Journalist and broadcaster Sir Alastair Burnet dies aged 84

Friday 20 July 2012

Veteran newsreader and journalist Sir Alastair Burnet has been praised by colleagues as “the best we’ll ever have” after his death, at the age of 84.

Sir Alastair, known to many for his years fronting News At Ten, died peacefully at the Beatrice Place Nursing Home in Kensington, where he was being cared for following a series of strokes.

Sir Alastair, who spent sevweral years working for the then Glasgow Herald, was also a trusted face and voice for national occasions, anchoring several general elections and the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales.

He was described as “one of the greatest journalists of his generation” by Andrew Neil, while newscaster Alastair Stewart said he was an “understated genius”. Stewart, who joined the national news team from a regional station while Sir Alastair was already a respected household name, praised his friend’s intellectual capacity, his abilities as a mentor and his belief that “the news is the star”. He said: “Professionally, I owe Alastair everything. He was my friend and mentor - he was everything I ever aspired to be. “Intellectually a giant, and yet the kindest and most generous of men; he had an encyclopaedic knowledge of politics and yet a passionate and detailed grasp of the ins and outs of soccer; a polymath, steeped in a Protestant work-ethic, he worked harder than anyone and taught me homework and prep’ are everything. “He was the force. He gave us all confidence - when ‘AB’ was in command nothing would go wrong - and, God forbid, if someone or something else did, above all others, he would put it right and get us back on track. “It is simply that mix of peerless professionalism and warm, gentle love that I will most miss and I count my blessings, every day, that I was touched by both in my formative years.” The son of a Scottish engineer, Sir Alastair studied history at Oxford University before joining The Herald - then called the Glasgow Herald - as a sub-editor and leader writer. He spent eight years working in Scotland before joining The Economist in 1958. He went on to edit the publication before being appointed editor of the Daily Express. Sir Alastair, whose wife Maureen Sinclair was working as a sub-editor in Scotland when they married in 1958, also spent a short period at the BBC working on Panorama and fronted the two general election programmes of 1974. As well as his many election broadcasts for ITV as a reporter and presenter, he also led ITN’s coverage of the Apollo 11 Moon landing in 1969. He was also known for his royal documentaries and famously found himself mocked by satirical series Spitting Image, due to his sympathetic documentary portraits of the royals. And his puppet character featured in a spoof sketch about the deaths of prominent figures, declaring: “Tonight’s main headline - someone famous has died.” Mr Neil said: “Alastair was one of the greatest journalists of his generation. Joy it was to be in his company and he was an inspiration to many who followed in his footsteps - the broadcasters’ broadcaster.” John Hardie, chief executive of ITN, said Sir Alastair’s legacy lived on. “ITN stands on the shoulders of giants, none greater than Sir Alastair Burnet. He defined newscasting for a generation and his influence is still clearly evident today,” he said. “He set the bar to a standard that has never been surpassed and perhaps not even equalled. Sir Alastair will be sorely missed by many here at ITN, but his legacy lives on.” Paying tribute, Stewart said his friend had continued indulging in his passion for Scottish politics during his later years. Stewart said: “We lunched a little while ago, before his illness made such encounters difficult. He gossiped, laughed and probed about Scottish politics- always a passion. Even then, I found it hard to keep up with this frail, kindly colossus. “He was simply the best we ever had - the best we’ll ever have. America lost her Cronkite; we have just lost our Burnet. “A truly sad day only made bearable by his legacy: watchable, honest and authoritative news where, as he always stressed, ‘the news is the star’ - we just read it. A classic understatement from an understated genius.”

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Journalist and broadcaster Sir Alastair Burnet dies aged 84

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