Sir James William Alexander Burnet (12 July 192820 July 2012), known as Alastair Burnet, was a British journalist and broadcaster, who had a career working in news and current affairs programmes, including a long career with
Independent Television News
Independent Television News (ITN) is a UK-based media production and broadcast journalism company. ITN is based in London, with bureaux and offices in Beijing, Brussels, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, New York, Paris, Sydney and Washington, D.C.
I ...
(ITN) as chief presenter of the flagship ''
News at Ten''; Sir
Robin Day described Burnet as "the booster rocket that put ITN into orbit".
He began his career in journalism as a sub-editor and junior leader writer for the ''
Glasgow Herald'' newspaper from 1951 to 1958. Burnet joined the weekly news and current affairs magazine ''
The Economist
''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...
'' in 1958 before becoming ITN's political correspondent in 1963 and working on a number of current affairs programmes such as ''
This Week''. Burnet was one of the first newsreaders of the half hour ''News at Ten'' bulletin in 1967. He left television broadcasting in 1974 to become editor of the ''
Daily Express
The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...
'' newspaper until 1976. Burnet rejoined ITN to read the news on the ''
News at 5:45'' bulletin and he returned to present ''News at Ten'' two years later. He retired from ITN in 1991.
Early life
Burnet was born on 12 July 1928 in
Fulwood, Sheffield to Scottish parents Alexander Burnet (1882–1957) and Jessy (Schonaid), née Rose.
His father was an electrical and mechanical engineer,
while his mother came from a
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands (; , ) is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Scottish Lowlands, Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Scots language, Lowland Scots language replaced Scottish Gae ...
family and she was raised in
Easter Ross.
One of Burnet's uncles was the Edinburgh divine W. Adam Burnet.
He was educated at
The Leys School, a boys'
public school in
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
,
and was the editor of its magazine ''The Fortnightly''.
Burnet and the rest of the school were evacuated to
Pitlochry
Pitlochry (; or ) is a town in the Perth and Kinross council area of Scotland, lying on the River Tummel. It is historically in the county of Perthshire, and has a population of 2,776, according to the 2011 census.Scotland's 2011 census. (n.p. ...
in
Perth
Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...
during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
He later read history at
Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms was ad ...
,
and played hockey.
Burnet refused to collect his second class degree because he thought he was worthy of a first.
Career in journalism
Upon graduating, Burnet began work as a sub-editor and junior leader writer with future ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'' editor
Alastair Hetherington for the ''
Glasgow Herald'' newspaper in 1951 after he was employed by the newspaper's editor William Robieson.
From 1956 to 1957,
he travelled across the United States for a year to study American politics and elections across the political spectrum on a fellowship from the Commonwealth Fund of New York. He left the ''Glasgow Herald'' in 1958,
and was told of a vacancy at the weekly news and current affairs magazine ''
The Economist
''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...
'', joining as a sub-editor, leader writer, and subsequently, associate editor under the editorship of
Donald Tyerman.
In 1963, Burnet and his colleagues at ''The Economist'' were invited to present a programme on the
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
composed of journalists representing the major weekly magazines. His two reports on the
Gorbals
The Gorbals is an area in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, and former burgh, on the south bank of the River Clyde. By the late 19th century, it had become densely populated; rural migrants and immigrants were attracted by the new industries and e ...
and
driven grouse shooting impressed
Independent Television News
Independent Television News (ITN) is a UK-based media production and broadcast journalism company. ITN is based in London, with bureaux and offices in Beijing, Brussels, Jerusalem, Johannesburg, New York, Paris, Sydney and Washington, D.C.
I ...
(ITN) editor
Geoffrey Cox enough to be offered the job of political editor in place of
Ian Trethowan.
While reporting, Burnet became a relief newscaster and worked on ITN's current affairs programmes including ''Roving Report'', ''Dateline'', ''Dateline Westminster'', ''
What the Papers Say'', ''Fleet Street'', ''Face of Success'', and the adult education series on money ''A Plain Man's Guide to Money''. He was also the main anchor for the ITV network's coverage of the
1964,
1966
Events January
* January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko.
* January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...
and
1970 United Kingdom general elections and the
Apollo 11
Apollo 11 was a spaceflight conducted from July 16 to 24, 1969, by the United States and launched by NASA. It marked the first time that humans Moon landing, landed on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and Lunar Module pilot Buzz Aldrin l ...
Moon landing in 1969.
Burnet left ITN in 1965 to rejoin ''The Economist'' as editor following Tyerman's retirement, but continued broadcasting as a reporter and interviewer for
Associated-Rediffusion
Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion London, was the British ITV franchise holder for London and parts of the surrounding counties, on weekdays between 22 September 1955 and 29 July 1968. It was the first ITA franchisee to go on air, ...
