Biographies

Presenter and reporter, BBC South West

Andy Breare is a reporter and presenter for BBC Spotlight, joining the programme in 1999.

He was born in 1968 in Mirfield, West Yorkshire, and went to school in Wakefield.

After completing an English degree at York, he embarked on a postgraduate course in Broadcast Journalism at Preston.

Andy began working for the BBC at BBC Radio York as a presenter on the drivetime show and later on the mid-morning show.

In 1993 he was offered the Breakfast show at Pirate FM in Cornwall which he did for two years before being lured back to the BBC to present BBC Radio Cornwall's mid-morning show.

In 1999, Andy went on a five-week attachment from his usual duties at Radio Cornwall to BBC Spotlight in Plymouth, and never went back!

Since then Andy has reported on a range of stories, and regularly presented TV bulletins.

Andy stands in for BBC Spotlight's regular presenter Justin Leigh when required to and presents the sports round-ups on Mondays and Fridays.

Andy has covered a range of sailing stories following local competitors in big races such as the Vendee Globe and the Transat. He reported on Sir Robin Knox Johnston's latest solo round-the-world voyage and recently competed in a leg of the Clipper Round the World yacht race sailing across the North Atlantic from Nova Scotia to Cork in Southern Ireland.

During the 13-day voyage he sent back filmed reports for BBC Spotlight and pieces for BBC Radio in a broadcasting first.

Andy lives in Plymouth and has two children. When he is not working he enjoys cooking, travelling and watching rugby.