Robin Houston (born

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, 1947) is a British voiceover artist and former announcer, radio and television newsreader and quiz show host. After starting his career as an announcer and stage manager, he became one of the pioneers of commercial radio in the United Kingdom. He went on to read the news on television for 15 years and to become one of the most well known announcers in television entertainment. For many years he was a host of television quiz shows, and is now a veteran voiceover artist with over 50 years' experience in the field.

Early career

Voice work as a teenager in

audio drama Radio drama (or audio drama, audio play, radio play, radio theatre, or audio theatre) is a dramatized, purely acoustic performance. With no visual component, radio drama depends on dialogue, music and sound effects to help the listener imagine ...

led him to

drama school A drama school, stage school or theatre school is an undergraduate and/or graduate school or department at a college or university; or a free-standing institution (such as the Drama section at the Juilliard School); which specializes in the p ...

where he trained in stage management and

audio production Sound design is the art and practice of creating sound tracks for a variety of needs. It involves specifying, acquiring or creating auditory elements using audio production techniques and tools. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including ...

under the tutelage of Dorothy Tenham and on graduation was encouraged to become a freelance

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. ...

artist. He joined

theatrical producer A theatrical producer is a person who oversees all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The producer is responsible for the overall financial and managerial functions of a production or venue, raises or provides financial backing, and hire ...

John Hewer John Hewer (13 January 1922 – 16 March 2008) was an English actor and business manager who became familiar with audiences for playing Captain Birdseye in ads for Birds Eye. Biography Hewer was born in Leyton, Essex, the son of an engine ...

, Mike Hall and Gervase Farjeon in the

West End West End most commonly refers to: * West End of London, an area of central London, England * West End theatre, a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London, England West End may also refer to: Pl ...

working for five years as

announcer An announcer is a voice artist who relays information to the audience of a broadcast media programme or live event. Television and other media Some announcers work in television production, radio or filmmaking, usually providing narrations, ...

, production manager, stage manager, and

audiovisual Audiovisual (AV) is electronic media possessing both a sound and a visual component, such as slide-tape presentations, films, television programs, corporate conferencing, church services, and live theater productions. Audiovisual service p ...

director on stage productions,

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical performances, sketch comedy, magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is normally introduced by a com ...

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dinin ...

s, films, international conferences and

product Product may refer to: Business * Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem. * Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution Mathematics * Prod ...

launches in

, the rest of the UK and much of

Western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

. In that time he also worked part-time as a personal assistant to the British

bandleader A bandleader is the leader of a music group such as a rock or pop band or jazz quartet. The term is most commonly used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues o ...

Henry Hall.

Radio

In October 1973 he became a founding

presenter A presenter is a person or organization responsible for the running of a public event, or someone who conveys information on media via a broadcasting outlet. Presenter may refer to: People * News presenter, person who presents news during a new ...

and producer at

Capital Radio Capital London is a radio station owned and operated by the Global media company as part of its national Capital FM Network. As Capital Radio it was launched in the London area in 1973 as one of Britain's first two commercial radio stations. ...

in London, one of the first two commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom, broadcasting from their studios at Euston Tower. There he read the weekend news bulletins and served as one of the producers of the daily news magazine programme ''London's Day''. At the beginning of 1974 Capital revamped its programmingLocal Radio Workshop, ''Capital: Local Radio & Private Profit'', Comedia Publishing Group, London, 1983, p27 and he became Capital's senior newsreader, presenting morning bulletins in the new

Kenny Everett Kenny Everett (born Maurice James Christopher Cole; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995) was an English comedian, radio disc jockey and television presenter. After spells on pirate radio and Radio Luxembourg in the mid-1960s, he was one of the fi ...

Breakfast Show and the

Tommy Vance Richard Anthony Crispian Francis Prew Hope-Weston (11 July 1940 – 6 March 2005), known professionally as Tommy Vance, was an English radio broadcaster. He was an important factor in the rise of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM), al ...

and

Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television newsreader and host of programmes such as '' Crackerjack'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', ''This is Your Life'', '' Strange but True?'' and '' Antiques R ...

programmes. In October 1974, with other leading Capital presenters, he joined in recording the 1st anniversary single which was freely distributed to listeners. In the same month he took over the position of News Editor in addition to his newsreading duties. November 1974 saw Capital Radio close down its newsroom for financial reasons (causing 12 journalists to be made redundant) and he moved to

LBC LBC (originally the London Broadcasting Company) is a British phone-in and talk radio station owned and operated by Global and based in its headquarters in London. It was the UK's first licensed commercial radio station, and began to broadcast ...

