Born in Belfast in 1970, Kathy attended Methodist College and studied French and Russian at Queen’s University Belfast. The degree course included periods in France and Russia.
…Aldred, Ian
Ian was born in Manchester in 1949. He trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He was on an attachment to BBC Presentation as a continuity announcer for BBC One and BBC Two (1985 – 1987) and was senior presentation announcer, BBC Scotland (c. 1995). He made several appearances as a newsreader in Rab C. Nesbitt (BBC Two, 1994, 1996 and 1998). He also appeared on BBC Radio 4 narrating Seven Days in March (1979) and as a contributor to Naked Radio (1984) and Kailyard Blues (1998) – all produced by BBC Scotland.
…Maine, Michael
(Real name Michael Manning). One of Michael’s first broadcast roles was that of BBC Radio 4 announcer (1973 – 1974). He also worked as a newsreader/announcer at the BBC World Service (1975). He later moved to BBC Bristol as a radio/TV announcer followed by spells in London, Southampton, Manchester and Plymouth.
…Johnson, Chyna
Chyna has been a presenter on Westside FM since 2015. She has also freelanced as a continuity announcer on E4 (2018 – present) and BBC One (2019).
Walsh, Kate
Kate is a native Lancastrian with a husky, lilting quality to her voice. She studied at the Central School of Speech and graduated from the University of Birmingham with a bachelor’s in psychology.
…Bower, Stephanie
Stephanie was born in Dundee and went to the University of Glasgow. She initially worked in TV magazines in Glasgow (1996 – 1997) before moving into broadcasting with Granada Sky Broadcasting (1997 – 1999) as an announcer. She moved to a similar role with BBC TV network in 1999. Her time at the BBC included an attachment to BBC London 94.9 (October 2001 – May 2002). She then remained on the BBC TV continuity team until 2006.
…Baguley, Michael
Michael was a BBC Northern Ireland news and current affairs presenter in the 1960s and 1970s. He presented the main regional news programme in the 1960s.
…Singleton, Valerie
Valerie trained as a dancer at the Arts Education School. She studied for two years at RADA (winning a one-term scholarship) and spent a year at Bromley Repertory as an assistant stage manager, playing small parts.
…Neville, Mike
Mike began his career as a newspaper journalist. He would later move into acting before joining Tyne Tees TV first as an announcer then as a reporter (1962 – 1964). He then switched to the ‘other side’ to present the BBC TV’s Look North programme from Newcastle for a staggering 32 years. He also became quite well-known nationally for his regular appearances on BBC TV’s Nationwide in the 1970s. In 1989, Neville was caught by TV prankster Noel Edmonds with a ‘Gotcha’ on his BBC One programme Noel’s Saturday Roadshow. He was tricked into thinking he was filling seven minutes of airtime because there was a technical fault.
…Kyle, Redvers
Redvers is regarded as one of ITV’s announcing greats. He was born in Germiston, South Africa and named after General Sir Redvers Buller, British military commander in the Anglo-Boer War. He began his broadcasting career as a student at Johannesburg University, where he presented for SABC (South African Broadcasting Corporation).
…Winton, Nan
Born Nancy Wigginton, Nan was co-presenter on BBC TV’s Information Desk (1955 – 1956) and Mainly for Women (1957).
…Young, Muriel
Muriel was born in Bishop Middleham, near Sedgefield, Co Durham. On leaving school, she worked briefly as a librarian. She attended art college, before deciding to embark on a career as an actress. She joined a repertory theatre in Henley-on-Thames, where her uncle was directing. She subsequently performed at the Gateway Theatre, London and the Theatre Royal in Chatham. Trying to get into the film industry, she did modelling for advertising agencies, including promoting products such as toothpaste. She also studied to be a dental nurse and used her artistic talents to paint glassware. Starting out as an actress, she starred with Rex Harrison and Kay Kendall in The Constant Husband (1955) and also featured in The Story of Gilbert and Sullivan (1953) in a segment featuring The Mikado.
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