New look Tyne Tees news
After a decade on air, Tyne Tees Television’s flagship news programme, North East Tonight is getting a new presenter line up.
Up until recently, television legend, Mike Neville MBE had presented the show – but ill heath has forced one of the UK’s longest serving newsreaders into semi-retirement.
Mike Neville started his broadcasting career at Tyne Tees in the early 1960s. He moved to the BBC in 1964, and stayed with the corporation for 32 years, mainly presenting the local news programme, Look North. While at the BBC he also had a stint as presenter of Come Dancing and national evening news programme Nationwide. In 1996 Mike returned to Tyne Tees Television to launch North East Tonight. His defection to ITV made national news headlines.
However after over 40 years of daily broadcasting, Mike Neville has departed Tyne Tees – and his replacement presenters have now been announced. The Newcastle Evening Chronicle reports that North East Tonight will now broadcast two programmes. One for the Tyneside area, the other for Teesside.
Tyneside’s edition of North East Tonight will be presented by former Sky News and ITV News Channel newsreader Johnathan Morell. He is no stranger to Tyne Tees, during the 1990s he was one of the stations continuity announcers, and in recent years has been a presenter of news bulitins and documentaries at the North East broadcaster.
In his new role Johnathan will be joined by co-presenter Phillippa Tomson who is originally from York, but has been working up until last month at the Birmingham-based, ITV Central News.
Teesside’s news programme will be presented by Tyne Tees stalwart Pam Royle, who first worked at the station as weather presenter in the early 1980s, Pam has also read the news for LWT in London and worked as a continuity announcer for Central Television in Birmingham. She is joined by co-presenter Ian Payne who has worked for the ITV company since 1993 as a sports presenter.
The Evening Chronicle also report that a billboard advertising campaign will be launching across the North East and North Yorkshire promoting the new-look North East Tonight.
