Towers, Alan

Alan was born in Liverpool in 1934. His early broadcasting career included stints as a news presenter with Granada Television (1965) and ITN (1966). He was also a reporter on Westward Diary (c. 1966).

He joined BBC Midlands in 1972 as a main presenter on Midlands Today. He regularly co-presented the programme with Kay Alexander.

He was also seen nationally as a presenter of features from the Midlands on Nationwide. Perhaps his most memorable item was the infamous skateboarding duck story. He appeared in the last regional round-up on Nationwide (5th August 1983).

Alan also appeared regularly on BBC One’s Final Score, reporting on Midlands football games, from 1975 to c. 1994.

Following a heart attack in the late-1980s, Alan stepped down from his role as main presenter, but continued on Midlands Today as a sports presenter and reporter.

He raised thousands of pounds for charity by walking the Great Wall of China and riding a motorbike across Canada.

On 26th July 1997, Alan announced his resignation from the BBC on-air after a sports round-up. He issued a stinging attack on BBC management:

“For me, this is a personal goodbye now, because I’m leaving the BBC after 25 years.

“When I joined the corporation, it was led by giants. Now, I’m afraid it’s led by pygmies in grey suits wearing blindfolds. How sad. But times do change. From me now, for the final time, goodbye.”

Former colleague Kay Alexander said it was a “privilege” to have known him and added: “He was kind. He was warm. He was fun. He was very brilliant and very intelligent, but he was completely barmy at times as well. I shall always be glad that he was my friend.”

Despite the cutting comments in 1997, he returned to Midlands Today as a special guest on the programme’s last broadcast from the Pebble Mill studios in October 2004.

Alan acted in a few episodes of the BBC’s medical drama Dangerfield as a local TV news reporter (BBC One, 1997) and as an uncredited court foreman in Doctors (BBC One, 2003).

He died at his Warwickshire home, aged 73.

Personal information

Clips of Alan on The TV Room

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Online presence

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