South East Today

Latest weather forecast - Monday to Friday only

Presenter profiles

Find out more about the people who bring you South East Today.

Polly Evans

Polly caught the journalism bug at the University of Leeds working early mornings on the campus radio station. Then came the features department of BBC Radio Wales making programmes for BBC Radio Four.

Before landing a place at Cardiff Journalism School to do a post-graduate diploma, the budding hack took herself off to post-war Bosnia to make a film about a new impartial television station for the country.
She's also managed to fit in a year; working in Japan as an English teacher, living in Tokyo was "wonderful, challenging and totally bizarre!"

Polly initially joined BBC Radio Wales as a reporter and bulletins reader, before moving south to BBC Radio Devon a year later. It wasn't long before she moved over to report and present bulletins for the television news programme Spotlight and the South West Politics Show. Then came South East Today, a move she was delighted to make.

When she's off duty Polly enjoys indulging her passion for the arts, going to the theatre and exhibitions. She's also a relatively keen scuba diver and is "learning to love" her partner's power kite.

Rob Smith

Rob has been a presenter and reporter with BBC South East Today since the programme started in 2001.
Rob joined the BBC in the South East in 1994, as a reporter with Radio Kent. He enjoyed seven great years on the radio, ending up producing and presenting the evening drivetime show.

When BBC South East Today started in Tunbridge Wells, Rob made the move from painting pictures with words to capturing pictures with a camera as a reporter and video journalist. As a video journalist, Rob has covered the whole gamut of stories, from hard news, talking to victims of crime or circumstance, to the more amusing items, such as meeting the world’s largest rabbit on the Isle of Sheppey.

In 2008 Rob achieved a lifetime ambition in sailing around Britain in his yacht Wild Rover, a voyage of some 2000 miles which raised over £15,000 for leukaemia research. Rob lives in Kent and is married with two children.

Kaye Forster

Kaye’s fascination with thunderstorms as a child drove her to learn more about how the weather works. A degree in Geography and Earth Science from Brunel University provided the basis for her career in meteorology.

She completed her training with the Met Office and became a fully qualified weather forecaster in 2007. She joined the BBC in June 2008 to expand the weather team in Tunbridge Wells. "Presenting the weather can be quite challenging at times but it is great fun and I feel very lucky to be doing a job that I am so passionate about".

Kaye is also passionate about football and has played for Wycombe Wanderers, Exeter City and local side Ebbsfleet United. Her claim to fame is scoring in the Women’s FA Cup. Kaye is a big fan of the outdoors and is happiest when roaming the globe and exploring new places.

She has travelled to South America and has climbed to Everest Base Camp. She loves a challenge and enjoys running, hiking, rock climbing, skiing and surfing.

Kaddy Lee-Preston

Kaddy’s love of the weather came from her dad, who had an expansive knowledge of meteorology from his career as a fighter pilot. Kaddy’s early enthusiasm eventually led to an Honours degree in Meteorology from Reading University, from where she joined the Met Office to be trained as a forecaster.

This involved more meteorology and included a rather challenging stint of forecasting at an operational base for Harrier fighter planes. Preferring to work with people rather than computers, Kaddy moved into broadcast meteorology.

Joining South East Today when it started in 2001, Kaddy has moved on since her first appearance on camera – when she was filmed as a child tickling the Queen Mother's behind with a feather! Away from the cameras, her interests include snowboarding, break dancing, cycling, cloud photography, techno music, useless gadgets - and goats!

Contact us

BBC South East Today
The Great Hall
Mount Pleasant Road
Tunbridge Wells
TN1 1QQ

Telephone: 01892 675580

E-mail: southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk