British and Irish TV talent
ITV 1 - West Presenters
If you're not included on these pages and feel that you should be, or if you'd like to make an amendment to an existing profile, click here to update us. Many presenters contact us every month, updating us on their career to date. Profile updates appear on the site within hours. Please do keep the information coming and help us maintain the most comprehensive reference of its kind.
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 where she is now one of the regular co-anchors on ITV West's 'The West Tonight'.
HTV West's weatherman in the 1980s and early-1990s.HTV West weatherman from the early and mid-1980s.HTV West's long serving news reporter, and industrial and political correspondent. He also regularly presents news bulletins.
One of HTV West's best known presenters and reporters, Bob eventually became executive editor of HTV News and then 'ITV West News'. He joined the company from Westward Television at the start of the 1980s, and comes from a 'television family' - his father, Peter Crampton, was a well known face on BBC TV South West in Plymouth.
HTV West continuity announcer who stayed as a voice-only announcer and news reader after 1994. He disappeared from westcounty screens when the station was absorbed by United News and Media in the mid-1990s. A familiar face from daytime television adverts for various financial services/pensions companies, and, more recently, for Claims Direct.
In-vision continuity announcer for Thames Television in London, often on the overnight shift, and also for HTV West in Bristol. Reporter for TWW in Bristol and then Westward TV who moved to TVS as a news presenter and reporter, and then returned to TSW in the mid-1980s. Since then, John has popped up as a reporter and presenter on several ITV stations, including HTV West, Carlton Central South, and Carlton Westcountry. Sadly, John died in 2000.Sports reporter, commentator and presenter for HTV West.Deaf signer for 'HTV News' in the 1980s who became one of the programme's co-presenters until autumn 2001 when she was replaced on the anchor set by Jenny Hull. Over the years, Sherrie has presented many programmes for the company, often specialising in community interest/social action series, such as 'The Good Neighbour Show'. She continues to present and report for HTV West.HTV West news reporter and news presenter.David joined TSW as an announcer in the mid-1980s and stayed with the company until its franchise ended in December 1992. He established a good knockabout rapport with sidekick Gus Honeybun and was a main presenter of TSW's various 'Telethon' extravaganzas.
Since TSW went off the air, David has worked as a news reader and announcer at HTV West, and, later as the overnight news reader on Sky News. He is now controller of programmes at South Hams Radio in South Devon, where he also presents a show. He also appears from time to time on ITV 1 Westcountry.
Weather and travel presenter for Central Television, and later a regular weather presenter on HTV West and HTV Wales.
Weather presenter on both HTV West and HTV Wales until January 2002, who now co-presents the breakfast show on South Wales' Red Dragon Radio. Bruce Hockin retired from his job as HTV News anchorman in 1996, but still holds the record as ITV's longest serving news reader, with more than thirty continuous years in the job.
He started his television career with HTV's predecessor, TWW, and moved over to Harlech to front the West of England regional news magazine 'Report' in 1968. HTV later changed the programme's name to 'HTV News' but Hockin remained in the main presenter's chair, working with numerous co-presenters over the years, including Jan Leeming, Alison Holloway, Richard Wyatt, Sue King, and Patricia Yorston.
Hockin had a particular interest in crime busting, and for many years fronted the HTV West version of 'Police Five'. After officially retiring from the company, he continued to write and present the weekly 'Crimestoppers' slot. Although retired, Bruce is president of the Bristol Hospital Broadcasting Service. Bruce has been known to make occasional broadcasts on there himself! Bruce also serves as a director on Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, and Avon and Somerset Crimestoppers boards. He is also a patron of the Skin Cancer Research Fund.
Alison Holloway started her television career amazingly young at the age of 17 as a continuity announcer and news reader at Westward Television. She was soon poached by HTV West in Bristol, at first joining the company as a reporter/presenter, but eventually graduating to co-anchor HTV News with veteran news reader Bruce Hockin.
Holloway remained with the station through most of the 1980s, combining her news duties with presenting many other local programmes for HTV West, including the 'Good Neighbour Show' and the networked 'Animal Express'. She left to join the newly-formed Sky News as one of its main presenters, but didn't stay for long, and for a while kept a low profile.
She re-emerged in 1993 as co-presenter of 'Meridian Tonight' from Maidstone, but after a short while left the company and the country for a new life in Los Angeles, where she still now lives. She was briefly married to comedian Jim Davidson, having met him whilst interviewing him for the entertainment slot on 'HTV News'. A whirlwind romance and wedding followed, but the marriage soon ended in acrimony, well documented by the tabloid press.
Started her television career as a news reader and announcer on HTV West in the early-1980s. She then moved to TSW as a continuity announcer in the mid-1980s before moving to BBC TV South as their early morning news reader. Jenny is probably best known for her time as co-presenter with Des Lynam of 'How Do They Do That?'. She now presents 'ITV West News' from Bristol.
Annie was a continuity announcer for Tyne Tees TV, HTV West and LWT in 1984. She also presented several programmes for HTV, including co-anchoring the main nightly news programme with fellow presenters Bruce Hockin, Richard Wyatt and Alison Holloway.
