Meet Channel 4’s Hunted professionals – from former police officers to psychologists

Here’s everything you need to know about the Hunters.

Who are the Hunters on Hunted?

Ben Owen

For Hunted 2020, Ben Owen will act as the head of the Hunters. He has been on the show previously and will take over from Peter “Bleks” Bleksley.

“Sherlock” is an intelligence expert who is used to pressure. He is well versed in complex analysis and data. He served in the RAF as a Gunner after leaving school before joining the MOD as an operational officer specialising in intelligence. He played a key role in “Operation Overt” in 2006 which saw the catching of East London bomb makers.

Julie Clegg

Owen will be joined by Julie Clegg once more, who previously worked with the West Yorkshire police for 10 years in an undercover role. She went on to become a part of the UK’s intelligence operation.

She claims she is empathetic and can analytically piece a person together online to find out who they really are which can help predict their next move.

Paul Vlissidis

Paul Vlissidis will continue his role as the Head of Cyber on Hunted. He is the technical director of NCC GROUP, an online security company that prides itself in always staying at the front of the “cyber arms race”. He is especially skilled at finding loopholes in the Government, police forces and FTSE 100 companies.

Marc Cananur

Marc Cananur is a serving Detective Sergeant who specialises in Covert Operations and Intelligence. He gained experience in the Olympics and has a particular expertise includes targeting organised crime groups. He will be out in the field hunting the fugitives.

Nicola Thorn and Danni Brooke

The pair are out on the field once more for Hunted and they both met while working on undercover operations for the Met. They are very skilled at blending into any sceneries they are in – and once even worked at a music festival to bust unsuspecting drug rings.

The full team of professionals on the ground are as follows:

• Danni Brooke
• Steve Cottam
• Floyd Harris
• Michelle McLachlan
• Jill Mellor
• Paul Cashmore
• Marc Cananur
• Karl Beverley
• Nic Thorn
• Kayam Iqbal
• Lucy Edwards

Who is Ben Owen?

Ben Owen is the new chief on Hunted and is stepping up to the role this year.

He is taking over from Peter Bleksley as the head of the professionals.

Also known as Sherlock, Owen has plenty of experience in the British Military Intelligence and even acted as a Senior Analyst on the American version of Hunted.

He served in the RAF as a Gunner before joining the MOD.

Where is Peter Bleksley?

Peter “Bleks” Bleksley stepped down from his role on Hunted back in 2019 after being a part of the show since its inception.

He was a key part of the Met and in 1988 was a founding member of Scotland Yard’s undercover, SO10 unit.

Speaking about his decision to stand down, the former Hunted professional wrote on Twitter: “Finally, after six challenging series, we achieved our long-held ambition of a clean sweep. What an unforgettable day that was! When I first got involved in Hunted, I didn’t imagine that it would become the success that it has. We were nominated for a BAFTA, won a prestigious Grierson, received other award nominations and had fantastic viewing figures along the way. The celebrity versions of the show raised an astonishing amount of money for Stand Up To Cancer. And then we caught them all!

“I feel it would be impossible for me to top that achievement, so now is the right time for me to move on. It would like to send my heartfelt thanks to everyone at Shine and Channel 4 for allowing me the opportunity to do my bit. I must of course thank those pesky fugitives for providing the challenges that they did. I would particularly like to send my love and best wishes to the Hunters – a truly remarkable bunch of men and women.”

Bleksley continued: “Please don’t be fooled, this is definitely not a sunset moment for me, for I am younger than I look and have a number of writing, TV podcast and public speaking opportunities in front of me. You have not seen nor heard the last of me yet.

“Finally, I would like to thank the fans of the show, all of them, but particularly those who have taken the time to reach out to me, whether that be via social media, in the street, or through other means. You are wonderful people who have put a smile on my face every single day. With love and best wishes, Peter Bleksley.”

Hunted airs Thursdays on Channel 4 at 9pm.