Peter Hobday RIP

Broadcaster Peter Hobday has died, aged 82. He was born in Dudley in 1937, went to St Chad’s College in Wolverhampton, and started modern languages at Leicester University, without completing his degree. But with French under his belt, he managed to spend his national service at NATO HQ in Paris.

(The French made it on air at least once. During the Radio 4 rolling news service known as Scud FM, covering the first Gulf War in 1991, Hobday was at the microphone when a hapless producer put to air, without checking, a contributor from Morocco who only spoke French - Hobday didn't flinch, and translated his conversation, questions and answers, live on air) .

His first job in journalism was covering 'showbiz' for the Express and Star in Wolverhampton. He moved to London, first in PR, then writing for business magazines. He joined the BBC in 1970, freelancing for the World Service before moving to Radio 4. In 1976/7 he was one of the regular presenters of a 7pm news programme, The World In Focus, and fronted two Radio 4 Budget Specials; he went on to Money Box, often co-presenting with Louise Botting, and The Financial World Tonight.

On television he had the Money Programme and with Peter Snow, John Tusa and Charles Wheeler, was one of the original presenters on Newsnight, as well as its economics specialist, when it started in January 1980.

In 1982, editor Julian Holland brought him to Today. The top dogs were then Redhead and Timpson, but there were ten shifts a week to fill, so there was room for a regular number 3. For the next 14 years Hobday was dotted into the rota.  John Birt arrived at the BBC in 1987 and journalistic rigour was the order of the day - interviews needed to be researched, briefed, gamed and re-thought, by a new breed of younger ambitious producers. Interviews were not conversations; they were there to be 'won'. Peter was patient, but his style and approach was unchanged - in those days a five-minute interview was considered long, and he knew you only needed two or three sharp-ish questions to fill the time. 

Towards the end of his time, he was Eeyore-ish about his future on the programme. Eventually, bosses Tony Hall and Jenny Abramsky gave Roger Mosey enough backing to end the deal, rather abruptly for what once had been a friendly working unit.

In retirement, Peter picked up honorary degrees from De Montfort and Wolverhampton universities, and spent time as a visiting professor in media studies at De Montfort.