Sadly, Annie died in late-1990. She is remembered for her warmth, her sense of fun and her sincerity.
Sue was poached from BBC TV South West's 'Spotlight' news programme in the mid-1980s to co-host 'Today', TSW's flagship news programme, with Chris Rogers. Ironically, Chris left a few months later to anchor 'Spotlight', so the Beeb got its revenge! Shortly afterwards, 'Today' was relaunched again as 'TSW Today' with a new set and titles, and Sue became the main anchor, assisted by Dominic Heale at the news desk, and Pete Barraclough on sport.
Sue was visibly upset by the loss of the TSW franchise, and was quite emotional during the final minutes of the last 'TSW Today' programme on 31 December 1992. She bounced back, and a few months later could be found up the M5 in Bristol, co-hosting 'HTV News' with veteran newsman Bruce Hockin. Sue recently hosted HTV West's 'Gardening Calendar' and 'A Taste Of The West'.
Image courtesy of Paul R Jackson.
Jan Leeming announced for Westward Television in 1965 and stayed for about a year before pursuing her career on larger ITV stations, such as Granada, HTV West (news reader, 'Report West'), and then BBC News, where she was one of the main news readers in the early-1980s. She was also a presenter of BBC Children's TV's 'Tom Tom', 1970; BBC TV's 'Pebble Mill At One', 1976 - 1978 and a BBC Radio 2 announcer in 1980.
Jan was a BBC TV news reader from May 1980 until April 1987. She was on duty on Bank Holiday Monday, May 1980, when the longest ever news flash occurred when the SAS ended the Iranian Embassy siege. Famously, she carried on reading the news when a studio bulb broke shattering hot glass down onto her during the news summary within Grandstand in 1982. She was also a contributor to ITV's 'This Morning' in 1988 and 1990.
Image courtesy of Paul R Jackson.
Lyddon cut his teeth at HTV West in the early-1980s and returned to the company to co-host a relaunched 'HTV News' and then 'ITV West News' with Jenny Hull, after a national television career, spanning TV-am and Sky News.HTV West sports journalist and presenter in the 1980s, and still heard as a commentator in the 1990s. Roger's son, Giles, writes to tell us: "Roger is living in Bristol with his wife Judy and son Alexander. Roger enjoys golf several times a week and stays tuned in to the world of sport. He usually visits me in Florida for two months a year."Well known investigative television journalist and presenter who fronted HTV West's hard news strand 'The West This Week'.Kevin Owen started his career as a traffic news broadcaster for AA Roadwatch in Cardiff, and was head hunted by BBC TV Wales as a news presenter, from where he later moved to HTV Wales as one of several main presenters for the local news programme there.
After moving across the Severn to Bristol, he stayed with HTV West's 'HTV News' for five years, but the programme changed its presenter line-up in autumn 2001. He went on to become a regular presenter for HTV West's 'Out Of Order' consumer programme, and also presented news bulletins on Sky News, Meridian, as well as hosting his own Saturday morning show on Somerset's Orchard FM.
In August 2002, Kevin Owen moved to Jersey based Channel Television as one of the main anchors of the nightly 'Channel Replort' programme.
He is now a regular news reader for Sky News.
Mark is a presenter with France 24. He presents in English and in French, fronting news, current affairs, business and sports output. He also hosts debates in French and in English.
Mark played a large role in France 24's first year, fronting rolling news coverage of the Saddam execution, hosting the French Presidential election three-hour special and broadcasting daily durnig the Rugby World Cup in French and English.
Other positions held during his career: presenter and reporter with Granada TV and HTV West; freelance reporter with HTV Wales; international news presenter on the ITV News Channel.
Speaking to TTVRP in December 2007, Mark commented, "My apprenticeship at Granada in Liverpool and Manchester taught me almost everything you need to know about television. I learnt so much watching and working with quality journalists like Bob Greaves and Elton Welsby..."
"Working with ITN took things to another level, and now I have a unique opportunity to shape a new channel and make a huge imprint on the world news map. And I get paid to live in Paris. C'est la vie!"
Mark has a BA (joint hons) from the University of Wales and a post-grad Journalism diploma from the University of Central Lancashire. Among his hobbies, Mark lists playing and watching football and rugby; he also plays for local teams where he lives in Paris.
HTV West journalist and news presenter in the 1980s who later became managing director of the company until shortly after Granada took over Carlton to form ITV Plc. ITV West is now jointly run with ITV Westcountry under the managing directorship of Mark Haskell.(Formerly Ceri Thompson). On completing a media studies degree, Ceri joined Nickelodeon's marketing division. She later decided that journalism was for her and studied for a post-graduate diploma in broadcast journalism at Cardiff University. She then joined HTV West as a news reporter, producer and presenter. She also worked briefly on Five's 'The Wright Stuff' as a reporter.
In 2001, Ceri moved to the BBC and was the first news presenter on air when the new BBC South East news service was launched on September 03 2001.
Ceri currently presents breakfast and lunchtime editions of 'South East Today'.
