Repair Shop presenter Jay Blades is facing a second court case just a few days after being charged with controlling and coercive behaviour against his estranged wife.
The 54-year-old appeared at Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday, having been charged with one count of engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour.
The charge relates to his wife Lisa Zbozen, a fitness instructor, who posted on Instagram in May that their relationship had come to an end, according to court documents.
Police began an investigation after being called to an address the day after Ms Zbozen made the social media post.
He is set to appear at Worcester Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing on October 11.
According to The Sun, Blades is also due at Cannock magistrates court tomorrow, having pleaded not guilty to an alleged driving offence of using his phone while driving in Wombourne, Staffordshire, in April last year.
BBC star Jay Blades appeared at Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court on Friday (file image)
Jay Blades and Lisa Zbozen married at a beachfront villa in Barbados on November 22, 2022
Blades appeared in a Channel 4 documentary last month about his friendship with actress Dame Judi Dench, called ‘Dame Judi and Jay: The Odd Couple’
It comes after he made the decision to resign from the King’s Foundation. He had supported the foundation – formerly the Prince’s Foundation – as an ambassador.
He also visited its Dumfries House location in Ayrshire for the BBC special programme The Repair Shop: A Royal Visit.
However, the charity confirmed today that Blades has informed them of his resignation.
Blades also resigned from his role as chancellor at Buckinghamshire New University.
He presents the popular BBC show Repair Shop, which shows people having valuable and sentimental objects repaired and brought back to life.
Blades left school at 15 with no qualifications but got back on track studying for a degree in criminology and philosophy at Buckinghamshire New University from 2001.
In 2022, a special one-off episode to mark the BBC’s centenary saw Jay Blades and the repair team visit the King, when he was still the Prince of Wales, at Dumfries House in Scotland
Jay Blades (left) has been charged with offences against his estranged wife Lisa Zbozen (right)
Following his graduation, Blades co-founded the Out of the Dark charitable social enterprise that recycled and revamped furniture to train, educate and employ young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.
And he found fame on the BBC restoration programme The Repair Shop – which sees members of the public take worn-out family heirlooms to be restored by a team of experts – starring on the show since its launch in 2017.
In 2022, a special one-off episode to mark the BBC’s centenary saw Blades and the repair team visit the King, when he was still the Prince of Wales, at Dumfries House in Scotland.
Just hours before the presenter was charged for controlling and coercive behaviour towards his wife, The BBC had announced Jay Blades as part of a new The Repair Shop tour.
News of the case emerged the day after The Repair Shop’s social media account announced ‘an exciting new live tour’ for the show, featuring Jay Blades.
The Repair Shop – Secrets From The Barn tour 2025, was due to see Blades and other experts from the show appearing around the country from February, including in Newcastle, Birmingham, Sheffield and Salford. Tickets are on sale for about £40.
Blades’s wife Lisa Zbozen, a fitness instructor, posted this photograph on Instagram on Friday
His wife said that ‘the world got the best parts of my husband’ in a post to Instagram at the end of her 18-month marriage in May.
West Mercia Police launched an investigation on May 3, the day after Ms Zbozen posted a message on Instagram stating that their marriage had ended after 18 months.
In the post to Instagram in May Ms Zbozen said that the end of her marriage was ‘really raw’ and that she was ‘incredibly sad about the whole thing.’
The 43-year-old fitness instructor said: ‘I don’t think I’ve ever cried so much.
‘I wanted my husband to love me & keep me safe, and I would love him right back…’
In the aftermath of the marriage breakdown, Ms Zbozen wrote that she was ‘crying as I type this I can’t believe this even real’.
She said: ‘ The world got the best parts of my husband…’
Ms Zbozen later shared an article about Blades’ charge to her 158,000 followers to her Instagram story.