Richard Dimbleby - Revision history

Kurt at 20:33, 24 August 2024

2024-08-24T20:33:46Z

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	He took part in the first [[Eurovision\|Eurovision]] television relay in 1951 and appeared in the first live television broadcast from the [[Soviet Union\|Soviet Union]] in 1961. He also introduced a special programme in July 1962 showing the first live television signal from the [[United States\|United States]] via the [[Telstar\|Telstar]] satellite. In addition to heavyweight journalism, he took part in lighter sound radio programmes such as ''[[Twenty Questions\|Twenty Questions]]'' (as a panel member) and ''[[Down Your Way\|Down Your Way]]'' (which he hosted).<ref>{{DNB\|prescript=\|wstitle=Dimbleby, Richard Frederick}}</ref>		He took part in the first [[Eurovision\|Eurovision]] television relay in 1951 and appeared in the first live television broadcast from the [[Soviet Union\|Soviet Union]] in 1961. He also introduced a special programme in July 1962 showing the first live television signal from the [[United States\|United States]] via the [[Telstar\|Telstar]] satellite. In addition to heavyweight journalism, he took part in lighter sound radio programmes such as ''[[Twenty Questions\|Twenty Questions]]'' (as a panel member) and ''[[Down Your Way\|Down Your Way]]'' (which he hosted).<ref>{{DNB\|prescript=\|wstitle=Dimbleby, Richard Frederick}}</ref>

	From 1955, he was the host of the flagship current affairs series ''[[Panorama (TV series)\|Panorama]]''.<ref>{{Who's Who \| surname = Dimbleby\| othernames = Richard Frederick\| id = U195346 \| type = was \| volume = 1920–2016 \| edition = April 2014 online \| accessed = 16 April 2019 }}</ref> This programme saw him use his journalistic skills to full advantage in conducting searching, but polite interviews with key figures of the day, while acting as an urbane presenter for the programme.~~{{Citation needed\|date=June 2009}}~~ He was able to maintain his reporting talents by visiting places like Berlin, standing [[Pariser Platz\|in front of the Brandenburg Gate]] a week before the [[Berlin Wall\|Berlin Wall]] was erected across it by the communist authorities of [[East Germany\|East Germany]].		From 1955, he was the host of the flagship current affairs series ''[[Panorama (TV series)\|Panorama]]''.<ref>{{Who's Who \| surname = Dimbleby\| othernames = Richard Frederick\| id = U195346 \| type = was \| volume = 1920–2016 \| edition = April 2014 online \| accessed = 16 April 2019 }}</ref> This programme saw him use his journalistic skills to full advantage in conducting searching, but polite interviews with key figures of the day, while acting as an urbane presenter for the programme. He was able to maintain his reporting talents by visiting places like Berlin, standing [[Pariser Platz\|in front of the Brandenburg Gate]] a week before the [[Berlin Wall\|Berlin Wall]] was erected across it by the communist authorities of [[East Germany\|East Germany]].

	Dimbleby's reputation was built upon his ability to describe events clearly yet with a sense of the drama and poetry of the many state occasions he covered. Examples included the Lying-in-State of [[George VI\|George VI]] in [[Westminster Hall\|Westminster Hall]], where he depicted the stillness of the guardsmen standing like statues at the four corners of the [[catafalque\|catafalque]], or the description of the drums at [[John F. Kennedy\|Kennedy's]] funeral which, he said, "beat as the pulse of a man's heart." His commentary for the funeral of [[Winston Churchill\|Churchill]] in January 1965 was the last state event he commentated upon.		Dimbleby's reputation was built upon his ability to describe events clearly yet with a sense of the drama and poetry of the many state occasions he covered. Examples included the Lying-in-State of [[George VI\|George VI]] in [[Westminster Hall\|Westminster Hall]], where he depicted the stillness of the guardsmen standing like statues at the four corners of the [[catafalque\|catafalque]], or the description of the drums at [[John F. Kennedy\|Kennedy's]] funeral which, he said, "beat as the pulse of a man's heart." His commentary for the funeral of [[Winston Churchill\|Churchill]] in January 1965 was the last state event he commentated upon.

Kurt at 12:59, 29 March 2023

2023-03-29T12:59:07Z

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Kurt: /* External links */

2022-12-26T20:14:12Z

External links

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:14, 26 December 2022
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	* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p009y82w Richard Dimbleby on the BBC]		* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p009y82w Richard Dimbleby on the BBC]
	* {{IMDb name\|0227232}}		* {{IMDb name\|0227232}}

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	[[Category:People educated at Mill Hill School]]		[[Category:People educated at Mill Hill School]]
	~~[[Category:Deaths from testicular cancer]]~~
	[[Category:English war correspondents]]		[[Category:English war correspondents]]
	~~[[Category:Deaths from cancer in England]]~~

Kurt at 21:49, 18 August 2022

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	\| spouse = {{marriage\|Dilys Thomas\|1937}}		\| spouse = {{marriage\|Dilys Thomas\|1937}}
	\| partner =		\| partner =
	\| children = 4, including [[David Dimbleby\|David]] and [[Jonathan Dimbleby\|Jonathan]]		\| children = 4, including [[w:David Dimbleby\|David]] and [[w:Jonathan Dimbleby\|Jonathan]]
	\| parents =		\| parents =
	\| relatives = [[w:Dimbleby family\|Dimbleby family]]		\| relatives = [[w:Dimbleby family\|Dimbleby family]]

Kurt: /* Early life */

2022-08-18T21:48:26Z

Early life

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	===Early life===		===Early life===
	Dimbleby was born near [[w:Richmond, London\|Richmond]], [[w:Surrey\|Surrey]],<ref>GRO Register of Births: SEP 1913 3a 188 BRENTFORD – Frederick R Dimbleby, mmn = Bolwell</ref> the son of Gwendoline Mabel (Bolwell) and Frederick Jabez George Dimbleby, a journalist.<ref>{{cite news\| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/portal/2007/02/03/ftnick03.xml \| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070327112731/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/portal/2007/02/03/ftnick03.xml \| url-status=dead \| archive-date=27 March 2007 \| work=The Daily Telegraph \| location=London \| title=Family detective \| first=Nick \| last=Barratt \| date=3 February 2007 \| access-date=22 May 2010}}</ref> He was educated at [[Mill Hill School]], and began his career in 1931 on the ''[[Richmond and Twickenham Times]]'', which his grandfather, Frederick William Dimbleby, had acquired in 1894.<ref>{{cite news\| url=http://www.thepeerage.com/p19629.htm#i196290 \| title=Frederick William Dimbleby \| website=ThePeerage.com}}</ref>		Dimbleby was born near [[w:Richmond, London\|Richmond]], [[w:Surrey\|Surrey]],<ref>GRO Register of Births: SEP 1913 3a 188 BRENTFORD – Frederick R Dimbleby, mmn = Bolwell</ref> the son of Gwendoline Mabel (Bolwell) and Frederick Jabez George Dimbleby, a journalist.<ref>{{cite news\| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/portal/2007/02/03/ftnick03.xml \| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070327112731/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/portal/2007/02/03/ftnick03.xml \| url-status=dead \| archive-date=27 March 2007 \| work=The Daily Telegraph \| location=London \| title=Family detective \| first=Nick \| last=Barratt \| date=3 February 2007 \| access-date=22 May 2010}}</ref> He was educated at [[w:Mill Hill School\|Mill Hill School]], and began his career in 1931 on the ''[[w:Richmond and Twickenham Times\|Richmond and Twickenham Times]]'', which his grandfather, Frederick William Dimbleby, had acquired in 1894.<ref>{{cite news\| url=http://www.thepeerage.com/p19629.htm#i196290 \| title=Frederick William Dimbleby \| website=ThePeerage.com}}</ref>

