Linda was a Central TV continuity announcer, often seen presenting Central Morning Supplement along with announcer colleagues Helen Lloyd, Simon Willis and Gary Terzza.
Braban, John
John was an announcer with ABC Television and ATV London. He also worked as a network announcer with BBC TV (1969 – 1974) and voiced BBC TV presentation trails (1972 – 1990).
Bennett, Dave
David was a continuity announcer with Grampian Television. He stayed in Aberdeen after retiring from the company and he was a frequent correspondent to local newspaper letters pages. David also announced on other ITV stations, including Anglia, HTV and ATV (Midlands).
Kelley, Jon
Jon was one of the 1960s in-vision announcing team at Tyne Tees Television. He also presented TTTV’s globe-trotting travel programme Faraway Places and, closer to home, Your Heritage.
…Batey, Derek
Born in Brampton, Cumberland, Derek Batey won a scholarship and, aged 12, began appearing in clubs as a ventriloquist with a “cheeky boy” called Alfie.
…Baker, Peter
During the 1980s, Peter worked at BBC West in Bristol, presenting news bulletins and filling in as co-host on the main Points West programme alongside Viv Creegor and Graham Purches.
In 1988 he moved to Granada TV In Manchester where he hosted the nightly Granada Action social information programme. He also presented the breakfast show on Key 103 radio.
…Roddick, Gordon
Gordon was an announcer on Scottish Television (1961 – 1973). He then became a transmission controller. He left STV in 1992 to join BBC Scotland, where he was a radio announcer and newsreader. Gordon also sat in the television announcer’s chair at BBC Scotland on a few occasions. He left BBC Scotland in 2000.
Oyston, Owen
Owen is a former ABC TV announcer.
Marshall, Peter
Peter was a continuity announcer in various ITV regions: Ulster TV (1967 – 1969); Anglia TV (1970 – 1973); Southern (dates TBC); Thames Television (dates TBC); ATV (Midlands) (dates TBC); HTV West (dates TBC). He was also the national host of the TV Times Awards and Miss United Kingdom on the ITV network (1970s and 1980s). He also presented the BBC’s Come Dancing (1980 – 1983), and regularly reported for ITV’s Wish You Were Here? Marshall originally trained as a teacher, and then an actor with the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, before joining a Bournemouth rep company.
Escolme, John
John obtained a BA (Hons) in communication, cultural studies and public media from the University of Leeds.
…Jamieson, Paul
Paul worked as a continuity announcer/director for BBC Scotland (2000 – December 2002) before moving to London to become a member of the ITV 1 network announcing team. His voice was also heard occasionally on ITV 2. Paul has also worked for several radio stations, including The Eagle, Star and BBC Radio Scotland.
Maclean, Carole
Carole was a Border TV announcer and newsreader (mid-1990s). She then moved to BBC Scotland TV, taking on a continuity director/announcer role there. She also lectures in media at Ayr.
Shoesmith, Peter
Peter Shoesmith was born in 1936 and raised in the south coast town of Bexhill-on-Sea.
…Oldrey, Caroline
Caroline was briefly a TSW announcer before moving to Anglia as an announcer. She progressed to front the main evening Anglia News in the west of the region.
Other TV credits: About Anglia (ITV Anglia); Take It On (ITV Anglia).
Manners, Lesley
Previously known as Lesley Cairney, Lesley was an in-vision continuity announcer and newsreader at Border Television (1980s) and also at Tyne Tees Television.
…Blackmore, Guy
Australian-born former pirate radio disc jockey (known as Jim Gordon, or Jumbo Jimmy Gordon during his time on Radio Caroline North), who went on to become an in-vision continuity announcer for Thames Television, a relief announcer at Southern TV and also a voice-only announcer on the BBC.
Sadly, Guy died of lung cancer in 2000.
Gregg, Anne
Anne was born in Belfast. In October 1959, aged 19, she joined Ulster TV at its launch, as an announcer. She later presented the local news magazine programme Roundabout.
…Currie, Tony
Mr STV for a generation of ‘pres’ enthusiasts. His distinctive, well modulated voice now graces BBC Scotland, on television and radio. Tony was one of STV’s in-vision announcers (April 1976 – 1987). He left shortly before the company dropped regular in-vision continuity. He started with BBC Scotland in 1997.
