Thousands of people turn to Martin Lewis every day for his money saving tips. The TV presenter and journalist helps Brits cut back on their household expenses while navigating the cost of living crisis.
But who exactly is Martin Lewis and how did he become one of the most trusted men in Britain? BBC Radio 4 presenter Mark Coles takes a look back on his life during the biographical show, Profiles. The show reveals how one heartbreaking event in Martin's life spurs him on every day to help others.
Born in 1972 and raised in rural Cheshire, Martin is the youngest of two children. His father was a headmaster and Martin learnt his times tables by the age of four, according to the show.
He started life at a Jewish primary school before moving on to The Kings School Chester - a cathedral school. There, Mark explains how Martin was just one of two Jewish pupils at the school and was given nicknames. Martin said in a voice clip on the show: "My nickname was Jew. It started off with Jewy Lewy, then Lew the Jew and it became shortened to Jew. It's just the way things were then."
Mark explained how Martin did well at school, he was good at numbers and enjoyed sport so much that he wanted to be an athletics commentator. But, in 1984 Martin's life fell apart. Martin said: "Three days before my 12th birthday I went to Sunday school - or Jewish Sunday school as it was - someone strange picked me up and when I got home I was told mum had been horse-riding with my sister and there had been an accident involving a lorry. The next day my dad told me she had died the next morning - and that was the end of my childhood. I cried every day until I was 15."
Martin's close friend Kerry Perkins said that Martin would never be the same again following the tragedy. "But I think he would be the first to admit that it was the making of him in many ways because he has that drive from losing his mum and wanting so much to prove that he could do everything for her," she said in a clip aired on the show. "I know she's always with him even though she isn't actually present in his life any more."
Following his mother, Susan's, death Martin told Radio 4's show Desert Island Discs that he became something of a recluse. He said: "I never went out until I was 18. I couldn't leave the house because of the thought something else could happen."
Aged 19, Martin moved to London to study at the London School of Economics, where he became general secretary of the students union. Friends at the time said this is when Martin's confidence finally grew back.
After a couple of years working in finance PR in London, Martin went to do a broadcast journalism course in Cardiff and made an impression from his first day. It is where his friend Kerry first met him. She said: "This chap strode into the centre of the hall...he said at the top of his voice 'I think it's been a long day. I think it's time we all go to the student union, get a drink and get to know each other a little bit better'. We were all looking at each other thinking, 'Who is this guy?'."
Martin moved into a flat-share with his coursemate Elliot. The show revealed how Martin loved to party and that fellow students wanted to be around him. Elliot said: "Martin and I are very different. Martin used to have parties and I wanted to be quiet in my room and often I would be dragged into the parties - in my dressing gown sometimes - but Martin was very gregarious. People always wanted to be around him."
After finishing his course in Wales, Martin joined the BBC as a producer in the business unit. Although it was a fantastic job, Martin wanted to create something of his own.
He went to digital TV start-up channel, Simply Money, where he was given his own slot. Mark said Martin would dress up on screen as dracula and other characters. When the channel folded and he lost his job, Martin went back to the BBC briefly and plotted his next move.
During this time, Martin is said to have started a money saving tips email called Martin's Money Tips, which he sent out to his friends. However, they found it so helpful that they sent it to their friends as well - it snowballed. It occurred to Martin that he should create a more formal platform.
Mark explained how Martin's Money Saving Expert website launched in 2003, which Martin set up for just £100. The site started as a one man band, before Martin recruited a handful of employees, the show said. You can get more money news and other story updates by subscribing to our newsletters here.
The website's first big campaign came in 2005 against bank overdraft charges. It provided template letters which people could download and send off to their banks. The response was phenomenal, as more than £1 million was reclaimed from banks on the back of the campaign. As a result, Martin appeared in the music video for I Fought The Lloyds by Oystar. Martin's friends said this was ironic as he wasn't a huge music fan.
In 2005, Martin first set eyes on his wife Lara Lewington, who was working as a weather presenter on channel 5. He later proposed to her in Cape Town over a game of Scrabble. Speaking on the show, friends said Martin and Lara have an on-going Scrabble competition and regularly note down their scores.
In 2008 Martin started a tv show called It Pays To Watch on channel 5. Four years later, he moved to ITV with the Martin Lewis Money Show which went out at prime-time right after Coronation Street.
In 2012 - in a move that would make himself £87 million - Mark explained how Martin sold his website to the Money Supermarket Group. He was accused of selling out to big business, while some users questioned how the website could remain independent. However, Marin achieved this by becoming editor-in-chief, then executive chair. He insisted on no advertising and demanded that the site's money-making affiliate links could only be used for products and services proved to be the best value for money.
After selling the website, Martin set aside £10 million to use for charitable causes. He also became patron of child bereavement charity Grief Encounter, Mark said.
In 2016 Martin founded Money and Mental Health - another charity aimed at helping people with mental health problems to access essential services provided by banks and energy firms. Next he took on fake ads on Facebook after his face was being shared and used on the site by scammers. Friends said on the show that Martin had been contacted by victims who were angry at him after they were swindled out of their life savings.
He sued Facebook, settling out for a £3 million donation for charity and an agreement for Facebook to add a 'scam ad' report button in the UK. During the coronavirus pandemic, Martin helped set up the Coronavirus Poverty Emergency Fund, raising almost £4 million.
More recently, Martin has been active in offering help and advice to people struggling during the cost of living crisis. He has said publicly how it is the worst crisis he's ever worked through.
In 2022 he is estimated to be worth around an impressive £123 million, according to The Sunday Times Rich List. His achievements so far have landed him an MBE and a CBE. He was also voted the UK's most trusted voice on Brexit and ahead of the Brexit referendum, he was Britain's most Googled person.
You can listen to Martin's episode of Profile here.
