Patricia Ann Coldwell (14 May 1952 – 17 October 2002) was a British television and radio

presenter Presenter may refer to: People * News presenter, person who presents news during a news program * Sports commentator, an announcer who presents analysis of a sporting event * Radio personality, presenter or announcer on a radio show * Television ...

and

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

Early life

Coldwell was born on 14 May 1952 in

Clitheroe Clitheroe () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Ribble Valley, Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England; it is located north-west of Manchester. It is near the Forest of Bowland and is often used as a base for to ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, the daughter of Eunice (née Salter) and Gordon Ellison Coldwell, a policeman. She attended

Clitheroe Royal Grammar School Clitheroe Royal Grammar School is a co-educational grammar school in the town of Clitheroe in Lancashire, England, formerly an all-boys school. It was founded in 1554 as "The Free Grammar School of Philip II of Spain, King Philip and Mary I of ...

for Girls before working as a secretary.

Career

Coldwell started her career in local television on

Granada TV ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire on weekdays only, as ABC Weekend Television was its ...

as a reporter and presenter in the 1970s. She progressed to nationally networked programmes, such as '' Nationwide'', ''

Open Air Open air, open-air or openair may refer to: *''Open Air'', a BBC television program *Open-air cinema or outdoor cinema *Open-air concert, a concert taking place outside *Open-air museum, a distinct type of museum exhibiting its collections out-of- ...

'', and, on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

, ''

You and Yours ''You and Yours'' is a British radio consumer affairs programme, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and produced by BBC News. History ''You and Yours'' began broadcasting in October 1970, when its first presenter was Joan York. In the 1980s it briefly ra ...

''. In 1988, she made a documentary for

BBC1 BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and Flagship (broadcasting), flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includ ...

, ''Remembering Terry'', which followed the final days and ultimate death of

Aids The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

sufferer Terry Madeley, winning an award from the

Terrence Higgins Trust Terrence Higgins Trust is a British charity that campaigns about and provides services relating to HIV and sexual health. In particular, the charity aims to end the transmission of HIV in the UK; to support and empower people living with HIV, to ...

. While presenting the consumer series ''Out Of Order'', Coldwell met her first husband, journalist Tony Kerner. She presented several DIY series, such as ''On The House'' , for the BBC, and ''Doing It Up'', for

Meridian Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to Science * Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon * ...

, which she presented with her husband. The series won a New York television award. She was an occasional guest panellist, in the late 1980s, on

Through the Keyhole ''Through the Keyhole'' is a British comedy panel game show created by the TV producer Kevin Sim and originally presented by David Frost, Sir David Frost in the studio and Loyd Grossman on location. The location presenter explores celebrities' h ...

. In 1997, Coldwell hosted the interview show ''Espresso'', on Channel 5, and in 2001, she joined ''

Loose Women ''Loose Women'' (known as ''Live Talk'' from 2000 to 2001) is a British talk show that broadcasts on ITV weekdays from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm. The show focuses on a panel of four female presenters who interview celebrities, talk about aspects of ...

'' (originally ''Live Talk''), on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: Television TV stations/networks/channels ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network and company, including: **ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network in the United Kingd ...

. Her radio work included hosting

Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins, and is on air 24 hours a day. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport i ...

's late-night discussion programmes ''Night Talk'' and ''After Hours''.

Personal life and death

While Coldwell was working for Granada Television in the 1970s, she met

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

and broadcaster Michael Wood, then working at the BBC in Manchester. The pair went on to have a ten-year relationship. Coldwell married presenter Tony Kerner in 1991 in Camden, London. In 1992, she had a daughter, Dannie, from the marriage. Six years later, the marriage ended in divorce. In 2002, she married fisherman Evan John, in Newbury,

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

, having met him on a family holiday on the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

Island of

Bequia Bequia ( or ) is the largest island in the Grenadines at . It is part of the country of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and is approximately from the nation's capital, Kingstown, on the main island, Saint Vincent. Bequia means 'island of th ...

in 1998. Coldwell's death resulted from a

brain tumour A brain tumor (sometimes referred to as brain cancer) occurs when a group of cells within the brain turn cancerous and grow out of control, creating a mass. There are two main types of tumors: malignant (cancerous) tumors and benign (non-cancero ...

at the age of 50; she had had

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

previously, being first diagnosed in 1997 and then in 1998. Coldwell died on 17 October 2002 in hospital in Newbury.

General Register Office General Register Office or General Registry Office (GRO) is the name given to the civil registry in the United Kingdom, many other Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth nations and Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The GRO is the government agency r ...

; United Kingdom. ''England and Wales, Death Index, 1989-2021'' atabase on-line She continued to work until her death, and in her final months wrote about how she lived with

terminal cancer Terminal illness or end-stage disease is a disease that cannot be cured or adequately treated and is expected to result in the death of the patient. This term is more commonly used for progressive diseases such as cancer, rather than fatal injur ...

in her ''

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 ...

'' column. A week before her death, she wrote:

"I went to bed in a sulk and found myself riveted to a documentary about Thalidomide 40 years on. The drug was given to pregnant women to stop morning sickness. The tragic outcome was that several hundred children were born without arms and legs – and I think I've got problems ... Many have developed successful careers. . . One's a club entertainer who brought the house down when he boasted about getting to the front of the queue at Homebase on a Bank Holiday weekend with his mobility sticker. It's wonderful to see barriers broken down about disability through laughter. It brought me back to realising how lucky I am."

External links

Broadcaster Pattie Coldwell dies
BBC, 18 October 2002.
Pattie Coldwell: Courageous crusader
BBC, 18 October 2002.
Obituary
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...

'', 19 October 2002, subscription required.
Obituary
''

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 ...

'', 31 October 2002.
Pattie Coldwell obituary
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 19 October 2002.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coldwell, Pattie 1952 births 2002 deaths British reporters and correspondents Deaths from brain cancer in England English television presenters People from Clitheroe People educated at Clitheroe Royal Grammar School