Derek James was born in Winnipeg, MB but his childhood was spent growing up in Victoria, B.C. Derek started his acting career at the age of six, first appearing on the Saturday morning show Take Off Again as the role of Ty.

Derek Graduated from the Canadian College of the Performing Arts just outside of his home town in Oak Bay. After graduation, Derek spent a year touring around the world performing in three Broadway style musicals for Disney.

At the age of 19, Derek moved to Los Angeles to become a member of the band 4NOW, who were signed to Sony records. The band had success and toured all over the U.S. and radio singles “I Can Hardly Breath” and "I'm Trying.” After the band broke up in 2002, Derek remained in Los Angeles to continue pursuing his acting career. Derek landed roles on NBC's American Dreams, WB's Sabrina, The Teenage Witch and CTV's Whistler to name a few. Derek was also the host of HGTV’s Design To Win.

In the fall of 2006, Derek went to Moscow to star in a European film called The Senator’s Son in which Derek played the title role. In March of 2007 he created a new series called Straighten Up which is now in development with a major network.

Check out the latest from Derek and Vanessa as they renovate their first home in the Marriage Under Construction blog.