TV presenter earns £800 a day but admits ‘I’m no Holly Willoughby’

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Being a celebrity and regularly appearing on the television sounds like a dream come true, but it’s hard to break into the “uber-competitive industry”. Managing your money is even harder as earnings can be irregular.

Up-and-coming TV presenter Frankie Vu hosted ITV’s iconic children’s show How, which was first screened back in the 1960s, alongside fellow presenters Vick Hope and Sam Homewood.

He earned £8,000 for just 20 days’ work.

Frankie, 33, has also has fronted children’s TV series on CBBC, Disney and CITV, as he battles to build his career.

He has a growing Instagram following but still can’t afford to give up his full-time day job as an IT contractor.

While TV’s top earners such as Holly Willoughby and Ant & Dec command millions of pounds, Frankie is operating at a different level.

“The biggest challenge facing most TV presenters is finding regular work and planning around inconsistent pay cheques,” he says.

The former professional football freestyler and UK champion started by hosting student shows whilst studying English language at university, earning up to £800 per day for his TV presenting gigs.

Corporate work and branded content can bring even bigger pay-cheques.

It’s entirely possible to make a six-figure salary purely from corporate presenting, Frankie says. “Big companies are always making content and running events, and if you have the right track record, you can regularly make over a thousand pounds a day.”

In theory, a successful presenter would only need to work 20 weeks in a year to make £100,000, he adds. “There aren’t a bucketload of presenters in this situation, but there are certainly a few out there.”

Yet this line of work has both ups and downs, Frankie says.

“You can be flying high one moment and then out of work the next. It’s just the fickle nature of the TV industry.”

It is hard to manage your money if you don’t get paid at regular intervals. “You’ll go for months with nothing and then suddenly be paid a lump sum,” he adds.

As a freelancer, finding a regular presenting contract that can sustain you throughout the year is difficult.

“There is good money to be made with almost no upper limit but it can take a lot of grinding – or luck.”

Frankie says the best presenters bring their own personality to a show and build a relationship with the audience. “You’re being trusted with the end result of a production, and that responsibility is what commands the fees.”

Frankie, from North London, is UK born of Vietnamese heritage. He decided to work in television after telling his mum “nobody on there looks like us”.

He keen to be a media role model for East and South East Asian people and other minority communities.

But his parents were initially sceptical about his offbeat career choice, pushing for him to follow in the footsteps of his sister who studied at Oxford University and became a doctor.

Frankie chose a bumpier route. “The reality for most TV presenters is lots of job applications without replies, constant rejection, self-questioning and self-doubt, unpredictable payment cycles and financial difficulty.”

It’s a repeated cycle of highs and lows. “As any presenter will tell you, it’s not for the faint-hearted, but I’m enjoying this rollercoaster.”

Frankie says it’s vital to develop thick skin and learn not to take things personally. “If you’re not careful, the self-doubt can be crippling.”

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Frankie says there’s no “magic formula” to becoming a successful TV presenter but hiring an agent or manager with a thick contacts book can help. In exchange they take a percentage of fees, usually around 15 to 20 percent.

Building a following as a video content creator on social media is one of the most effective ways to get noticed. “It proves you can hold an audience that relates to you in some way.”

There are plenty of online casting services and good old-fashioned networking helps, too. “Securing one-off presenting jobs isn’t hugely difficult, but the opportunities for larger productions are harder to come by and very competitive.”

You’ll often need access to the right contacts to even hear about the opportunity, before being pitted against lots of other talented presenters during the audition process, he adds.

As well as TV presenting, Frankie is also a trusted live host for global brands like Adidas, Samsung and UEFA, hosting at events in Johannesburg, Jakarta, Ho Chi Minh City and Madrid.

“These are usually live so involve thinking on your feet, and being a safe, trusted pair of hands,” Frankie says.

He adds: “I get to meet and work with lots of brilliant, creative people. It’s an honour to be trusted to tell their stories. It’s not just about the money.”

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