's weekly current affairs programme ''
This Week'' that he had presented from 1965 to 1970.
He returned part-time to ITN in 1967 to launch the half-hour ''
News at Ten'' bulletin that provided in depth reporting on the day's events, having campaigned for such a programme.
Burnet hosted the first programme (during the show's thirteen-week pilot phase agreed to by executives who favoured a ten-minute bulletin) on 3 July alongside
Andrew Gardner,
and created the programme's "And finally ..." slot.
He also presented the short-lived topical interview series ''Man in the News'' in 1970 and 1971. In 1972, he was signed by the BBC to present the current affairs programme ''
Panorama
A panorama (formed from Greek language, Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any Obtuse angle, wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography (panoramic photography), film, seismic image ...
'' from the middle of that November. Burnet reported and presented for ''Midweek'', and anchored coverage of the
February
February is the second month of the year in the Julian calendar, Julian and Gregorian calendars. The month has 28 days in common years and 29 in leap years, with the February 29, 29th day being called the ''leap day''.
February is the third a ...
and
October 1974 United Kingdom general election programmes,
also covering the
wedding
A wedding is a ceremony in which two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnicity, ethnicities, Race (human categorization), races, religions, Religious denomination, denominations, Cou ...
of
Princess Anne
Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950) is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of King ...
and
Mark Phillips
Mark Anthony Peter Phillips (born 22 September 1948) is an English Olympic gold medal-winning horseman for Great Britain and the first husband of Anne, Princess Royal, with whom he has two children. He remains a leading figure in British equ ...
in November 1973, interviewing the couple shortly before the wedding.
Furthermore, he continued to edit ''The Economist'' until 1974, where he raised the circulation by 60%.
He then was appointed editor of the ''
Daily Express
The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...
'' by
Max Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook
William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook (25 May 1879 – 9 June 1964), was a Canadian-British newspaper publisher and backstage politician who was an influential figure in British media and politics of the first half of the 20th century ...
and
Jocelyn Stevens to try and reduce the newspaper's decline in circulation,
ending his television career for that period of time.
Burnet began working in the role in late October 1974,
but resigned at his own request 18 months later in March 1976 to rejoin ITN full-time, with the result being that the only major UK poll in which he was not involved in the UK TV coverage as lead presenter was the
1975 European Community (Common Market) Membership Referendum. His period at the newspaper saw its circulation decline by around 340,000 and lost his editorial independence promised to him over the newspaper and had no team loyal to him to renew it to his liking.
He rejoined ITN in June 1976, initially for a brief stint back on ''News at Ten'', but in September 1976 he became the main presenter for the newly relaunched early evening bulletin ''
News at 5:45''.
He moved from the ''News at 5:45'' and returned to the restyled ''News at Ten'' on 17 April 1978. In 1980, Burnet began presenting a three-hour weekend
phone-in
In broadcasting, a phone-in or call-in is a programme format in which viewers or listeners are invited to air their live comments by telephone, usually in respect of a specific topic selected for discussion on the day of the broadcast. On radio ( ...
news programme on the radio station
LBC. In the following year, he became a member of the ITN board, and became an associate editor for overall editorial responsibility for ''News at Ten'' in September 1982. He continued to present coverage of political events including the
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
,
1983
1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call.
Events January
* January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
and
1987 United Kingdom general elections,
by-elections
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections.
A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...
to the
House of Commons
The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
,
Budgets of the United Kingdom,
the
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 18 ...
, the
first inauguration of Ronald Reagan
The first inauguration of Ronald Reagan as the 40th president of the United States was held on Tuesday, January 20, 1981, at the West Front of the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. This was the first inauguration to be held on the build ...
,
the
Elections to the European Parliament
Elections to the European Parliament take place every five years by universal adult suffrage; with more than 400 million people eligible to vote, they are the second largest democratic elections in the world after India's.
Until 2019, 751 ...
from
1979
Events
January
* January 1
** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
to
1989
1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...
, and every
United States presidential election
The election of the president of the United States, president and Vice President of the United States, vice president of the United States is an indirect election in which citizens of the United States who are Voter registration in the United ...
between
1976
Events January
* January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force.
* January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea.
* January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
and
1988.
Burnet also presented coverage of the
British royal family
The British royal family comprises Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considere ...
, commentating on the weddings of
Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer in 1981,
Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson in 1986 and other state occasions such as the
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005.
In his you ...
