Presenters

Gerry Jackson

I can't remember ever watching Blue Peter or Newsround and imagining myself working for the BBC.

The mystery would have been shattered if I'd pictured it letting the likes of me in front of a camera.

I was never really single-minded enough to be a natural journalist either, but I came to the North East for my first job in the Beeb and felt at home straight away.

Don't ask me whether it's the people, the countryside or the (relative) lack of traffic jams - or all three. Maybe I haven't dared leave in case I can't come back! So I worked my way around the Pink Palace instead.

The experience of being in a newsroom when something big is happening - or being out and amongst it - is a great privilege, especially when you're part of the BBC. As if that weren't enough, I get to ask impertinent questions to important people and stick them on the telly.

How lucky is that?