, the UK's first commercial radio station, broadcasting from studios in Gough Square, off

Fleet Street Fleet Street is a major street mostly in the City of London. It runs west to east from Temple Bar at the boundary with the City of Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the London Wall and the River Fleet from which the street was n ...

in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

. There he became a newsreader for

Independent Radio News Independent Radio News provides a service of news bulletins, audio and copy to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom and beyond. The managing director, Tim Molloy, succeeded long-term MD John Perkins in November 2009. Perkins had been ...

and a daytime news programme presenter for

while acting as a relief presenter on

's breakfast show, ''AM''. In the late summer of 1975 he took over the station's early evening classical music show and the late-night

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 ( ...

and

arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

interview duties, presenting ''Robin Houston's Nightline'' At the start of 1976 he became

's daily

drive time Drive time is the daypart in which radio broadcasters can reach the most people who listen to car radios while driving, usually to and from work, or on public transportation. Drive-time periods are when the number of radio listeners in this cla ...

presenter on ''Newsbreak'', a combination of news, features and arts interviews. Expressing a desire to move into television, he ceased working full-time for

at the end of 1976. While still presenting occasionally for

and making early appearances on television, from 1977 to 1979 he became a regular music presenter on the

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

radio channel, broadcasting from

Bush House Bush House is a Grade II listed building at the southern end of Kingsway between Aldwych and the Strand in London. It was conceived as a major new trade centre by American industrialist Irving T. Bush, and commissioned, designed, funded, a ...

, on ''The Robin Houston Request Show'', ''Sounds International'' and ''Anything Goes''.

Television news

For over 14 years, from September 1978, he presented the lunchtime bulletins of ''

Thames News ''Thames News'' was the flagship regional news programme of Thames Television, serving the Thames ITV region and broadcast on weekdays from 12 September 1977 to 31 December 1992. The news service was produced and broadcast from Thames TV's headq ...

'' on

Thames Television Thames Television, commonly simplified to just Thames, was a Broadcast license, franchise holder for a region of the British ITV (TV network), ITV television network serving Greater London, London and surrounding areas from 30 July 1968 until th ...

, covering the ITV region of

and the

home counties The home counties are the counties of England that surround London. The counties are not precisely defined but Buckinghamshire and Surrey are usually included in definitions and Berkshire, Essex, Hertfordshire and Kent are also often inclu ...

. From April 1980 he also presented the nightly late ''Thames News'' bulletins, broadcast immediately after News at Ten. He continued to be seen twice-daily on ''Thames News'' until the end of Thames Television's contract in December 1992. He read over 5,500 news bulletins in that time. In the early 1980s he also regularly voiced the nightly

United Press International Television News United Press International Television News, abbreviated as UPITN, was a television news agency, operating from 1967 to 1985. It was the successor to earlier UPI television news film operations United Press Movietone and United Press International N ...

relay from London for television stations around the world.

Television entertainment

He was one of very few broadcasters to work for both the

and

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 ...

franchises at the same time. While presenting ''

'' on weekdays he was also an in-vision

continuity announcer In broadcasting, continuity or presentation (or station break in the U.S. and Canada) is announcements, messages and graphics played by the broadcaster between specific programmes. It typically includes programme schedules, announcement of t ...

and promotions voiceover for

from 1977 to 1979 and for 15 years he was the voiceover announcer for the majority of the entertainment and awards shows produced by LWT between 1977 and 1992. As such he established a style and expertise appropriate for the time which has since been much copied, but seldom matched. In the same period, and until 1997, he also announced entertainment and awards programmes for

, for a number of other ITV companies and for

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced t ...