's visit to the United Kingdom. He also wrote four books on the royal family and presented several Royal documentaries including ''In Person: The Prince and Princess of Wales'', ''A Royal Day'' and ''The Royal Family in Scotland''. Outside of ITN, he was also a presenter and interviewer for
Thames Television's flagship current affairs programme ''TV Eye'' (for a time, a substitute for ''This Week'') between January 1983 and 1986.
In February 1990, Burnet resigned from the ITN board amid a dispute over the future ownership of the company following the
Broadcasting Act 1990
The Broadcasting Act 1990 (c. 42) is an Act of Parliament (UK), act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which aimed to liberalise and deregulate the British broadcasting industry by promoting competition; an example being ITV (TV network), ...
becoming law, during which his own proposals to restructure the organisation to ensure the organisation was independent from the 15 regional independent franchises whom he feared with removed ITN's assets was rejected.
He was offered the job as editor of ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...
'' by
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian - American retired business magnate, investor, and media mogul. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of List of assets owned by News Corp, local, national, a ...
but declined the offer and instead recommended former ''The Economist'' colleague
Andrew Neil.
Burnet took early retirement from ITN as newscaster and associate editor 18 months later, presenting his final edition of ''News at Ten'' on 29 August 1991. He had presented 1,447 editions of ''News at Ten''.
He was a member of the Committee of Reading and Other Uses of English Language between 1972 and 1975 and the Monopolies Committee Specialist Panel on Newspaper Panels from 1973 to 1991.
Burnet was a director of
Times Newspapers between 1982 and 2002 and of United Racecourses Holdings Ltd from 1985 to 1994.
He was a member of the Council of the Banking Ombudsman from 1985 to 1996. Burnet was appointed an honorary vice-president of the
Chartered Institute of Journalists in 1990.
Personal life
Burnet did not talk about his private life. He married the journalist Maureen Campbell Sinclair at Kincardine Church on 26 July 1958. They had no children.
Burnet was a supporter of Scottish football clubs
Rangers and
Partick Thistle.
In June 1976, he received a letter bomb at his home in London but it failed to detonate and was defused by explosive experts.
Death
Following his retirement, he did not make any further appearances on television or write for the press. In part, this was because of his being diagnosed with
dementia
Dementia is a syndrome associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by a general decline in cognitive abilities that affects a person's ability to perform activities of daily living, everyday activities. This typically invo ...
, following which the requirement for 24-hour nursing resulted in his having to reside in the Beatrice Place Nursing Home in
Kensington
Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London.
The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...
, London. His condition meant that he felt comfortable only with close friends; these included his wife, and also former ITN News director
Diana Edwards-Jones. Burnet died peacefully in the early hours of 20 July 2012, at the Beatrice Place care home in Kensington, where he had been living following a series of strokes.
Paying tribute,
Andrew Neil referred to Burnet as "Britain's greatest broadcaster". A memorial service for him was held at
St Martin-in-the-Fields
St Martin-in-the-Fields is a Church of England parish church at the north-east corner of Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, London. Dedicated to Saint Martin of Tours, there has been a church on the site since at least the medieval pe ...
in
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, in England, spanning the City of London and several boroughs. Over time, a number of definitions have been used to define the scope of Central London for statistics, urban planning and local gove ...
on 12 November 2012.
Popular culture
The satirical TV puppet show ''
Spitting Image'' portrayed Burnet as a fawning royalist, who behaved in an ingratiating manner towards the nearest available member of the royal family;
one episode ended with the Burnet puppet singing a song about his love for
Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother (before being pushed aside in favour of
Sandy Gall). The satirical magazine ''
Private Eye'' referred to him as "Arslicker Burnet".
Honours
Burnet was
knighted in the
1984 New Year Honours "for services to journalism and broadcasting".
He also won numerous awards, including the
Richard Dimbleby Award three times from
BAFTA
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA, ) is an independent trade association and charity that supports, develops, and promotes the arts of film, television and video games in the United Kingdom. In addition to its annual awa ...
in 1966, 1970 and 1979.
In 1971, Burnet was named Political Journalist of the Year for 1970 at the Political Writer and Broadcaster of the Year Awards, and received the
Royal Television Society
The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...
(RTS) Judges' Award in 1981.
He was inducted into the RTS Hall of Fame in 1999.
The Burnet News Club network for state school news clubs across the United Kingdom was setup by The Economist Educational Foundation in 2013 and named for him.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burnet, Alastair
Mass media people from Sheffield
English people of Scottish descent
People educated at The Leys School
Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford
English male journalists
English magazine editors
English newspaper editors
English television presenters
The Economist editors
Daily Express people
ITN newsreaders and journalists
Knights Bachelor
1928 births
2012 deaths
Journalists from Yorkshire