	He then worked as a news reporter on the ''Southern Evening Echo'' in [[w:Southampton\|Southampton]], before joining the BBC as a radio news reporter in 1936, going on to cover the first Royal tour of Canada,<ref>'Royal Broadcast From Canada' [[w:The Times\|]] (London, England), Saturday, April 15, 1939, Issue 48280, p.12</ref> and becoming their first war correspondent. He accompanied the [[w:British Expeditionary Force (World War II)\|British Expeditionary Force]] to France and made broadcasts from the [[First Battle of El Alamein\|battle of El Alamein]]<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.orbem.co.uk/repwar/wr_prep.htm \|title=Planning for D-Day \|first=Roger \|last=Beckwith \|website=Old BBC Radio Broadcasting Equipment and Memories \|access-date=July 9, 2015 \|quote=Godfrey Talbot arrived in Cairo in August 1942, replacing Richard Dimbleby. }}</ref> and the Normandy beaches during the [[w:D-Day landings\|D-Day landings]].		He then worked as a news reporter on the ''Southern Evening Echo'' in [[w:Southampton\|Southampton]], before joining the BBC as a radio news reporter in 1936, going on to cover the first Royal tour of Canada,<ref>'Royal Broadcast From Canada' [[w:The Times\|]] (London, England), Saturday, April 15, 1939, Issue 48280, p.12</ref> and becoming their first war correspondent. He accompanied the [[w:British Expeditionary Force (World War II)\|British Expeditionary Force]] to France and made broadcasts from the [[w:First Battle of El Alamein\|battle of El Alamein]]<ref>{{cite web \|url=http://www.orbem.co.uk/repwar/wr_prep.htm \|title=Planning for D-Day \|first=Roger \|last=Beckwith \|website=Old BBC Radio Broadcasting Equipment and Memories \|access-date=July 9, 2015 \|quote=Godfrey Talbot arrived in Cairo in August 1942, replacing Richard Dimbleby. }}</ref> and the Normandy beaches during the [[w:D-Day landings\|D-Day landings]].

	During the [[w:Second World War\|Second World War]], he flew on some twenty raids as an observer with [[w:RAF Bomber Command\|RAF Bomber Command]], including one to [[w:Berlin\|Berlin]], recording commentary for broadcast the following day. He was one of the first journalists to experiment with unconventional outside broadcasts, such as when flying in a [[w:de Havilland Mosquito\|de Havilland Mosquito]] accompanying a fighter aircraft raid on France, or being submerged in a diving suit.		During the [[w:Second World War\|Second World War]], he flew on some twenty raids as an observer with [[w:RAF Bomber Command\|RAF Bomber Command]], including one to [[w:Berlin\|Berlin]], recording commentary for broadcast the following day. He was one of the first journalists to experiment with unconventional outside broadcasts, such as when flying in a [[w:de Havilland Mosquito\|de Havilland Mosquito]] accompanying a fighter aircraft raid on France, or being submerged in a diving suit.

Kurt at 21:47, 18 August 2022

2022-08-18T21:47:20Z

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Kurt: 1 revision imported

2022-08-18T18:32:03Z

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← Older revision	Revision as of 13:32, 18 August 2022
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2A00:23C7:2909:5801:74:638D:AC87:1B50: /* Controversy and comedy */

2022-07-12T21:13:29Z

Controversy and comedy

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{{short description|English journalist & broadcaster}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Richard Dimbleby
| honorific_suffix = [[Commander of the Order of the British Empire|CBE]]
| image = Richard Dimbleby 1964.jpg
| caption =
| birth_name = Frederick Richard Dimbleby
| birth_date = {{birth date|1913|05|25|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Richmond, London|Richmond]], [[Surrey]], England
| death_date = {{death date and age|1965|12|22|1913|05|25|df=y}}
| death_place = [[St Thomas' Hospital]], [[London]], England
| resting_place =
| resting_place_coordinates =
| nationality = British
| other_names =
| known_for =
| education = [[Mill Hill School]], London
| employer = [[BBC]]
| occupation = Broadcaster
| spouse = {{marriage|Dilys Thomas|1937}}
| partner =
| children = 4, including [[David Dimbleby|David]] and [[Jonathan Dimbleby|Jonathan]]
| parents =
| relatives = [[Dimbleby family]]
| signature =
| website =
| footnotes =
}}

'''Frederick Richard Dimbleby''', [[Commander of the Order of the British Empire|CBE]] (25 May 1913 – 22 December 1965) was an English journalist and broadcaster, who became the BBC's first war correspondent, and then its leading TV news commentator.

As host of the long-running current affairs programme ''[[Panorama (TV series)|Panorama]]'', he pioneered a popular style of interviewing that was respectful but searching. At formal public events, he could combine gravitas with creative insights based on extensive research. He was also able to maintain interest throughout the all-night election specials.

The annual [[Richard Dimbleby Lecture]] was founded in his memory.

