Sara Cox was born Sarah Joanne Cox on 13 December 1974. Her parents lived in the village of Little Lever near Bolton, Greater Manchester, where she grew up on her father’s farm. She was the youngest of five children. Her parents separated when she was six or seven, after which she moved with her mother and a sister to another house in the same village. Wikipedia

Cox attended Smithills High School until the age of 16, and left Canon Slade School after her A-levels to pursue a career in modelling. She appeared in music videos and promotional campaigns before landing her first TV presenting role. She won her first television role in 1996, presenting The Girlie Show on Channel 4, followed by stints on Channel 5’s Exclusive and Channel 4’s Born Sloppy, and in 1997 hosted MTV Hot for the UK feed of MTV.

In September 1998, Cox became a presenter of The Big Breakfast. A transfer to radio came on 19 September 1999 when she joined BBC Radio 1, and in December 1999 it was announced she would replace Zoë Ball as presenter of Radio 1 Breakfast. She later joined Radio 2, where she has presented the teatime drivetime show since 2019. In 2026, it was confirmed that Sara Cox had replaced Scott Mills as presenter of the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, the BBC’s most-listened-to radio programme.

In November 2025, Cox confirmed she would present The Marvellous Miniature Workshop for BBC One. A second series was commissioned with 20 extended 45-minute episodes. She lives with her husband Ben Cyzer and three children.