| Show name | Newshour |
|---|---|
| Format | News, current events, and factual |
| Runtime | 60 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Home station | BBC World Service |
| Presenter | James Coomarasamy Lyse Doucet Tim Franks James Menendez Andrew Peach Rebecca Kesby |
| Record location | New Broadcasting House |
| First aired | 1988 |
| Last aired | present |
| Website | https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p002vsnk |
Newshour is BBC World Service's flagship international news and current affairs radio programme, which is broadcast twice daily: weekdays at 1400, weekends at 1300 and nightly at 2100 (UK time). There is also an additional online programme at 20:00 on weekdays. Occasionally the programme can run for three hours during major breaking stories such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Each edition lasts one hour. It consists of news bulletins on the hour and half hour, international interviews and in-depth reports of world news. The BBC World Service considers it one of their most important programmes.[citation needed]
In 2011, it was kept as one of four key outlets, despite severe cutbacks. It is also broadcast in the United States on various American Public Media stations. WNYC simulcasts the programme's afternoon edition on weekdays, and the nightly edition on weekends.[1] The programme is broadcast live from Broadcasting House in London. It covers the major news of the day, often interviewing heads of state and government ministers.
History
The programme was first broadcast in October 1988.[2] Originally broadcast in a single timeslot at 2200 UTC, World Service planners responded to listener demand in April, 1991 by expanding to a two timeslot schedule at 1300 and 2100 UTC.[3] In January 1992 under the Directorship of John Tusa, who had received increased funding from the Foreign Office,[4] Newshour added a third timeslot at 0500 UTC to serve listeners in the Americas.[5] Later budget cuts eventually caused the elimination of the 0500 broadcast, and Newshour reverted to the present twice per day schedule.
Presenters
Current
| Years | Presenter | Current role |
|---|---|---|
| 2010–present | James Coomarasamy | Main presenter |
| 1999–present | Lyse Doucet | |
| 2012–present | Tim Franks | |
| ?–present | James Menendez | |
| 2013–present | Andrew Peach | |
| ?–present | Rebecca Kesby | |
| 2023–present | Nuala McGovern | |
| ?–present | Audrey Brown | Regular relief presenter |
| ?–present | Roger Hearing | |
| ?–present | Paul Henley | |
| ?-present | Krupa Padhy | |
| ?–present | Owen Bennett-Jones | |
| ?–present | Julian Worricker | |
| ?–present | Celia Hatton |
On weekdays, the 14:00 and 21:00 GMT editions are presented by different presenters where as on weekends they are presented by the same presenter
Past
- Claire Bolderson, 1997–2012[6]
- Razia Iqbal, 2011–2023[7]
- Robin Lustig, 1989–2012[8]
- Mary Ann Sieghart, 2008–10[9]
- Paul Welsh[10]
- Judy Swallow[11]
- Alex Brodie[12]
- Philippa Thomas 200?–21
- Nick Worrall, 1988 – ?
- Oliver Scott, 1988 – ?
- Hugh Prysor-Jones, 1988 – ?[13]
- Geoffrey Stern, 1988 – ?
- Max Pearson[14]
- Kathryn Davies, 1991– ?
- Max Easterman, 1991 – ?
- Julian Marshall, 1991–2025[15]
See also
- BBC World Service, the home of Newshour
- BBC News
References
- ^ "WNYC Schedule 6.5.2023.xls - wnyc-schedule.pdf". Archived 2023-06-20 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2023-09-03.
- ^ "BBC World Service | Programmes | Newshour | About Us - A Note from the Editor". Archived from the original on 2006-05-23. Retrieved 2011-12-31.
- ^ "BBC World Service | London Calling | April, 1991 | pp 3,4". Archived from the original on 2024-05-20.
- ^ "BBC World Service | London Calling | April, 1991 | "The Right to Know," pp 18-19". Archived from the original on 2024-05-20.
- ^ "BBC World Service | London Calling | April, 1991 | "Doubletime," p 4". Archived from the original on 2024-05-20.
- ^ "Newshour - 9/11: Newshour live from New York - BBC Sounds". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "ri3703". Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "Robin Lustig to leave The World Tonight and Newshour". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "BBC World Service - Newshour, Newshour Special". BBC. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "Paul Welsh". 2005-05-09. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "The BBC Loses a Bit Of Its Luster; A Venerable Institution Braces for a Battle (Published 2003)". 2003-09-25. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ Wells, Matt (2003-02-21). "Sackings row grows at BBC". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "Hugh Prysor Jones". www.thetimes.com. 2015-10-21. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "Max Pearson". Mandy.com. Retrieved 2025-08-23.
- ^ "It's presenter Julian Marshall's...". Facebook. BBC World Service. 1 May 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2025.