…Carter, Alan
Alan is a former ABC TV announcer.
Tozer, Norman
Norman started in television in 1954 as a BBC OB stage manager. He joined ATV for the opening of commercial TV in 1955. In 1961, he moved from a senior floor manager position at ATV to being one of the station’s London on-screen announcers. The other announcers were Shaw Taylor and Arthur Adair. Norman replaced Peter Cockburn.
He continued announcing and presenting programmes for ATV London until April 1965. He then went on to become a radio and TV presenter/reporter, and advisor on consumer affairs. In the early 1980s, he moved into video directing.
In 2001, Norman became the director of William Poel Events for the Society for Theatre Research.
Lynn, Heather
Heather was a freelance BBC TV network announcer (1983 – 1989). She was also a TVS announcer (late-1980s) and a BBC World Service TV announcer (1992).
Jensen, Rebecca
Rebecca is a former BBC America announcer. She has also voiced trails for BBC One, BBC Radio and ITV 2.
Fisher, Evadne
Evadne is a former Central TV continuity announcer. From Central, she moved on to host the late-night Thames Television strand (mid-1980s – 1991), along with colleagues Patricia Yorston and Victoria Crawford.
After leaving Thames in 1991, Evadne worked as a freelance corporate presenter and voiceover artist. She later turned to teaching – firstly at The Avon Academy, where she subsequently became director of drama. She was also head LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art) teacher at Trent College in Long Eaton.
Evadne was a teacher and examiner for LAMDA.
Labey, Russell
Russell was a Channel Television continuity announcer (1980s). He moved to Plymouth to front BBC South West’s Spotlight. After a long career as a presenter, Russell returned to the theatre and worked as a director and writer. He worked as resident director on the 2001/2002 UK Tour of Sunset Boulevard and he directed Hardcore at the 2003 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. A production of Russell’s play, New Boy, opened in Broadway in October 2002. Russell was also commissioned to write a new play by the Theatre Royal, Plymouth.
Le Moighan, Michael
Michael is a former Granada Television continuity announcer. He continued with his acting career after leaving the announcer’s chair.
Blair, Lesley
Lesley was one of the early Grampian TV announcers (1960s/1970s). She also worked with ATV (Midlands).
…Robbie, Christopher
Christopher was an announcer for Associated Rediffusion, Southern, Anglia and Thames TV. He had a friendly air and a great screen presence. He presented Southern’s final programme, It’s Goodbye from Us with great panache, and was one of only two continuity announcers featured, the other one being veteran colleague Brian Nissen. After Southern lost its contract, Christopher popped up from time-to-time as an announcer on TVS, before going into theatre.
He later went on tour with a one-man play about Charles Darwin. He trained as an actor at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London. In the theatre he has achieved notable success in the plays of Shakespeare, Ibsen, Lope de Vega, Calderon, Euripedes and Miller. For four years he was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, during which time he played the title role in King Lear. On television his portrayal of the Cyberleader in the Doctor Who adventure The Revenge of the Cyberman won him a cult following. Christopher has also worked as a director and designer and his play The Sirens of Eroc, was written under the nom-de-plume of James Alan. As an artist he has held successful exhibitions of his photographs.
Armstrong, Fiona
Fiona began her career as a reporter/presenter for Border Television in the early 1980s before becoming one of ITN’s main newscasters (March 1987 – 1992). She was the first co-anchor on GMTV in 1993, and later returned to Border TV as one of the anchors of the relaunched Lookaround news programme.
She also fronted a cookery series called Easy as Pie for Carlton Food Network where she demonstrated her skills in the kitchen. Fiona has also featured in a series of programmes for Granada TV on Health and Slimming. She also regularly chairs major conferences and award ceremonies.
Bailey, Earle
Earle was an in-vision Anglia Television continuity announcer in 1968. Before that, he announced for TWW in Wales and the West of England.
Burn, Christine
Christine was born in Birmingham. She attended the Birmingham School of Speech and Drama (1961 – 1963) and the Lucie Clayton Modelling School (spring 1964).
…Willis, Simon
Simon was a Central TV continuity announcer (dates TBC). He moved to BBC Newcastle’s Look North (1983). By the early 2000s, Simon was a correspondent for BBC Scotland’s Newsnight Scotland.
Palmer, Maggie
Maggie is a former Grampian and Scottish TV announcer.
Aziz, Lisa
Lisa is probably best known in her role as anchor on Sky News, where she worked from 1993 until autumn 2005. She began her television career at BBC West television in 1984, working on their regional news programme. In 1985, she switched sides, moving to HTV West as a reporter and presenter, where she remained until c. 1988. She then moved to TV-am, initially in a reporting role, but later becoming a news presenter, taking over from Gordon Honeycombe. Following the demise of TV-am, Lisa worked briefly for BBC World Service Television and the NBC Superchannel before moving to Sky News.
In September 2005, Lisa returned to Bristol, becoming one of the regular co-anchors on ITV West’s The West Tonight. From 16th February 2009, she became co-presenter of the pan-regional news programme The West Country Tonight, which replaced The West Tonight (ITV West) and Westcountry Live (ITV West Country).
…Wilson, Peter
Peter is a former ATV (Midlands) announcer.
Barnes, Richard
Richard Barnes was born in 1943. He is a former continuity announcer at Anglia Television (1971 – 1975 and c. 1983), Westward TV, ATV, TSW, Central TV (c. 1985) and BFBS.
…Prebble, Simon
In 1960, Simon attended Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London and began his acting career in one of Britain’s first television soap operas, Home Tonight with David Hemmings. For the next eleven years he worked extensively on radio and television and in provincial repertory theatre, including a year with Ian McKellen’s Hamlet.
After working as a continuity announcer and newsreader at Southern TV (1970), Prebble joined the newsroom at Capital Radio, the second commercial radio station in Britain, where he hosted London’s Day. He then embarked on a career as a presenter and voiceover, including thirteen years as the promo voice of Thames Television, as well as regular promo work for HTV and Anglia TV. He was also an announcer for Anglia TV. From 1984 he was the announcer for the British version of the phenomenally successful game show The Price Is Right with Leslie Crowther.
In 1990, Prebble moved to New York where he continued doing voiceover work. As well as recording numerous radio and television commercials, he also character-voiced cartoon series, such as Courage the Cowardly Dog; he hosted and presented several television documentary series, notably Target Mafia; and narrated the IMAX film Endurance about the Shackleton expedition. In 1996, he was a lead actor for a year (as villain Martin Chedwyn) on the American daily soap opera As the World Turns.
In the US, he also began narrating audio books. His work has gained him more than eighteen Earphone awards, nine nominations for the Audies (the audiobook Oscars), and in 2005, he was named Narrator of the Year by Publishers Weekly.
Apart from his acting career, in 1967 Prebble designed and produced the ‘executive toy’ called Newton’s Cradle.
In 2003, at Chiswick House London, he married Swedish graphic artist, Marie-Janine Hellstrom. In 2007, along with his wife, he became a US citizen.
Boccaccio, Susanna
Susanna is a former Wave FM (Blackpool) journalist who moved to Border Television as an in-vision continuity announcer. She later became a producer/presenter at Border Television. In the mid-1990s, Susanna was also an in-vision announcer at UK Gold.
Duncan, Kay
Kay was a Grampian Television in-vision continuity announcer (1980). She was later an Aberdeen-based drama teacher.
Duncanson, John
John was born in Prestwick. After a BBC course in broadcasting, his first TV appearance was as a continuity announcer on ABC Television (early 1960s), the weekend contractor for the north of England and the Midlands.
…Layzell, Alastair
Alastair is a former Channel Television in-vision continuity announcer (1970s and 1980s). He went on to start his own independent production TV company in 1988 after leaving Channel Television. Since then he has produced and directed hundreds of documentaries which have been aired by networks worldwide. He is also active in island life – he co-founded Save Jersey’s Heritage in 1990 and has been Chairman of The National Air Pageant since 1997. He is a former deputy of Jersey and stood again in the senatorial elections of 2003.
Lavender, Maggie
Maggie Lavender is a senior announcer for Scottish Television. Before joining STV, she was based at Glasgow Airport, presenting morning reports for Flightwatch. Her voice was also heard in the Grampian TV area for a number of years prior to its rebranding as STV.
