Brian was born in Kingston-upon-Thames. His stage career began at the age of 14 in Peter Pan.
…Haycocks, Paddy
Paddy was born in Portsmouth. He worked at BFBS radio (British Forces Broadcasting Service) in Cyprus (1966 – 1968). He performed various roles including tape editing, reporting, presenting and studio management (1966 – 1968).
…Everard, Martin
Martin’s first on-air role was as a relief announcer with BBC Northern Ireland in the 1960s. From there he moved to London and gradually moved up through the ranks of TV presentation, before moving into programme production. He took some time out from his BBC job to participate in the British America’s Cup Challenge (Lionheart) (1979 – 1980).
…Aziz, Khalid
Professor Khalid Aziz LVO, DL, FRSA was born in Lahore, Pakistan in 1953. His broadcasting career began at the BBC as a producer at BBC Radio Leicester (1969). He soon moved into TV reporting on the BBC’s Look North (1977 – 1979) and then became its youngest presenter (1979 – 1981), at the age of 24. On 28th March 2008, he joined former presenter Sue Wilkins, along with current presenters Harry Gration and Christa Ackroyd for the programme’s 40th anniversary edition from the National Media Museum.
…Carlton, Amanda
Amanda has voiced English language audio courses (e.g. Linguaphone, Pearsons, Hugo, Longmans, de Agostini) since 1986. From 1988, she voiced trails for Anglia TV, Living, Granada Plus, Disney and TVS. Amanda got an attachment as a BBC TV network announcer (1988 – 1990) and was one of the voices on BBC TV’s Points of View (1987 – 1990). She also voiced BBC TV programme trails (1991).
…Baker, Trevor
Trevor was always affectionately known as Trevor ‘The Weather’ Baker.
…Hammal, Bruce
Bruce was born in 1951. He’s a former studio manager and BBC TV announcer (1975 – 1984). He also appeared in-vision on BBC TV’s Breakfast Time‘ in 1983, in the TV Choice slot and as the out-of-vision commentator on Come Dancing (1980 – 1984).
…Martin, Keith
Keith was born in Sandwich and was a chorister at Canterbury Cathedral. He trained in catering, then joined the Merchant Navy but illness brought him home and he started work in the advertising department of Granada Television in London.
…Bertram, Trish
Born in Royston, Herts, Trish started out as a stage manager in the theatre and was the longest-serving female TV announcer in the UK. She announced live for LWT, ITV, Channel 5, BBC World, BSB Galaxy, Super Channel, TVS, Westcountry TV and The Family Channel.
…Weston, Colin
Colin was born in London. He left school and joined the press and PR department of ABC Studios in Teddington and stayed for four years. After they lost their ITV franchise, he applied for various announcer jobs across the ITV network.
…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).
Thomas, Linda
Olumide was born in London. Her name derives from the Yoruba tribe in West Africa and roughly translates as ‘child of God’.
…Brown, Malcolm
Malcolm trained as an announcer on HTV West in the late-1960s and early 1970s before moving to Granada in 1972. He stayed with the company until 1982 when he moved south to join franchise winners TVS. Malcolm made the very first announcement on TVS on 1st January 1982, and remained as a voice-only announcer after in-vision continuity was dispensed with in the mid-1980s. He also acted as MC for TVS’ final programme Goodbye to All That.
Malcolm was later heard reading letters out on BBC Radio 4’s Feedback. He also spent time as a disc jockey on London’s easy-listening radio station Magic FM.
Jason, John
John was a Grampian Television in-vision announcer in the 1980s. He also popped up on other ITV stations as an announcer over the years, including time with TVS as an out-of-vision announcer (late-1980s – early 1990s).
Martindill, Verity
Verity was an LWT in-vision continuity announcer (late-1970s – early 1980s). She was also a regular continuity face on several other ITV stations, including Southern Television, Central and TVS.
Thompsett, Glen
Glen was a TVS announcer who later joined LWT just as in-vision announcing was being phased out in the early 1980s. Glen remained with LWT until October 2002. From 2002 to 2004, he was a freelance announcer at ITV 1. He has also presented for Meridian News in the south east, Sky Television, and on several satellite travel and shopping channels.
