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DanTDM
Middleton in 2016
Personal information
Born
Daniel Robert Middleton

(1991-11-08) 8 November 1991 (age 32)
Aldershot, Hampshire, England
Other namesTheDiamondMinecart
EducationUniversity of Northampton
Occupations
Spouse
Jemma Middleton
​
(m. 2013)​
Children2
YouTube information
Channel
Years active2010–present
GenreGaming
Subscribers
  • 29.1 million (main channel)
  • 35 million (combined)[a]
[1]
Total views
  • 20 billion (main channel)
  • 20.7 billion (combined)[b]
[1]
Websitedantdmshop.com
100,000 subscribers2013[‡ 1]
1,000,000 subscribers2013[‡ 2]
10,000,000 subscribers2016[‡ 3][‡ 4]
Last updated: 6 October 2024

Daniel Robert Middleton (born 8 November 1991), better known as DanTDM (formerly TheDiamondMinecart), is a British YouTuber, gamer, and author. He is primarily known for his Let's Play videos, particularly those featuring Minecraft, Roblox, Pokémon and Five Nights at Freddy's.[2] Middleton's YouTube channel, which he started in 2012, has amassed over 29 million subscribers and 19 billion views as of 2024, making him one of the most popular content creators on the platform.[3][4][5][6]

Middleton began his YouTube career with Minecraft content, later expanding to other games and vlog-style videos. He has published a graphic novel, voiced a character in the UK version of the film Ralph Breaks the Internet, and embarked on several world tours featuring live shows. In 2016, he was listed in the Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition for "Most views for a dedicated Minecraft video channel."

Beyond his online presence, Middleton has been involved in various charitable initiatives and has won several awards, including multiple Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in the UK Favourite Gamer category. In 2017, Middleton topped the Forbes list of Highest-Paid YouTube Stars, earning £12.2 million (about $16.5 million) in one year.

Personal life

Daniel Robert Middleton[7] was born on 8 November 1991 in Aldershot, England, as the elder of two siblings.[‡ 5] His parents divorced when he was a child.[‡ 5] He attended the University of Northampton where he studied music production.[8][9] Prior to his career as a YouTuber and author, he worked at Tesco, telling the BBC in 2017 "When I earned enough money off YouTube to match it [my wage at Tesco] my wife persuaded me to do it."[10]

Middleton married his girlfriend, Jemma (b. 9 April 1992[‡ 6]), in March 2013.[11] Their first son, Asher, was born on 5 January 2020,[‡ 7][‡ 8] and their second son, Miles, was born on 22 November 2022.[‡ 9] He opened up with viewers about his struggles with mental health after experiencing severe depression due to the isolation of the COVID-19 lockdowns.[3]

On 6 September 2023, Middleton posted on his Twitter and Instagram about the unexpected death of his dog, Ellie. On 7 September 2023, he posted on YouTube a video titled "goodbye ellie."[12]

Career

Middleton at Web Summit in 2014

In 2012, Middleton first created TheDiamondMinecart, a gaming channel.[13] In August 2014, Middleton signed with the multi-channel network Maker Studios under its Polaris label.[14] He decided to change his channel's name to TheDiamondMinecart // DanTDM later on, and on 12 December 2016, to DanTDM.[‡ 10] He currently produces videos out of his home studio in Wellingborough.[13] Middleton's content is largely targeted at children, though many teens and adults watch it as well.[15]

As his original fanbase that propelled his career has grown up, Middleton has scaled back his video production schedule and focused more on creating graphic novels, hosting live shows, and DanTDM merchandise.[3] He released a graphic novel titled "Trayaurus and the Enchanted Crystal" on 6 October 2016,[16][17][18] which remained at the number one spot on The New York Times Best Seller list for hardcover graphic books for eleven weeks.[19] He was a featured guest at the Cheltenham Literature Festival and went on a book tour that included parts of the UK and a visit to New York City.[16][20][21] He then embarked on a tour through the United States and Australia in 2017.[22][23] His live show at the Sydney Opera House was the second fastest to sell out in the venue's history.[10] While acknowledging that he might not be a household name "yet", he was noted by the Tampa Bay Times as being "one of YouTube's brightest stars and biggest successes."[24]

In 2017, he starred in a web series called DanTDM Creates a Big Scene starring himself and featuring other social media entertainers and actors.[25][26] The series premiered on 7 April 2017 exclusively for YouTube Red, YouTube's subscription service (now called YouTube Premium).[27] The show "follows DanTDM and his group of animated friends as they battle to keep their live show on the road".[28] That year, TODAY praised his "infectious laugh and an unmistakable British accent" and his personal growth from a "shy, low-profile YouTuber to the master of a creative empire."[29]

In 2019, Middleton was ranked 41 in UK's Top 100 Influencer List by The Sunday Times,[30] which also estimated Middleton's net worth to be £25 million.[2]

Middleton in a straitjacket at the TommyInnit & Friends live show at the Brighton Dome in 2022

Middleton appeared at TommyInnit's TommyInnit & Friends live show at the Brighton Dome on 1 July 2022, with other online content creators, including jacksepticeye, JackManifoldTV, and Nihachu.[‡ 11]