. As an announcer he provided the voiceovers for over 850 ITV television shows: * '' All Star Secrets'' * '' An Audience With...'' * ''Aspel & Company'' * ''

Bruce Forsyth's Big Night ''Bruce Forsyth's Big Night'' is a TV show screened on ITV on Saturday nights in late 1978. It starred Bruce Forsyth. 12 episodes were broadcast between 7 October and 31 December 1978. Two further one-off specials were shown on 4 April 1980 and ...

'' * ''

BAFTA Awards The British Academy Film Awards, more commonly known as the BAFTA Film Awards is an annual award show hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) to honour the best British and international contributions to film. The cere ...

'' * '' The Cannon and Ball Show'' * ''The Children's Royal Variety Performance'' * '' Child's Play'' * '' The Dame Edna Experience'' * ''Dame Edna Kisses It Better'' * '' Des O'Connor Tonight'' * ''

Evening Standard British Film Awards The Evening Standard British Film Awards were established in 1973 by London's ''Evening Standard'' newspaper. The Standard Awards is the only ceremony "dedicated to British and Irish talent," judged by a panel of "top UK critics." Each ceremony ...

'' * ''

Evening Standard Theatre Awards The ''Evening Standard'' Theatre Awards, established in 1955, are the oldest theatrical awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. They are presented annually for outstanding achievements in London Theatre, and are organised by the '' Evening Standa ...

'' * ''The Faith Brown Awards'' * '' The Faith Brown Chat Show'' * ''A Gala Evening With Victor Borge'' * '' Game for a Laugh'' * ''

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 The Goodies (TV series), ep ...

'' * ''The Ken Goodwin Show'' * ''

The Krankies Klub ''The Krankies Klub'' was the Krankies The Krankies are a Scottish comedy duo who enjoyed success as a cabaret act in the 1970s and on television in the 1980s, featuring in their own television shows and making pop records. Since this period ...

'' * '' Lena & Bonnie'' * ''

The National Television Awards The National Television Awards (often shortened to NTAs) is a British television awards ceremony, broadcast by the ITV network and initiated in 1995. The National Television Awards are the most prominent ceremony for which the results are vote ...

'' * '' Newlyweds'' * ''A Night of 100 Stars'' * ''A Night on Mount Edna'' * '' Play Your Cards Right'' * ''Pot of Gold'' * ''

The Prince's Trust The Prince's Trust ( cy, Ymddiriedolaeth y Tywysog) is a charity in the United Kingdom founded in 1976 by King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) to help vulnerable young people get their lives on track. It supports 11-to-30-year-olds who are u ...

Galas'' * '' Punchlines'' * '' The Pyramid Game'' * ''

Royal Film Performance The Royal Film Performance is a trademarked event owned by The Film and Television Charity, formerly the Cinema & Television Benevolent Fund. The events showcases a major film premiere and is attended by members of the British Royal Family. The p ...

'' * ''

Royal Variety Performance The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal ...

'' * '' The Russ Abbot Show'' * ''

Sale of the Century ''Sale of the Century'' (stylized as ''$ale of the Century'') is an American television game show that originally debuted on September 29, 1969, on NBC daytime. It was one of three NBC game shows to premiere on that date, the other two being t ...

'' * ''Search For A Star'' * '' The Stanley Baxter Series'' * ''

Strike It Lucky ''Strike It Lucky'' (known as ''Michael Barrymore's Strike It Rich'' from 1996 to 1999) is a British television game show that ran from 29 October 1986 to 23 August 1999, originally produced by Thames Television Thames Television, commonl ...

'' * '' Surprise Surprise'' * ''Tarby & Friends'' * '' Tell the Truth'' * ''The Unrecorded Jasper Carrot'' * ''

We Love TV ''We Love TV'' is a British game show that aired on ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network cover ...

'' For BBC Television he also announced

Clive James Clive James (born Vivian Leopold James; 7 October 1939 – 24 November 2019) was an Australian critic, journalist, broadcaster, writer and lyricist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 1962 until his death in 2019.100%'' on five days a week for the new television station Channel 5. He made 1100 shows over several contiguous series for a period of nearly 5 years, pulling in good ratings for the channel, but the show was finally dropped at the end of 2001 as part of a station revamp. For financial reasons no editing time was available, so shows had to be transmission-ready at the end of each recording. A normal recording day saw 10 shows being made, but on one day a record number of 12 shows was recorded. He also recorded 35 '' 100%'' specials and 38 late-night versions of the show. He asked over 117,000 questions during the show's run. From May 2000 he also took over as in-vision host of an additional daily half-hour Channel 5 quiz show '' One to Win''. This also had good ratings and ran to 208 shows over two series.

