9 ^th February 2009 

 

Sponsored by Coronation Toyota  

Kirby Cross, Frinton-on-Sea 

 

An Audience with Peter & Dan Snow 

 

 

DAN SNOW was born in London in 1978.  He went to St Paul’s School where he was head boy, and Balliol College, Oxford, where he won a First Class Honours degree in History.  He rowed in the Oxford Eight in the Boat Races 1999, 2000, when he was Captain, and 2001. 

 

He was joint presenter with his father, Peter Snow, the veteran BBC broadcaster, of Battleplan: Alamein, the story of the British desert victory over the Germans in 1942.  They went on to present Battlefield Britain, the story of eight great battles on British soil in 2004 and have presented 20^th Century Battlefields on BBC 2 in spring 2007.  He is joint author with his father, Peter, of Battlefield Britain, BBC books 2004, and 20^th Century Battlefields, for publication by BBC books in spring 2007. 

 

Dan and Peter also presented Whose Britain is it anyway?  The story of the ownership of the countryside in 2006, and have completed a review of the British economy.  Dan has also presented a number of shows on BBC1, including national live event programmes and the One Show during the summer of 2006.  He is a regular contributor, as a historian, to BBC News. 

 

PETER SNOW was born in Dublin, the son of a British army officer. He was at school in England and did his National service in 1956-8 in the Somerset Light infantry.  He then went to Balliol College Oxford where he did a degree in Classics, Ancient History and Philosophy. 

 

In 1962 he joined ITN as a script-writer and reporter and began newscasting the same year.  He was appointed Diplomatic and Defence Correspondent in 1966, and for the next decade reported from all round the world.  In 1970 he wrote “Leila’s Hijack War” with a journalist colleague, David Phillips, - a fast paper back telling the story of the international crisis that was caused by the Palestinian guerrillas who hijacked  three airliners and blew them up on a desert airstrip.  In 1972 he wrote the Biography of King Hussein of Jordan.   

 

He also covered elections and other live political programmes for ITN until he left in 1979 to join the BBC. There he was one of the first presenters of NEWSNIGHT when it began in January 1980, and went on to cover elections and other live political events for the BBC until 2005.  He left Newsnight to present TOMORROW’S WORLD in 1997.  He presented it until 2001 with filming trips to America, Europe, Japan and New Zealand.  In 2001/2, he was involved in a range of BBC programmes – hosting the America’s Cup programme for BBC sport, “The Abyss” for BBC Natural History, and “What the World thinks of America” for BBC News.   In 2002, he made a programme for BBC 2 with his son, Dan, a historian, to mark the 60^th anniversary of the Battle of Alamein: Battleplan.  This led to them both presenting two further series – “Battlefield Britain”, 8 battles from Boudicca to the Battle of Britain, aired in 2004, and “20^th Century Battlefields” for transmission in spring 2007.   Dan and Peter also presented Whose Britain is it anyway? The story of the ownership of the countryside in 2006, and completed a review of the British economy.  Peter has presented MASTERTEAM, a quiz game, on Radio 4, and Random Edition – a review of the newspapers from a day in history chosen at random.  At the Royal Television Society in 1998 he won the Judges’ Award for services to broadcasting.   

 

Peter is married to Ann MacMillan of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.  He has six children, three sons and three daughters.  He enjoys sailing, skiing, and model railways. Peter received a CBE in the 2006 Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for his services to broadcasting.