Glen has worked at a number of radio stations: he was a member of the launch team at Severn Sound in Gloucester in 1980; GWR in Wiltshire; Mercia Sound in Coventry; host of the breakfast show on Kent’s Invicta FM during the late-1980s and early 1990s, gaining some of the highest audience figures in the station’s history.
Glen runs his own audio production studio in Kent and produces work for a variety of independent companies and corporate clients.
Lipscomb, Mark
Mark started his television career as a cameraman and moved into continuity with TVS before joining Thames Television as a continuity announcer in the 1980s. He stayed until Carlton took over and was the only member of the Thames continuity team to move to the new station at its launch on 1st January 1993. Mark was Carlton’s senior announcer until October 2002 when the Carlton identity was dropped. However, Mark continued to present weekend bulletins for Central News (South) – a role he had been performing since 1991. He has also presented the main early evening news programme during the week.
Mark spoke to Showreel in January 2006: “Over the past three-and-a half-years I have had the opportunity of working on a number of projects at Central News. I was assistant producer on a few outside broadcasts including Central’s pan-regional Britain on the Move campaign and the Fairford Royal International Air Tattoo. More recently while our studio was being redesigned for the ITV rebranding, we took Central News outside and presented the programme from five of the region’s hospitals. I helped produce this and was also the roving reporter each night taking on a variety of tasks, from sampling the hospital Christmas dinners to being a cleaner for the day and hospital porter. My skills were also put to the test one night when due to sickness with one of our directors, I ended up directing the outside broadcast. It was a great week and well-received by the viewers. That together with some radio presenting and voiceover work, I have been a busy man since leaving Carlton.”
Ashe, Anna-Maria
Anna-Maria Ashe was a continuity announcer at BBC Scotland, TVS and Grampian Television in the mid-1980s. She also presented lunchtime news bulletins in-vision during her time with BBC Scotland (1986). She later moved to the TVS nightly news magazine Coast to Coast where she did a stint at presenting/newsreading for the Southampton edition, before moving to the Maidstone programme.
Anna-Maria was replaced at Maidstone by Liz Wickham when she moved to LWT as the main anchor of LWT News and LWT News Weekend. She was one of the main presenters on the London Tonight programme on ITV until February 2004.
Rogers, Graham
Graham was a staff ITV network announcer (October 2002 – TBC). He is a former Radio 210 disc jockey who fronted TVS’ overnight service, Late Night Late. He joined Meridian from TVS to present the overnight service Nightime. He went on to become one of Meridian’s four duty announcers, also providing continuity for Anglia and HTV West. Graham has also announced for Channel 4.
Additionally, Graham continues to freelance as a presenter and voiceover on programmes for Sky, Channel 5 and ITV 2. He also produced and presented the Exercise Helping Hand documentaries in Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Rooper, Alison
Alison is perhaps best known as an announcer for BBC Radio 4. She also announced for TVS, and for Channel 4 for six months. The BBC World Service was next, and after that came BBC Radio 4, where she has been since 1989.
Benson, John
John was born in 1928 (date unknown). He was one of ITV’s legendary, long-serving announcers.
…Goldman, Fiona
Fiona was a TVS announcer (early 1990s) and then a Carlton Television (London) announcer (1993 – 2002). She was also the voice of cable channel Carlton Cinema.
Akehurst, Keith
Keith was a news presenter with TVS. When Meridian took over the southern ITV franchise, he moved to BBC Look North at BBC North East in Newcastle.
Keith is currently a senior reporter for BBC Look North.
Carson, Mike
Mike was one of the best-known voices on LWT as the station’s key promotions voiceover man (1983 – 2001). He also had a stint in the continuity booth as a station announcer (2001 – 2002). Mike has also announced and voiced promos for TVS, Meridian and Sky to name but a few.
…Osborn, Hilary
Born in Barnet, Hertfordshire, Osborn graduated with a BA Honours degree in French from Queen Mary College, London University.
…Butler, Keith
Keith was a TVS continuity announcer in the 1980s and 1990s. He was also occasionally heard on Meridian. Keith later presented an overnight radio show on Captial Gold. He also presented a show dedicated to nothing but number 1s on Sunday nights between 6 and 10pm.