The Newsroom

Mark Austin to host both 6.30pm and 10.30pm bulletins

Replacing Trevor McDonald, staying with Evening News (June 2005)

This site closed in March 2021 and is now a read-only archive
AN
all new Phil
Well to be honest Huw Edwards was hardly a big name when he started presenting the 6 o'clock News, yet he's one of their main anchors on the BBC now. If they put a "nobody" on the Evening News, they won't stay a nobody for long, and to be honest I wouldn't class Steve Scott as this anyway. He's done the sport on the 10.30 news many times, he did football on five, and he's covered for other presenters on many ITV News programmes. Whilst he'd not exactly a household name, all the current big names had to start out somehow and Steve is doing exactly the same. Mary Nightingale went from London Tonight to ITV Evening News - hardly a well known name nationally but look at her now.
TW
Time Warp
all new Phil posted:
Mary Nightingale went from London Tonight to ITV Evening News - hardly a well known name nationally but look at her now.


look at who now?!!! she hasn't been on for 6 years! Laughing
JH
Jonathan H
time_warp posted:
all new Phil posted:
Mary Nightingale went from London Tonight to ITV Evening News - hardly a well known name nationally but look at her now.


look at who now?!!! she hasn't been on for 6 years! Laughing


A modest exaggeration! Wink
AN
Andrew Founding member
time_warp posted:
all new Phil posted:
Mary Nightingale went from London Tonight to ITV Evening News - hardly a well known name nationally but look at her now.


look at who now?!!! she hasn't been on for 6 years! Laughing

Which is the point, she hasn't been on screen for "6 years" yet is still a big well known name.
TW
Time Warp
Yes, but Nightingale didn't really get her name from the Evening News; it was because of her importance in programmes such as Carlton Country (was that its name??) and Wish You Were Here? to name a few.
AN
Andrew Founding member
all new Phil posted:
Well to be honest Huw Edwards was hardly a big name when he started presenting the 6 o'clock News, yet he's one of their main anchors on the BBC now. If they put a "nobody" on the Evening News, they won't stay a nobody for long, and to be honest I wouldn't class Steve Scott as this anyway. He's done the sport on the 10.30 news many times, he did football on five, and he's covered for other presenters on many ITV News programmes. Whilst he'd not exactly a household name, all the current big names had to start out somehow and Steve is doing exactly the same. Mary Nightingale went from London Tonight to ITV Evening News - hardly a well known name nationally but look at her now.

Exactly, not many years ago Mark Austin was some occasional Weekend News presenter, look at him now. Nina Hossain was a complete unknown to everyone outside London, now she's well known across the country. Most of ITV News' current presenters such as Andrea, Katie, Felicity etc started as an occasional weekend presenter.

29 days later

LO
Londoner
And now it's official:
www.pressgazette.co.uk/?t=article&l=markaustinconfirmed
TW
Time Warp
I wonder - will Trev leave upon the ITV rebrand and therefore Mark present a (alleged) refreshed 10.30 bulletin?
DO
dodrade
all new Phil posted:
Well to be honest Huw Edwards was hardly a big name when he started presenting the 6 o'clock News, yet he's one of their main anchors on the BBC now. If they put a "nobody" on the Evening News, they won't stay a nobody for long, and to be honest I wouldn't class Steve Scott as this anyway. He's done the sport on the 10.30 news many times, he did football on five, and he's covered for other presenters on many ITV News programmes. Whilst he'd not exactly a household name, all the current big names had to start out somehow and Steve is doing exactly the same. Mary Nightingale went from London Tonight to ITV Evening News - hardly a well known name nationally but look at her now.


It does seem that the job maketh the presenter, but have there been any anchors who were clearly not up the job and are now forgotten? Justin webb did breakfast for years but seems to have vanished.
LO
Londoner
dodrade posted:
Justin webb did breakfast for years but seems to have vanished.

Not so far as listeners to BBC radio are concerned:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/newswatch/ifs/hi/newsid_3560000/newsid_3568900/3568925.stm
NE
Newsman
That's unfair, really. Mark Austin - presenting two main evening news bulletins. Now, I don't really mind Austin but maybe ITN will reconsider because they do have a family of well-known and well-liked faces e.g. Alastair Stewart, Angela Rippon, Andrew Harvey and to a certain extent... John Nicolson.
TW
Time Warp
The Scotsman now has a more detailed report online.

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