Actor

As an actor he starred with

Sir John Mills Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portra ...

and Dame Peggy Ashcroft in the 1986 animated film '' When the Wind Blows'' in which he played the radio announcer warning of a nuclear attack. He was The Newsreader in the London debut of ''

Angels in America ''Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes'' is a two-part play by American playwright Tony Kushner. The work won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the Tony Award for Best Play, and the Drama Desk Award f ...

'' at the National Theatre in the early 1990s. He also played the newsreader in

's science fiction radio and television serial '' Captain Kremmen'' and has performed in a number of film and television dramas, including '' Something Wicked This Way Comes'', '' The Custard Boys'', ''

Kavanagh QC ''Kavanagh QC'' is a British television series made by Central Television for ITV between 1995 and 2001. All five series are available on DVD in both Region 1 and Region 2. Plot The series starred John Thaw as barrister James Kavanagh QC, ...

'', '' Thursday the 12th'', ''

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' Casualty'', and ...

'', '' Dempsey and Makepeace'' and ''

The Gentle Touch ''The Gentle Touch'' is a British police drama television series made by London Weekend Television for ITV which began on 11 April 1980 and ran until 1984. The series is notable for being the first British series to feature a female police of ...

''. He has also performed in several television situation comedies, including '' A Fine Romance'', ''Nobody's Perfect'', '' No Problem!'' and '' Two's Company''.

Other work

As well as his broadcast work, since 1967 he has voiced and presented commercials, conferences and conventions, training and internal communication films, product launches and awards ceremonies. Major clients have included IBM, Campaign magazine, BMW, the

Royal College of Nursing The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is a registered trade union in the United Kingdom for those in the profession of nursing. It was founded in 1916, receiving its royal charter in 1928. Queen Elizabeth II was the patron until her death in 2022. ...

and

Volvo Cars Volvo Cars ( sv, Volvo personvagnar, styled VOLVO in the company's logo) is a Sweden, Swedish multinational manufacturer of luxury vehicles headquartered in Torslanda, Gothenburg. The company manufactures SUVs, station wagons, and sedans. The co ...

. He has also narrated over 100 audiobooks for the Talking Book service of the

Royal National Institute of Blind People The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) is a UK charity offering information, support and advice to almost two million people in the UK with sight loss. History The RNIB was founded by Thomas Rhodes Armitage, a doctor who had eye ...

, for Listening Books' ''Sound Learning'' educational initiative and for other publishers. Throughout his life he has written casual articles and occasional obituaries for a wide variety of newspapers and magazines, including ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'', ''

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 publishe ...

'' and ''

The Oldie ''The Oldie'' is a British monthly magazine written for older people "as a light-hearted alternative to a press obsessed with youth and celebrity", according to its website. The magazine was launched in 1992 by Richard Ingrams, who was its ed ...

'' and five of his audio dramas—''A Bark of the Fox'', ''Essay on Betrayal'', ''The Trumpet in the Hall'', ''Peter in the Sky'', and an adaptation of Godfrey Smith's novel ''The Business of Loving''—have been produced by

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of Talk radio, spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history fro ...

.''Robin Houston Collection'' (0015801-5), British Library Sound Archive. He is an alumnus of the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sena ...

and a Long Service member of the British actors' union Equity.

References

External links

Robin Houston website

Robin Houston in catalogue of Listening Books

Robin Houston in catalogue of RNIB Talking Books
{{DEFAULTSORT:Houston, Robin Living people 1947 births Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art Stage managers British radio people British radio presenters English radio presenters English television presenters English game show hosts Television personalities from London Game show announcers Radio and television announcers British television newsreaders and news presenters ITV regional newsreaders and journalists Audiobook narrators British male voice actors LBC radio presenters