Derek O’Brien is an Indian politician, author, television personality, public speaker, and quiz show host who is a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha from West Bengal. On the contrary, he is also known for his appearance as the quizmaster for the “Bournvita Quiz Contest” and continued to work as one of many more quiz shows. With time, he has also amassed a huge fan base with more than 1.25 million followers on Twitter and more than 25,000 followers on Instagram.
Born Name
Derek O’Brien
Nick Name
Derek
Derek O’Brien as seen in a picture taken on January 31, 2016 (Biswarup Ganguly / Wikimedia / CC BY 3.0)
Sun Sign
Pisces
Born Place
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Residence
158, Prince Anwar Shah Road, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Nationality
Education
Derek studied at the St. Xavier’s Collegiate School in Kolkata for a short period of time before attending, St. Columba’s School, Delhi.
Later, he spent two years at the Scottish Church College in Kolkata.
Occupation
Politician, Author, Television Personality, Public Speaker, Quizmaster
Family
Father – Neil O’Brien
Mother – Joyce O’Brien
Siblings – Andy O’Brien (Older Brother), Barry O’Brien (Older Brother)
Others – Amos O’Brien (Paternal Grandfather) (Head of Department of English)
Build
Average
Height
5 ft 9 in or 175 cm
Weight
77 kg or 170 lbs
Girlfriend / Spouse
Derek’s name has been linked with –
Rila Banerjee (1991) – They married one another in 1991. They have a daughter named, Aanya.
Dr. Tonuca Basu (2006-Present)
Derek O’Brien as seen in a selfie taken with wife Dr. Tonuca Basu in New York City in October 2019 (Derek O’Brien / Instagram)
Race / Ethnicity
Multiracial
He has Irish and Bengali ancestry on his father’s side.
Hair Color
White
Due to his age, Derek’s hair has turned white.
Eye Color
Green
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
Wears a pair of rectangular spectacles
Short messy hairstyle
Nubian nose
Derek O’Brien as seen in a picture taken on June 17, 2019 (Souravduttaseo / Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 4.0)
Religion
Christianity
Derek O’Brien’s Favorite Things
Books – Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
Derek O’Brien as seen in a picture taken with field hockey player Gurbux Singh in May 2018 (Derek O’Brien / Instagram)
Derek O’Brien’s Facts
He was raised in Kolkata by an Anglo-Indian family.
His family origin in India began after a member of his family who was an Irish soldier moved to India in the early 1860s and married a woman of Bengali heritage.
His grandfather Amos was the first Christian to become the head of the Department of English at the Banaras Hindu University. He also taught at Ravenshaw College in Cuttack.
He started his career as a journalist for Sportsworld magazine for a while before joining Ogilvy in 1984, where he was promoted to “Creative Head for Kolkata and Delhi.”
In 1991, he eventually quit his job there to begin his own knowledge, education, and publishing firm called Big Ideas. However, the name was later, changed to Derek O’Brien and Associates.
As a quizmaster, he conducted quizzes in various countries across the world including the UAE, Kuwait, Singapore, and the United States. He even worked as a quiz television host in Pakistan.
For 3 consecutive years, Brien won the Indian Television Academy award for “Best Host in a Television Gameshow.”
Before entering into politics, Derek was popularly known as a quizmaster who worked on Cadbury India’s Bournvita Quiz Contest which was featured on Zee TV. However, his stint as one landed him on various other quiz contests such as the Bata North Star Quiz, Maggi Quiz for Schools, and Economic Times’ for the Brand Equity Quiz. Later, in 1990
In the past, he served as the presented of the Dalhousie Institute club.
He made his political entry in 2004, as a member of the Trinamool Congress Parliamentary party.
As of 2019, Derek served as the chief national spokesperson of the ‘All India Trinamool Congress’ and MP at the Rajya Sabha.
In August 2023, he was suspended from Rajya Sabha for the rest of Parliament’s Monsoon session because of disorderly behavior.
Featured Image By Souravduttaseo / Wikimedia / CC BY-SA 4.0
