The People OMs of the Year OM of the Year 2002
OM of the Year 2002
OM of the Year 2002
John Sergeant (1957-62; Kingweston) Journalist and political correspondent
Robert Watson (1950-54; Orchards/Millfield/Leigh Nook) Services to international hockey
John Sergeant
I have long admired John’s approach to reporting politics and particularly enjoyed his now famous appearance on “Have I Got News for You”. Ian Hislop noted that John had been one of the funniest guests in the history of the programme. This year, he has published his autobiography “Give Me Ten Seconds”, which makes essential reading for anyone interested in media, politics or the un-holy offspring of the two. Following Millfield, John went up to Magdalen College, Oxford, gaining BA Hons. in Philosophy, Politics and Economics.
Prior to joing ITN in March 2000 as Political Editor, John had been the BBC’s Chief Political Correspondent since 1992. He joined the corporation as a radio war correspondent in Vietnam, Cyprus, Israel and Rhodesia, also regugularly reporting from Northern Ireland and being acting correspondent in Washington, Paris and Dublin. Before joining the BBC, John appeared in the 1996 award-winning BBC TV comedy series “On the Margin”, with Alan Bennett, who chose him from the cast of the Oxford University Comedy Revue Team at the Edinburgh Festival. John’s career in light entertainment lay dormant for many years while he built up his image as a serious political correspondent. Among his notable journalistic achievements was his encounter with Margaret Thatcher at the Paris Embassy, days before she resigned as Prime Minister in 1990. The way he was pushed aside by Lady Thatcher’s press Secretary, Sir Bernard Ingham, has become one of the most famous live broadcasts of recent times. He won a British Press Guild award for the most memorable broadcast of the year.
Robert Watson
“Watson Worthy Winner of the Friskin Award”. This was the view of the Times on the 25th January this year on the occasion of Robert standing down after 27 years with the Great British Olympic Hockey Board, the most recent nine as President. He received the Memorial Award at the Hockey Writers’ Club for outstanding services to hockey. Robert was a schoolboy international whilst at Millfield and, and over the years, he went on to contribute at club, national, European, World and Olympic level. He captained East Grinstead and Southgate and is still Vice-President of the European Hockey Federation as well as Secretary to the Disciplinary Committee of the International Hockey Federation. If that wasn’t enough, Robert has also enjoyed a most distinguished legal career (Head of Chambers), concentrating on criminal defence at the Bar. 2002 has lived up to the standards of previous years.
I hope everyone reading this will join me in congratulating John and Robert upon their own personal achievements and upon winning these awards.