| Emily Maitlis | |
|---|---|
Maitlis in April 2010 |
|
| Born | Emily Maitlis 6 September 1970 Canada |
| Occupation | Journalist, Newsreader |
| Notable credit(s) | BBC News BBC News at Five BBC News at One |
Emily Maitlis (born 6 September 1970) is a Canadian-born British journalist and newsreader, currently employed by the BBC.
Contents |
Raised in Sheffield, she was educated at the local King Edward VII School. A graduate of Queens' College, Cambridge, she speaks fluent Spanish, English, Italian and French, and some Mandarin.[1] Prior to working in news, she was a documentary maker in Cambodia and China. She worked for the NBC network and was based in Hong Kong.
Previously, she spent six years with NBC Asia, initially as a business reporter creating documentaries, and then as a presenter in Hong Kong covering the collapse of the Tiger Economies in 1997.[2] She also covered the transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong with Jon Snow for Channel 4.[3] She then moved to Sky News in the UK as a business correspondent, and then to BBC London News when the programme was re-launched in 2001.
She is now one of the main presenters of Newsnight on BBC Two, with Jeremy Paxman, Kirsty Wark and Gavin Esler. She also presents regular relief shifts on the BBC News at One, the BBC News at Five the BBC News Channel, and relief presents the Sunday evening editions of the BBC Weekend News on BBC One. Maitlis was a regular presenter on BBC News during 2006, joining as part of a new line-up in April to present alongside Ben Brown from 7-10pm during the week, but was replaced by Joanna Gosling when she went on maternity leave.
During 2005 Maitlis appeared as the question mistress on the game show The National Lottery: Come And Have A Go. She has also presented BBC Breakfast.
From May 2006 until July 2007, she presented STORYFix on BBC News, a more light-hearted look at the week's news set to up-beat music.
In July 2007 Maitlis was appointed as a contributing editor to The Spectator magazine, an unpaid post. This had been approved by her immediate boss, the head of BBC TV news Peter Horrocks, but the decision was subsequently overturned by his superior, the BBC News director Helen Boaden.[4]
From a Jewish family background, Emily Maitlis is the daughter of Professor Peter Maitlis, FRS, Emeritus Professor of Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Sheffield and Marion Maitlis. She is married to Mark Gwynne, a banker,[5] with whom she has two children.
During 2002, it emerged that Maitlis had been stalked throughout the preceding six years by a former university friend. The 32-year-old male student pursued Maitlis with correspondence, and would appear at her place of work. The stalker concerned admitted harassing Maitlis and was sentenced to four months imprisonment.[6]
In March 2007, David Decoteau, a 45-year-old convicted rapist, was sentenced to four life sentences whilst on probation, following another assault that had remained unsolved since 1996.[7] During the trial, it was revealed that Decoteau had an "unhealthy fixation" with Maitlis, and although not shown to have engaged in actual stalking, it was noted that he possessed photographs of Maitlis on the wall of his probation hostel room and had previously written to her from prison. He was also described as being "fascinated" with TV newsreaders Fiona Bruce and Nina Hossain, though he was not found to have made any attempt to stalk them either.
| Media offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jane Hill |
Regular Relief Presenter of BBC News at One 2006 – present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Louise Minchin |
Main Relief Presenter of BBC News at Five 2007 – present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |