BBC News: Presenters & Rotas

Juliet Foster still on this evening with the business news, I just wish she'd be on as a relief main presenter on the News channel. Would be great to see her paired on a shift with Simon McCoy, would remind me of Sky News pre-2005!

She does suit afternoons well. I would like her to take up the role permanently. But someone will have to take her role on the evenings. Annita McVeigh would be the obvious choice for me.

Here here. She's a fantastic presenter more than capable to present the main news. She has a very strong voice and she looks in control.

I think it could be a possibility of Joanna and Jon on afternoons with evenings being single-headed. I would have Joanna move to the 2pm shift now and replace with Annita McVeigh or Sophie Long until they go single-headed.

Olly Foster doing a long shift today, been on since 8:30. Intentional or not??

Well up until this week the shifts were 8.30-4 then 4-12. On Mon and Tue we've had 8.30-2, 2-6 then 6-12. Andrew Lindsay has tweeted to say he's on later but he thought his first appearance would be at 3.15. Yesterday he thought he was starting at 11.15.

And having a good banter down the line with John Sopel. I loved the line 'I maybe far away...'.

Yes, Andrew Lindsay is on now. Olly can have a lie down now!

And Juliette is on in a stretched-out pinstripe suit jacket. Very strange indeed!

Has Fiona Bruce ever been on BBC News 24 doing rolling news? I'm just thinking that because she's filling in for George on the Six, and it would be interested to see her doing GMT for example on World News if she were to do both of George's shifts.

I know over the Christmas Period, she covered the last 10 minutes of news in some cases on the news channel before the TOTH after the National Bulletins.

The only presenters I've known, other than Huw (who present the national bulletins) to appear on the news channel were Darren Jordan (when he was working for the BBC) - during the 2003 power cut, he presented the mid afternoon shift after the 1pm News from Westmister with Carrie Gracie. I'm also sure I've seen Sophie Rayworth covering the odd shift on the News channel when it was also News 24 some years ago (with Jon Sopel on one occasion).

The likes of Charlie Stayt, Suzanna Reid, Kate Silverton, Naga Munchetty, Mishal Hussein, Bill Turnbill and Sian Williams all presented on BBC News 24 or BBC World before joining breakfast or presenting the nationals.

Sian Williams even??!

Sian presented News 24 right from the start in 1997.

Peter Sissons and Philip Hayton also presented on News 24 after being a BBC1 newsreader, as did Michael Buerk on one occasion in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks.