Rachel Watson trained as a broadcast journalist and spent her early career in BBC regional newsrooms, starting out in local radio before moving into television news production in London, Manchester and the BBC’s regional bureau in Brussels. She then left the BBC to work internationally as a journalist and communications professional, training reporters in Cambodia and running media projects for not-for-profit organisations in Kosovo and the US, before returning to the UK to raise her family.
Rachel moved to Cambridge and joined BBC East, the BBC’s regional news centre for the east of England. She was a programme producer at Look East, the region's live evening news bulletin on BBC1, and oversaw television news planning. She won a BBC Ruby Award for her outside broadcast programming and was a national champion for the BBC’s 50:50 Equality Project.
Rachel left the BBC in 2021 and is now a freelance writer and producer. She’s also an Associate Lecturer in television production at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge.
Originally from Lancashire, Rachel has adopted the East of England as her home and has grown to love the region’s historical centres, vibrant cities, stunning coastlines and endless big skies - all premium locations for film and television productions! She became Chair of RTS East in October 2022 and as well as wanting to showcase the diverse production effort in the East – from a cutting-edge games industry to a thriving independent production scene - she’s also keen to develop support locally for under-represented young people who are looking to enter the industry or who are early in their careers.