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Justin Fletcher, best known as Mr Tumble on CBeebies, has been a staple of children’s TV for over two decades

It’s fair to say most people know who Mr. Tumble is, but what is the BBC legend like off-screen?

The beloved children’s entertainer is hugely famous among young audiences for his work on CBeebies and his popular sell-out tours across the country, but relatively little is actually known about TV star Justin Fletcher away from the cameras.

In reality, the widely-celebrated performer, who was awarded an MBE honour by the late Queen Elizabeth II, generally keeps his personal life out of the spotlight, though he has occasionally offered glimpses into his home life and upbringing.

During his childhood, Justin was required to move around frequently with his parents owing to his father’s career as a highly sought-after music writer, which meant the family often needed to relocate and would regularly welcome some incredibly famous faces to their home.

The beloved TV personality is in fact the second-oldest of five children – with a 12 year age gap between him and his youngest sibling. At an early age, the CBeebies favourite opened up to his father, Guy Fletcher, revealing his ambition to pursue acting and develop his drama studies.

Net Worth

The entertainer has been presenting beloved CBeebies programmes including Gigglebiz and Justin’s House. Yet his greatest achievement has undoubtedly been the show Something Special, which was specifically designed to help children with communication by weaving Makaton signs, speech and symbols throughout.

Having remained a children’s television sensation for more than two decades, it’s hardly surprising that his endearing characters have evolved into a multi-million-pound enterprise.

According to previous reports, his Something Special DVD shifted over 100,000 copies, generating more than £1 million, while an accompanying magazine brought in a monthly income of £180,000. His net worth has therefore been estimated at around £1.5 million.

Stepping down from BBC role

Last year, the television favourite left fans gobsmacked when he revealed he was stepping away from his proudest achievement, Something Special, confirming he was passing the baton to three other presenters.

Following a remarkable 22-year run, during which the show produced 12 series and five specials, Justin decided it was the right moment to hand over to TV stars Maddie Moate, Ben Cajee, and George Webster, who announced the news on social media.

Is Mr Tumble married in real life?

Justin recently revealed that he has fallen in love with his co-star Samantha Dorrance, who plays his best friend Tootsie.

Justin, 55, and Samantha, 34, reportedly fell for each other while working on a panto and travelling on their live tour. In fact, the pair are so smitten that Samantha has moved into his £2.5million farmhouse.

According to The Sun, the couple enjoy nothing more than a quiet life and looking after their chickens.

“Justin and Samantha are madly in love and couldn’t be happier,” a source told the paper. “They are both dedicated performers and bonded over their love of musical theatre. Although there is an age gap, it isn’t an issue between them.”

Who is Mr Tumble’s famous father?

Justin isn’t the only well-known face in the family – his father Guy Fletcher co-wrote songs for legendary artists including Elvis Presley, Ray Charles and Joe Cocker alongside lyricist Doug Flett.

Justin opened up to BBC 6 Music star Chris Hawkins about what it was like growing up immersed in music and the company of musicians, revealing that his character Mr ‘Cliff’ Tumble was in fact a loving tribute to Sir Cliff Richard.

He said: “I was always brought up around musicians and we had a recording studio built onto the house. My character Cliff Tumble is a homage to Sir Cliff, who I’ve met a lot and is lovely, very charming.

“Dad wrote his Eurovision entry Power to All Our Friends. The biggest hit he wrote for Elvis was Just Pretend, which he used to perform in his Vegas shows. Pretty cool, really.”

Airports at Brit holiday hotspots including Spain, France and Portugal have reported severe delays and long queues – some as long as three-and-a-half hours at peak times

British tourists are being advised to allow more time at airports across Europe before travelling home because of major delays caused by biometric checks.

Wizz Air boss Yvonne Moynihan warned holidaymakers returning home from an EU destination that they should arrive at the airport three hours before their flights are due to depart amid concerns about the new security procedures.

The EU entry-exit system (EES) has now replaced passport stamps with a digital registration, involving biometric checks carried out on entry and exit for all non-EU citizens.

The EES has been gradually introduced across Europe since October last year but came into full force last month. Since then, tourists have reported huge delays at border control,.

Just last week, French police temporarily lifted the EES checks at the Dover port to free thousands of tourists trapped in long delays in the scorching heat.

Ms Moynihan told the BBC: “Because there is another passport check … that’s where we see that people have, again, experienced longer waiting times than anticipated.”

She said that while usual advice is to arrive at the airport two hours before a flight, “in these circumstances, we are advising three hours”.

The new measures have been “fragmented across Europe”, she continued, with some EU countries recording “seamless travel” while in extremes, there have been long queues and delays at “usual hotspots such as Spain, Portugal, France”.

“When you land in the destination airport, there might be queues, so you should bring a portable charger or water,” Moynihan said her airline is advising in general to any British customers travelling from an EU destination.

For those with connecting flights, she advised planning for several hours.

Her comments come as the European airports association ACI Europe warned queues have been reaching an eye-watering three-and-a-half hours in peak traffic times, based on its survey conducted across 45 airports in 20 EU states on May 26.

“Airports which previously did not report excessive waiting times are now doing so despite the extensive use of partial suspension of EES,” it said in a statement to Travel Weekly.

However, the European Commission told the BBC that the EES was not the only factor that can cause delays at the border, stating information may only take around a minute to register.