In 2024, Middleton spoke out against the launch of Lunchly, a snack-brand kit founded as a joint venture between YouTubers KSI, Logan Paul, and MrBeast. Middleton tweeted in part, "... How does this benefit their fans? This is selling crap to kids who don't know better than to trust the people who are selling it to them. Do better."[31] Middleton's tweet garnered over 600,000 likes, and inspired YouTubers such as Rosanna Pansino to also speak out. This caused responses from all three founders.[32]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes Refs
2018 Ralph Breaks the Internet eBoy Voice role; UK theatrical version [33]
2019 DanTDM Presents: The Contest Himself Interactive cinema event [34]
2021 Free Guy Cameo [35]

Television

Year Title Role Notes Refs
2016–2017 Skylanders Academy Cy Voice role; 2 episodes [36]
2017 DanTDM Creates a Big Scene Himself YouTube Original mini-series; 6 episodes [37]
2017 YouTube Rewind Only in 2017

Video games

Year Title Role Notes Refs
2016 Minecraft: Story Mode Himself Episode 6: "A Portal to Mystery" [38]

Awards and nominations

Publications

  • DanTDM (6 October 2016). Trayaurus and the Enchanted Crystal. HarperCollins. ISBN 978-1409168393.
  • DanTDM (17 November 2016). Official DanTDM 2017 Diary and Activity Book: Lots of Things to Make and Do. Trapeze. ISBN 978-1409171188.

Notes

  1. ^ Subscribers, broken down by channel:
    • 29.1 million (DanTDM)
    • 1.8 million (DanTDM Live)
    • 902,000 (DanTDM Shorts)
    • 3.17 million (MoreTDM)
    • 119,000 (PokemanDanLv45)
  2. ^ Views, broken down by channel:
    • 19.9 billion (DanTDM)
    • 277 million (DanTDM Live)
    • 95 million (DanTDM Shorts)
    • 585 million (MoreTDM)
    • 3.795 million (PokemanDanLv45)

References

  1. ^ a b "About DanTDM". YouTube.
  2. ^ a b Agnew, Megan. "Dan Middleton interview: playing Minecraft on YouTube earned him £25m". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 24 June 2020. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  3. ^ a b c Razzall, Katie; Saunders, Emma (23 September 2023). "DanTDM: How YouTube star went from shy schoolboy to internet sensation". BBC News. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  4. ^ "Top 100 YouTubers in United Kingdom Filtered by Subscribers". socialblade.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  5. ^ Dredge, Stuart (1 September 2015). "The Diamond Minecart becomes most popular YouTube channel". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  6. ^ "DanTDM". YouTube. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  7. ^ "YouTube star comes face-to-face with his waxwork at Blackpool's Madame Tussauds". ITV News. 30 June 2021. Retrieved 5 October 2022.
  8. ^ "Former University of Northampton student named most wealthy YouTuber in the world, Forbes magazine reveals". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. 8 December 2017.
  9. ^ Slater, Chris (6 December 2020). "Meet the YouTube star from Northants who's a multi-millionaire in his 20s". Northants Live.
  10. ^ a b Kelsey, Rick (24 November 2017). "YouTube star Dan TDM 'not prepared for being a role model for a young audience'". BBC News. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  11. ^ Lobb, Adrian (22 May 2014). "Diamond Minecraft interview: "I have more YouTube subscribers than the BBC"". The Big Issue. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  12. ^ Tisdale, Jennifer (8 September 2023). "YouTube Star DanTDM and His Family Were Hit Hard With Some Devastating News". Distractify. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Dan Middleton's Minecraft videos a global hit". BBC News. 11 April 2014. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  14. ^ "Maker Studios Now Partnered With Top Three YouTube Gaming Channels [EXCLUSIVE]". Tubefilter. 26 August 2014. Archived from the original on 31 August 2014.
  15. ^ Anderson, Dan (2019). "DanTDM". Common Sense Media. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  16. ^ a b Merrell, Andrew (5 October 2016). "Bet you've not heard of the biggest star at literature festival?". Gloucestershire Live. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  17. ^ Cowdrey, Katherine. "YouTube's Dan the Diamond Minecart inks book deal – The Bookseller". The Bookseller. Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  18. ^ Staff (3 August 2016). "The On-Sale Calendar October 2016 Children's Books". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
  19. ^ Listings on The New York Times Best Seller list per week: Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12, when it fell to the second spot.
  20. ^ Merrell, Andrew (11 October 2016). "Hundreds rush Cheltenham Literature Festival tent to reach DanTDM". Gloucestershire Live. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
  21. ^ Knox, Kelly (25 November 2016). "Take 'Minecraft' to the Next (Reading) Level With DanTDM's New Graphic Novel – GeekDad". geekdad.com. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
  22. ^ Grixti, Shannon (19 July 2017) "YouTuber DanTDM Is Touring Australia Again" Press Start AU.
  23. ^ IQ (15 February 2017). "Live Nation takes YouTuber DanTDM on US tour – IQ Magazine: Live Music Business News". iq-mag.net. Archived from the original on 18 August 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
  24. ^ Spata, Christopher (29 June 2017). "YouTube's Minecraft sensation Dan TDM brings live show to Clearwater". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  25. ^ Milligan, Mercedes (16 February 2017). "YouTube Red Slates First Original Kids Shows". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  26. ^ "YouTube Is Secretly Run By Insane CGI Kids Videos". Where To Stream Movies & Shows on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Instant, HBO Go. 7 June 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  27. ^ "DanTDM's 'Big Scene' Can Tide Diehard Fans Over – GeekDad". GeekDad. 7 April 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  28. ^ "11 YouTubers Who Smashed It In 2017 – TenEighty — YouTube News, Features, and Interviews". teneightymagazine.com. Retrieved 10 January 2018.
  29. ^ Coffey, Laura T. (12 October 2017). "Millions of kids adore this YouTube star; here's why parents do too". TODAY.com. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
  30. ^ "The Sunday Times Influencer List 2019: meet the UK's top 100". The Times. 8 September 2019. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  31. ^ @dantdm (16 September 2024). "What happened to YouTubers man" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  32. ^ Placido, Dani Di. "MrBeast, KSI And Logan Paul Vs. DanTDM—The Lunchly Drama, Explained". Forbes. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  33. ^ "Rich list: Which young YouTubers are in the money?". BBC Newsround. 20 December 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  34. ^ Brew, Simon (2 October 2019). "DanDTM is heading into UK cinemas this weekend". Film Stories. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  35. ^ "Every Celebrity Cameo In Free Guy". ScreenRant. 15 August 2021. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  36. ^ Kamen, Matt (14 October 2016). "Watch the trailer for Netflix's exclusive Skylanders Academy animated series". Wired. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  37. ^ Knox, Kelly (5 April 2017). "'DanTDM Creates a Big Scene' In This Exclusive Sneak Peek". Geek Dad. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  38. ^ Cork, Jeff (31 May 2016). "Minecraft: Story Mode – Episode 6: A Portal To Mystery". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 2 June 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  39. ^ Doultrey, Stephen (9 September 2015). "Minecraft and Rocket League records smashed at Legends of Gaming event in London". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 16 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  40. ^ Swatman, Rachel (14 December 2015). "YouTube stars including Dan TDM smash Rocket League record at Insomnia gaming festival". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
  41. ^ Swatman, Rachel (27 October 2016). "Youtuber Dan TDM enters Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition for Minecraft channel". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 30 October 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  42. ^ "2015 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards". Archived from the original on 2 May 2015. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
  43. ^ "2016 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards – UK Favourite Tipster". 2016 Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. Archived from the original on 27 March 2013. Retrieved 19 March 2016.