Maggie is also a trained actress.
Axton, Ian
Ian presented the pan-regional bulletins for Meridian within GMTV and the south opt-out bulletins late-morning and lunchtime.
Ballantine, Pamela
Pamela’s broadcasting career started off in radio: she read the news on Downtown Radio in the early 1980s. She also presented on BBC Radio Ulster. Pamela’s first appearance on Ulster Television – as a continuity announcer – was in 1984. As part of the announcer’s role, she also read the news.
She left the announcing team around the start of the new franchise period in 1993 and went on to co-anchor the station’s main news programme. She presented the lifestyle and leisure programme UTV Life (1999 – 2009). In May 2009, Pamela returned to UTV’s continuity department, after seventeen years. As well as the announcing role, she was also a relief weather presenter. A year later, her staff contract with the station was not renewed. Press reports claimed UTV had told Ballantine that her role was no longer available and had offered her freelance work which she later accepted.
Pamela continues to freelance at the station and act in an ambassador role. Since 2016, she has presented the new incarnation of UTV Life.
Thomas, Linda
Olumide was born in London. Her name derives from the Yoruba tribe in West Africa and roughly translates as ‘child of God’.
…Wanless, Neville
Neville was born in Wallsend-on-Tyne. He began his working life as a financial director in his father’s engineering company. He did National Service and was stationed in Germany in the Royal Horse Artillery.
…Haslam, Pete
Pete joined the Yorkshire Television announcing team in November 1999; he went part-time in late-2000. Based at the northern transmission centre in Leeds, his voice was also heard in the Tyne Tees, Border and Granada regions. Pete also became the voice of all Granada Media Group trailers for Granada, Yorkshire, Tyne Tees, Border, Anglia, Meridian and LWT. Pete’s voice was also heard on the ITV Night Network; he would pre-record the announcements on tape in Leeds; the tape was then despatched to LWT in the overnight van for transmission that particular weekend.
By January 2006, Pete was the last professional announcer in Leeds and he was still voicing regional trailers on a freelance basis.
Pete spoke to Showreel in January 2006 about other projects: “Since leaving YTV full-time, I’ve appeared in several radio plays, alongside Maggie and, in one, with Redvers. I’m currently working on a pilot radio thriller series Into the Shadows as writer, producer and actor, and I’m still around, doing the occasional bit of presenting for music-based radio stations.
“I’ve been in radio since the mid-1970s, starting at Radio City (Nottingham Hospital Radio). After much hard work, I managed to get the green light to form Millside Hospital Radio at the King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton-in-Ashfield, near Mansfield, in October 1989. Joined Viking FM shortly after that, as commercial producer/writer/voiceover. Also worked on air on YRN’s (Yorkshire Radio Network) Classic Gold AM service.
“I can still be heard throughout the country and abroad, on various commercial radio stations, as voiceover. I also write and voice radio commercials for the Lincs FM Group (in fact I was the first voiceover on air at Lincs FM, on their first ad break on day one, in 1992). Well known for versatility when it comes to commercials, all sorts of voices, from old men (and old women!!!) through to wacky, character sound-a-likes and singers, which keeps me active!!! (It’s also very useful when it comes to radio plays!!!)”
Smith, Oliver
Oliver has been a continuity announcer on Turner Classic Movies, BBC America, Sci-Fi Channel and The History Channel. He has also voiced trails for television including BBC, ITV, Sky, UKTV Gold and Zone Thriller.
Raison, Caroline
Caroline was an announcer with Anglia in the 1970s and 1980s and a newsreader on About Anglia (1977 – 1982), often alternating with veteran John Bacon.
Everett, Kenny
Kenny is a former radio and TV presenter..
…Longdon, Erica
Erica was a Carlton Television (London) announcer (January 2000 – 2002). She also announced at Channel 4 (1988 – 1992), The Family Channel (1993 – 1996) and The Disney Channel (1997 – TBC).
Bletchley, Jill
Jill is a former ATV (Midlands) announcer.
Prince, Mike
Mike is a former ATV continuity announcer. He joined the company in the 1960s and stayed with its successor, Central, until the mid-1980s. Mike also announced, occasionally, for HTV Wales, HTV West, Thames and Southern Television.
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