugar) (Erskine and Columbia)


Each week, Profile from BBC Radio 4 takes a single name from the global conversation and builds a detailed portrait, moving far beyond the headlines. This isn't a simple biography or a news recap. Instead, through careful documentary storytelling and personal journal excerpts where available, the podcast constructs a nuanced examination of character and motive. You’ll hear from colleagues, critics, and sometimes the subjects themselves, piecing together what drives and defines the people shaping our world. The focus rests firmly on influence, whether in politics, the arts, science, or social movements, exploring how an individual's background and choices ripple through society and culture. Listening to this podcast feels like gaining a deeper, more textured understanding of the figures you think you know, revealing the contradictions and convictions behind the public image. It’s a thoughtful half-hour that challenges first impressions, asking what truly lies behind a name in the news.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Profile
Podcast Episodes
Afua Kyei [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:50
Afua Kyei, Chief Financial Officer at the Bank of England, has been named Britain's most influential black person. She grew up in South London, reading copious numbers of Enid Blyton books and listening to Boyzone, got 6…
Andy Burnham [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:12
As Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership of the Labour party comes under increasing pressure and criticism, we profile a man who may well be waiting in the wings. Andy Burnham, a Labour stalwart who started his political career…
Sanae Takaichi [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:53
Sanae Takaichi is the first female prime minister of Japan. Once the drummer in a heavy metal band, she is now a staunch conservative, tough on immigration and against same sex marriage. More Iron Lady than Iron Maiden,…
Luke Littler [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:04
Luke Littler, the 18-year-old darts star, is already one of the most famous people in British sport. This week he won yet another title, the World Grand Prix. Born in Warrington, he started throwing arrows while he was s…
Marina Abramović [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:00
Marina Abramović is the self proclaimed ‘grandmother of performance art’. Her latest work, a reimagining of Slavic fertility rites, opened in Manchester earlier this week. Notorious for committing extreme acts to her bod…
Kristi Noem [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:33
Kristi Noem is the controversial Secretary of Homeland Security. A staunch MAGA loyalist, she's in charge of ICE detention facilities, including one in Dallas, Texas, that was attacked this week.As the face of the Trump…
Deborah Griffin [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:52
Deborah Griffin is a pioneer of women's rugby. She played in the first known women's game in England in 1978 and helped create the first Women's Rugby World Cup in 1991. Having never picked up a rugby ball until she crea…
Peter Mandelson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:52
Peter Mandelson has been sacked from his role as British Ambassador to the US over his association with the late convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. It is the third time he has been forced to leave government. An instr…
Zack Polanski [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:41
Zack Polanski scored a resounding victory in The Green Party leadership election on a platform promising bold communication and "eco-populism". Polanski has had an unorthodox path into politics, previously working as an…