Primary sources

In the text these references are preceded by a double dagger (‡):

  1. ^ TDM Vlogs – 100,000 Subscribers, IRL & Events!. 25 June 2013. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  2. ^ The Diamond Minecart // DanTDM (17 September 2014). YouTube's Golden Award! – TheDiamondMinecart. Retrieved 11 February 2016 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ TheDiamondMinecart: DanTDM (28 March 2016). "10 Million Subscribers!!!!". Retrieved 8 June 2016 – via YouTube.
  4. ^ TheDiamondMinecart: DanTDM (30 July 2016). "Our Diamond Play Button!!!!". Retrieved 30 July 2016 – via YouTube.
  5. ^ a b Middleton, Daniel (10 December 2013). Draw My Life – TheDiamondMinecart | 1,000,000 Subscriber Special. DanTDM. Retrieved 7 February 2015 – via YouTube.
  6. ^ Middleton, Jemma [@xjemmamxo] (9 April 2021). "Thank you for all the birthday wishes today 🥳❤️ here's to the last year of my 20s 🥲" (Tweet). Retrieved 19 July 2023 – via Twitter.
  7. ^ @dantdm (9 January 2020). "Asher Middleton was born on the 5th January 2020. We couldn't be happier. We have made the decision not to show his face anywhere online so please respect our wishes. Thank you, I'll be back soon :) 💙 xx" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  8. ^ Middleton, Jemma [@xjemmamxo] (9 January 2020). "Our son, Asher Middleton, arrived safely into the world at 10.33am on Sunday 5th January 2020 ❤️ We are on cloud 9 soaking up every minute of parenthood and couldn't be happier 🥰 we will be keeping Asher private and won't be sharing his face online so please respect our wishes" (Tweet). Retrieved 19 July 2023 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ @dantdm (24 November 2022). "We are so happy to introduce you to our new baby Son, Miles. He was born at our home on the 22nd November. Overjoyed to add a new member to our little family. As with Asher, we are going to keep his face private. Thank you for understanding. Taking a break 💙" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ DanTDM (12 December 2016). "I'm Changing My Name..." Retrieved 1 April 2017 – via YouTube.
  11. ^ Simons, Thomas (31 August 2022). MY LIVE SHOW. (TommyInnit & Friends). TommyOutit. Event occurs at 31:06. Retrieved 1 May 2023 – via YouTube.
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