Jed joined HTV West in 2000 as one of the company's sports producers and presenters, initially on 'The West Match'. His first broadcasting job was on a Canadian restricted licence station, but when he returned to the UK he moved to BBC Wiltshire Sound, and also wrote for the Daily Telegraph before moving to HTV West.
For a period he worked for BBC GLR and used to fill in for Rob Salvidge on the late show networked across BBC Radio Bristol, Somerset Sound, Wiltshire and Worcester. His fill-in stints had a cult following and he used to devote large proportions of his shows to competitions that made absolutely no sense whatsoever. Now he's a regular sports presenter on 'ITV West News'.
Joanna was a weather girl on HTV West until late-2001. One of Joanna's claims to fame was her frequent donning of various leather garments for her weather forecasts, leading one national newspaper to headline a profile piece on her as 'The Weather In Leather'.
Her first TV appearance was as a contestant on 'Blind Date', and she enjoyed the experience so much that she decided to pursue a career in broadcasting, initially as a researcher for London Weekend Television. She later worked at Sky, presenting the weather on Sky News.
Joanna left Sky to have a baby. She is currently doing voice-overs for various clients, including Bloomberg. The bulk of her work is still weather-related but she does have other clients and has voiced various advertisements and documentaries too.
Popular HTV West and ITV West presenter who has made the station's lunchtime and daytime news bulletins his own. Rowell enjoys getting out and about and can regularly be seen in local newspapers throughout the westcountry, attending charitable events, shows, fetes, and concerts.
He joined HTV West in 1989 as one of the hosts of 'Night Club', after time as a DJ on Bristol's GWR FM, and soon became one of the station's regular announcers and news readers. He also presents 'HTV Newsweek' and 'What's On'.
HTV West's sports presenter in the early-1990s. By the mid-1990s Steve was working for ITN where his roles included North of England correspondent, West of England correspondent, Africa correspondent, Washington correspondent, foreign correspondent.
By the early-2000s, Steve had moved to a news reading role, initially on the ITN News Channel but later moving on to ITV news programmes.
Other radio/TV work: Radio West; GWR Radio; BBC Radio 5 Live.
Imogen started out as a reporter with the Bath Chronicle in 1997. Later positions held include news reader at Bath FM and reporter/presenter at HTV West.
In January 2001, Imogen joined BBC West. She is the regular presenter of the breakfast editions of 'Points West' and provides holiday cover for the main evening programme presenters.
Accomplished radio producer turned television journalist and well known reporter and presenter for HTV West. As well as occasionally co-presenting 'HTV News' and now 'ITV West News', Jane has presented and reported for local health programmes.
HTV West and Thames TV continuity announcer who moved to the HTV weather department when in-vision announcing was axed in 1993. Lorna Stevens was regularly seen as a weather presenter on both HTV West and HTV Wales, but recently left when weather presentation was centralised in Birmingham. Lorna is also believed to have announced for HTV Wales.
A former professional model who worked with The Bluebell Girls first in Barcelona, Spain, and then in Paris, she started her broadcasting career on her return the UK with local ILR station Radio 210 in the Thames Valley. She went on to work as an announcer for BBC Radio 4 and was an announcer on BBC TV from 1984 to 1986, before embarking on a career as a freelance announcer/presenter for several ITV companies and also on BFBS (British Forces Broadcasting). Lorna also worked as an announcer on Westcountry Television in Plymouth for around 18 months from 1993 with colleague Peter Griffin.
Occasional HTV West news reader who was also the company's Wiltshire reporter. He left ITV West to join Sky News in 2003 where is a reporter and occasional presenter.
Since January 2004, Jonathan has worked as a news presenter for the BBC World Service. He has regularly presented the 'BBC World News', 'The African News' and programmes such as 'From Our Own Correspondent'.
Jonathan started in television in the early-1990s, working for the PBS station in Seattle (KCTS Television), presenting programmes and documentaries; he was also the main promotional voice of the station. After training as a news writer at Worldwide Television News, Jonathan presented various WTN documentaries, including the environmental series 'Earthfile' and a five hour programme about Nigeria.
For c. six years, Jonathan worked for ITV, mainly as a news presenter for HTV West, working on the lunchtime news, morning bulletins and HTV's most popular programme, the late news at 10.30pm. Jonathan also presented on the Sky News overnight service for a period.
Jonathan also presented the weather for Meridian; he was also an announcer there and at HTV Wales.
Website
Reporter and presenter for HTV West and ITV West from the early-1980s to the present day.Started off at the now defunct local television station Channel One in Bristol, and moved to HTV West as a Somerset based video journalist. Fiona is now one of the station's main news readers, and can often be seen in action in afternoon and late evening news bulletins.HTV West's long-serving Somerset correspondent, and occasional news presenter.HTV West mainstay since 1971 when he joined the company as a news reporter. Since then, he's had several different presenting roles, including spells as one of the main presenters of 'HTV News'. Wyatt has also presented local interest programmes such as 'Here Today', 'Take Three', 'Friday Live', and the 'Looking Back' archive strand on 'HTV News'.
He fronted three special documentaries to celebrate HTV West's 30th anniversary in 1998. He continues to front regional documentary series for ITV West.
