Robert Dougall
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Robert Dougall, MBE (27 November 1913 – 18 December 1999) was an English broadcaster and ornithologist, mainly known as a newsreader and announcer.


Early life and radio broadcasting

Dougall was born and educated in
Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...
, Surrey. He attended
Whitgift School ("He who perseveres, conquers") , established = , closed = , type = Independent school , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label = Head Master , head = Christopher Ramsey , c ...
but did not carry on to university despite having some talent in languages, specifically French and German. He joined the
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...
initially in the accounts department, but soon found a job as an announcer for the BBC Empire Service (the predecessor of the BBC World Service) on his 21st birthday in 1934. By 1939, he had risen to the position of senior announcer and his was the voice that announced to the world Britain's declaration of war on Germany in September of that year. Shortly before this announcement, he had transmitted a message as an "anonymous" Englishman (although speaking in German), imploring Germany to withdraw its forces and avert the impending conflict: :"I got the first page with about three minutes to go. Then, the red light came on and it was up to me. It was an intensely dramatic script and most of the pages were fed to me at the microphone, so I had to get it right first time. God knows I put my heart into it." Dougall worked as a radio reporter during the early part of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, but also served with the
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from 1942. He resumed his broadcasting career after demobilisation in 1946 as an announcer and newsreader for the BBC Home Service. In 1947, Dougall was appointed Programme Manager for the BBC's Far Eastern Service, a position which required him to move to
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
.


Television news

Dougall's radio work took a back seat when he returned to London in 1951 to work as a television newsreader. (He is thought to have been the only person from the BBC's early radio service who had an enduring career in television.) Between 1946 and 1955, the BBC News was merely voiced over a photograph of Big Ben, a measure sanctioned by Chief News Editor
Tahu Hole Tahu Ronald Charles Pearce Hole CBE (29 March 1906 – 22 November 1985) was a New Zealand born journalist who was the BBC's television news editor during the period immediately following the Second World War. Early life and work Hole was bo ...
to reinforce the absolute impartiality for which the corporation was renowned. However, the coming of
commercial television Commercial broadcasting (also called private broadcasting) is the broadcasting of television programs and radio programming by privately owned corporate media, as opposed to state sponsorship. It was the United States′ first model of radio (a ...
and ITN in 1955 prompted the BBC to have its newsreaders perform to camera – indeed, they began this approach only three weeks before ITN began transmission. Dougall was among the first of these newsreaders to appear in-vision in 1955 (the others were his contemporaries
Kenneth Kendall Kenneth Kendall (7 August 1924 – 14 December 2012) was a British broadcaster. He worked for many years as a newsreader for the BBC, where he was a contemporary of fellow newsreaders Richard Baker and Robert Dougall. He is also remembered as ...
and Richard Baker, with Kendall being the very first). In 1960, he portrayed a newsreader in the film ''
Danger Tomorrow ''Danger Tomorrow'' is a 1960 British noir crime film directed by Terry Bishop and starring Zena Walker, Robert Urquhart and Rupert Davies. Plot A doctor and his wife move into an old house in an English village where he is to start a new j ...
''. Dougall presented general
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
reports and the '' Newsroom'' programme during the 1960s and was appointed a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1965, receiving his honour on the same day as
the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
. He was the first person to present the long-running ''
BBC Nine O'Clock News The ''BBC Nine O'Clock News'' was the flagship BBC News programme. It was launched on 14 September 1970 and ran until 13 October 2000, when it was replaced by the ''BBC Ten O'Clock News''. History The ''Nine O'Clock News'' was the BBC's flags ...
'' in 1970, continuing in this role until his retirement from the newsroom in 1973.


Post-retirement

Like Peter Woods, Richard Baker and
Kenneth Kendall Kenneth Kendall (7 August 1924 – 14 December 2012) was a British broadcaster. He worked for many years as a newsreader for the BBC, where he was a contemporary of fellow newsreaders Richard Baker and Robert Dougall. He is also remembered as ...
, Dougall was considered an archetypal newsreader and frequently appeared as himself in comedy programmes of the 1970s and early 1980s, including ''
The Goodies The Goodies were a trio of British comedians: Tim Brooke-Taylor (17 July 1940–12 April 2020), Graeme Garden (b. 18 February 1943) and Bill Oddie (b. 7 July 1941). The trio created, wrote for and performed in their eponymous television com ...
'' and ''
Yes Minister ''Yes Minister'' is a British political satire sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. Comprising three seven-episode series, it was first transmitted on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984. A sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister'', ran for 16 episodes fr ...
''. He also presented seven series of Channel 4's over-60s programme ''Years Ahead'' over four years and appeared in an advertising campaign for the jewellers Prestons of Bolton during the 1980s. His voice provides the news announcement that Big Ben chimed seven times at 6 p.m. in the Bond film '' Thunderball'' (1965). Dougall was also known for his love of animals and birds and he was president of the RSPB for a five-year period. He wrote several books about birds in the 1970s and an autobiography, ''In and Out of the Box'' (1973), a witty account of life in the Reithian BBC, which he had joined as its youngest staff announcer on his 21st birthday in 1934, and beyond. He lived in Walberswick in Suffolk though his main home for many years was in Hampstead in London.


Family

Dougall's granddaughter
Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...
is a singer/songwriter, formerly with Brighton band
the Pipettes The Pipettes were a British indie pop girl group formed in 2003 in Brighton by Robert "Monster Bobby" Barry. The group has released two albums, '' We Are The Pipettes'', and '' Earth vs. The Pipettes'' and released numerous singles to suppor ...
. Dougall's grandson Tom Dougall was the lead guitarist with Brighton band Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong, before leaving to form
Toy A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and pet ...
, who are signed to
Heavenly Records Heavenly Recordings is a London-based independent record label founded by Jeff Barrett in 1990. Heavenly released the first albums from Saint Etienne, Beth Orton and Doves, and early singles by Manic Street Preachers. Current Heavenly artists ...
.


Bibliography

*''In and out of the box'' (1973) *''Now for the good news'' (1976) *''A Celebration of Birds'', Collins and Harvill Press (1978) *''The Ladybird Book Of British Birds'' *''Basil Ede's Birds'', Severn House (1980) **foreword by The Duke of Edinburgh *''Birdwatch Round Britain'' with Herbert Axell, Collins and Harvill (1982) **foreword by Ian Prestt


Contributions

*''An Introduction To Bird and Wildlife Photography in Still and Movie'', Marchington, John and Clay, Anthony, Faber & Faber (1974) – Foreword.


References

* *


External links


BBC obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dougall, Robert 1913 births 1999 deaths BBC newsreaders and journalists BBC World Service Members of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Whitgift School People from Croydon People from Walberswick Royal Society for the Protection of Birds people Birdwatchers