BBC News anchor Clive Myrie sheds his suit to become the latest TV travel agent for Italy. Everyone from Stanley Tucci to Danny Dyer has been commissioned a holiday there, but Myrie's series promises to bring his warmth and gravitas to the lesser known parts.
Myrie has been holidaying in Italy for over 30 years, but this 15-part series will allow him to dive deeper into the country.
Travelling through cities, coast and countryside, Myrie will immerse himself in Italian culture, swapping health tips with locals in a hot spring in Lazio, competing in the Tiramisu World Cup and singing in a Capri nightclub.
BBC journalist, Mastermind presenter and opera lover Clive Myrie didn’t pull any punches as he defended his employer in this year’s Steve Hewlett Memorial Lecture, entitled “The BBC: Destroy at your peril”.
Myrie, who joined the BBC in 1987 as a trainee local radio reporter, laid out his reasons why the licence fee was a better way of funding the corporation than subscription. He stressed the importance of a trusted, impartial news service and the BBC’s universality at a time when notions of truth have become subjective and impartiality “a false God”.
The BBC Proms will feature 84 concerts over 57 days with 3,000 musicians involved and will look back at 100 years of British broadcasting to mark the BBC’s centenary year.
A large-scale orchestral repertoire will be welcomed to the Royal Albert Hall, with soloists including Lise Davidsen, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Nicola Benedetti, Leif Ove Andsnes, Yuja Wang and Jamie Barton.
They will be joined by acclaimed orchestras and ensembles from across the world, with European broadcasting orchestras from Austria, Finland and Germany, who will partner with BBC Orchestras and Choirs.
RTS Fellowships recognise industry luminaries who have made an outstanding, sustained and exceptional contribution to the industry.
This year the Fellowships have been presented to Simon Heath, CEO, World Productions; Sally Joynson, CEO, Screen Yorkshire; Danielle Lux, MD, CPL Productions; Ben McOwen Wilson, MD, YouTube UK and Ireland and Director, EMEA; Clive Myrie, BBC and John Whiston, MD, Continuing Drama, ITV.
At a time when many observers fear decisions on broadcasting matters, from the size (or existence) of the BBC licence fee to the possible privatisation of Channel 4, will be politically motivated, Ofcom Chief Executive Melanie Dawes was keen to stress her organisation’s independence – regardless of who is finally appointed Chair of the regulator or who had just been made culture secretary.
The Ofcom Chief Executive in conversation with journalist Clive Myrie about the future of public service broadcasting and how to respond to the rapidly changing media landscape.
“From a young age, seeing Sir Trevor McDonald on the TV who looked like me and spoke a bit like me, I thought, ‘if he can do it and he’s black, maybe I could do it too,’” he explains.
Myrie’s heart was set on a career in journalism but that he had to have a “good degree” to fall back on for his parents.
“My parents are first generation immigrants from Jamaica, they didn’t travel 6,000 miles for me to be a bum,” he laughs.
After completing a law degree, Myrie chose to pursue his childhood dream and earned a coveted place on the BBC journalism training course.
A double winner at this year’s RTS Television Journalism Awards, Myrie works as a news journalist and has been a regular presenter of the BBC News at Six and Ten since 2010. Prior to this, Myrie worked as a BBC correspondent across the globe, reporting from Asia, Africa, Washington and Brussels.
Myrie will be taking over from fellow BBC journalist John Humphrys, whose last episode will air in April.
Clive Myrie
Journalist and presenter, BBC News
In an era of widespread concern about fake news, trusted and experienced correspondents such as the BBC’s award-winning Clive Myrie are more important than ever.
