BBC News: Presenters & Rotas

Jeremy Bowen I can imagine, but I get the idea Matt Frei and Ben Brown are most likely in front of an autocue for the rest of their career*. Stephen Sackur would be an interesting choice.

*Obviously excluding when a presenter is out on location, as is often the case with Brown and Frei!

Rushin Chowdhury is actually "Reshmin Chowdhury", I think.

On another note, we had someone called Sean Ley doing the news last night on BBC World, in the weekend evening shift normally occupied by Owen Thomas or Komla Dumor of late. Recall Sean reporting politics many years ago, but have never seen him newscasting, especially on World.

Don't imagine Tim Willcox being the next WAE on BBC News. However, aside from the names mentioned by House and Ginofish above, I would like to see Lyse Doucet as the next WAE when Simpson retires in fifteen years!

It would be nice to see Ben Brown back in a more permanent reporting role. He just doesn't seem to cut it as a presenter on a fast moving rolling news channel, and if anyone can remember his reports from Zimbabwe c.2000 you'll know just what a good journalist he really is, even though his Iraq reports were also very good

Matt Frei seems alright as a presenter from the bits I've seen of him on World News America, though can seem a bit patronising at times, but I think out of the people named above, the most likely to candidate to succeed John Simpson, if and when he retires, would be IMO Jeremy Bowen

Tim Willcox Cant become WAE, if he did the BBC would have to employ 3 or 4 more people just to cover all the shifts that Tim would usually present

Tim was on this afternoon 2-5pm with Sophie Long.

... and he was also on World from 8 till 12.

Being honest, in the current climate a World Affairs Editor role does seem to be a bit of a luxury, maybe a senior international correspondent would be better, when the time comes, regularly employed and only when necessary moved into the WAE role.

Sean Ley is actually "Shaun Ley", I think!

Shaun regularly presents The World At One on Fridays and The World This Weekend and has done for five or six years now, I think. Before moving to national news in about 2000, he was a regular co-presenter of Newsroom South East with Gwenan Edwards, Sharon Doughty or Gargy Patel in Mike Embley's absence. I remember him standing in on what was The World for Zeinab Badawi a few years back. So overall he has quite a lot of newscasting experience both on TV and radio.

I agree Lyse Doucet would make an excellent World Affairs Editor - I doubt it will happen, though. Surely Jonathan Charles has more chance of getting the role than Tim Willcox, although someone like Jeremy Bowen or Stephen Sackur would be top choices. Perhaps even Orla Guerin as an outside bet?!

Lyse Doucet would be brilliant. Won't happen, but it would be brilliant!

Agree about Ben Brown not being as good a presenter as he is correspondent and journalist.

Don't find Matt Frei a patronising presenter, but he does have his own style alright.

And if World Affairs Editor is a luxury, surely Europe Editor is too. I don't really see what a Europe Editor adds to an additional dedicated Europe correspondent.

Wasn't that role created for Mark Mardell after he didn't get Political Editor?

Is it just me or does anyone else reckon the BBC has too many international correspondents? there’s no need to have two correspondents in Paris , there’s no need to have six Washington correspondents I mean don't get me wrong I think it's great that they have such a wide spread of knowledge across the globe but I feel there is too many.

Anyway back to the topic of WAE I reckon John will retire or take lesser role in the next five years when he does I think the favourites to replace him Matt Frei, Justin Webb, Ben Brown , Jonathon Charles and Jeremy Bowen as an outside choice I think Humphrey Hawksbe would do well.

Or there’s the option of getting someone from elsewhere.

I believe it was, but was then handed to Gavin Hewitt last year (or the year before) when Mardell got North America Editor - a role which I can only see is tenable because of the BBC's huge output to America, such as World News America.