Craig Austin combines roles as a broadcaster, writer and producer. He started his media career in radio and moved on to television, dipping his toes in ink along the way.
Craig is from Uddingston, on the outskirts of Glasgow, and is the youngest of four boys. He started a career in medical laboratory sciences but after three years he returned to student life to study media. He does miss the white coat though!
It was during his final year as a student that he got his first professional broadcasting gigs, writing and presenting travel and traffic reports on a number of Scotland’s radio stations, as well as doing commercial voiceovers. A short spell hosting his own shows on Radio Tay in Dundee followed, before Craig found himself in Carlisle, working as an announcer, presenter and producer for Border Television.
Over the course of eight years as an announcer there, Craig presented in excess of 5,000 Border News bulletins, 1,000 Border Birthdays slots, and 20,000 in/out-of-vision continuity spots. He also got to host a range of children’s and entertainment specials, including the Hogmanay shows and his own magazine series, CU4. He was also co-responsible for the station’s on screen image.
Whilst there, he continued with a number of freelance presenting engagements including at Radio Clyde 1 in Glasgow and corporate video work for Norwich Union and Bank of Scotland; and he also syndicated a weekly youth entertainment and information column for youngsters, to nine newspaper titles in Scotland, the north of England and the Isle of Man.
Craig has even had a brief foray into the world of pop music working with BMG Records, Louis Walsh and Ronan Keating, as creative consultant to The Carter Twins, a young and talented Dublin pop act who were being groomed for Eurovision stardom. Or so they all hoped!
Craig has extensive behind-the-scenes experience as an on air producer and consultant and his skills have been utilised by broadcasters such as ITV, BBC, UKTV and RTÉ.
In 2003, Craig has returned to performing, as a busy voiceover artist and out-of-vision announcer for Scottish TV, Grampian TV and the UKTV network and as a presenter of Film 24 on Life 24.
Craig has also been developing his skills as a screenwriter and has completed two feature film scripts.
Career in Detail
1987 – 1988: traffic and travel presenter for AA Roadwatch and Flightwatch on Radio Clyde, Radio Forth, Radio Tay, West Sound Radio, NorthSound Radio and BBC Radio Scotland.
1987 – 1997: freelance presenter and writer including: Radio Clyde 1 in Glasgow; Radio Tay in Dundee; Radio Borders in Galashiels; Pick of the Week for Yorkshire TV. Syndicated a weekly newspaper feature for young people, to nine titles in Scotland and the North of England. Also, corporate video presenting.
1988 – 1997: announcer/presenter/producer, Border TV. Craig presented in excess of 5,000 news bulletins, 1,000 children’s programmes and 20,000 in/out-of-vision continuity spots.
1995 – 1997: editor, presentation and promotions, Border TV.
1997: head of presentation, UK Gold.
1998: producer/consultant, ITV 2. Set up the in-vision continuity for the channel launch.
1998 – 1999: producer/consultant, RTÉ, Dublin. Project manager for the on air rebranding and relaunch of RTÉ Network 2.
2000 – 2003: network presentation manager, ITV Network. Responsible to David Liddiment, director of channels, with the remit of refreshing ITV 1’s junction and presentation management. Also involved in the implementation of the initial rebranding to ITV 1 and was responsible for creating the Network Continuity Unit (NCU) which was to commission and schedule all on-air presentation devices, as well as to supply announcers with detailed marketing and programme information.
At ITV, Craig also introduced the then radical presentation techniques of end credit promotions, standardised credits, ‘next’ captions. ‘next time’ and ‘previously’ teasers within programmes, ad break promotion opticals, and ‘countdown/after’ trailers, all of which are now standard practice on many UK television channels.
2003 – 2006: writer: creator of various TV and film drama projects, currently seeking development interest.
1995 – 2006: presenter for Halifax and Bank of Scotland corporate videos.
2003 – 2004: continuity announcer, Scottish TV and Grampian TV.
2004 – 2005: creative producer, BBC Broadcast. Contracted to set up a new 45-strong continuity department with writing hub for the UKTV network.
2005 – 2006: continuity announcer: UKTV Drama, UKTV History, UKTV Documentary, UKTV Style Gardens and UKTV Food.
2006: presenter for Film 24, broadcasting daily on Life 24. Shows include Film Xtra, Star Talk and Scene:Out.
2007: announcer/director at BBC Scotland for BBC One and BBC Two. A six-month assignment as part of the migration project moving the headquarters in Queen Margaret Drive to a new site at Pacific Quay. This allowed existing staff to drop out of the rota to receive training on the new technology used at Pacific Quay.
Presenter/producer/director with Film 24, based at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire.
Personal information
Clips of Craig on The TV Room
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