==Biography==

===Early life===
Dimbleby was born near [[Richmond, London|Richmond]], [[Surrey]],<ref>GRO Register of Births: SEP 1913 3a 188 BRENTFORD – Frederick R Dimbleby, mmn = Bolwell</ref> the son of Gwendoline Mabel (Bolwell) and Frederick Jabez George Dimbleby, a journalist.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/portal/2007/02/03/ftnick03.xml | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070327112731/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=A1&xml=/portal/2007/02/03/ftnick03.xml | url-status=dead | archive-date=27 March 2007 | work=The Daily Telegraph | location=London | title=Family detective | first=Nick | last=Barratt | date=3 February 2007 | access-date=22 May 2010}}</ref> He was educated at [[Mill Hill School]], and began his career in 1931 on the ''[[Richmond and Twickenham Times]]'', which his grandfather, Frederick William Dimbleby, had acquired in 1894.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.thepeerage.com/p19629.htm#i196290 | title=Frederick William Dimbleby | website=ThePeerage.com}}</ref>

He then worked as a news reporter on the ''Southern Evening Echo'' in [[Southampton]], before joining the BBC as a radio news reporter in 1936, going on to cover the first Royal tour of Canada,<ref>'Royal Broadcast From Canada' [[The Times]] (London, England), Saturday, April 15, 1939, Issue 48280, p.12</ref> and becoming their first war correspondent. He accompanied the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War II)|British Expeditionary Force]] to France and made broadcasts from the [[First Battle of El Alamein|battle of El Alamein]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.orbem.co.uk/repwar/wr_prep.htm |title=Planning for D-Day |first=Roger |last=Beckwith |website=Old BBC Radio Broadcasting Equipment and Memories |access-date=July 9, 2015 |quote=Godfrey Talbot arrived in Cairo in August 1942, replacing Richard Dimbleby. }}</ref> and the Normandy beaches during the [[D-Day landings]].

During the [[Second World War]], he flew on some twenty raids as an observer with [[RAF Bomber Command]], including one to [[Berlin]], recording commentary for broadcast the following day. He was one of the first journalists to experiment with unconventional outside broadcasts, such as when flying in a [[de Havilland Mosquito]] accompanying a fighter aircraft raid on France, or being submerged in a diving suit.

In April 1945, as the BBC's war correspondent, he accompanied the [[11th Armoured Division (United Kingdom)|British 11th Armoured Division]] to the liberation of the [[Bergen-Belsen concentration camp]] making one of the first reports.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/4445811.stm|title=BBC NEWS – In Depth – Audio slideshow: Liberation of Belsen|website=news.bbc.co.uk|date=15 April 2005}}</ref> His description of what he saw there was so graphic the BBC declined to broadcast his despatch for four days, relenting only when he threatened to resign:

{{quote|I passed through the barrier, and found myself in the world of a nightmare. Dead bodies, some of them in decay, lay strewn about the road and along the rutted tracks [...] Inside the huts it was even worse. I've seen many terrible sights in the last five years, but nothing, nothing approaching the dreadful interior of this hut at Belsen. The dead and the dying lay close together. I picked my way over corpse after corpse in the gloom, until I heard one voice that rose above the gentle, undulating moaning. I found a girl. She was a living skeleton, impossible to gauge her age, for she had practically no hair left on her head, and her face was only a yellow parchment sheet, with two holes in it for eyes [...] Babies were born at Belsen, some of them shrunken, wizened little things that could not live because their mothers could not feed them. One woman, distraught to the point of madness, flung herself at a British soldier who was on guard in the camp on the night that it was reached by the 11th Armoured Division. She begged him to give her some milk, for the tiny baby she held in her arms. She lay the mite on the ground, threw herself at the sentry's feet and kissed his boots. And when, in his distress, he asked her to get up, she put the baby in his arms and ran off, crying that she would find milk for it because there was no milk in her breast. And when the soldier opened the bundle of rags to look at the child, he found that it had been dead for days [...] I have never seen British soldiers so moved to cold fury as the men who opened the Belsen camp this week, and those of the police and the RAMC, who are now on duty there trying to save the prisoners who are not too far gone in starvation.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_depth/4445811.stm |title=Richard Dimbleby, "Liberation of Belsen", BBC News, April 15, 1945 |work=BBC News |date=April 15, 2005 |access-date=May 3, 2013}}</ref>}}

He described, in another broadcast, the wrecked interior of [[Hitler]]'s Reich Chancellery at the war's end.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Molli|first=Mitchell|date=9 April 2020|title=Return to Belsen documentary: Who was Richard Dimbleby? Meet the legendary broadcaster|url=https://www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/1267217/Return-to-Belsen-documentary-ITV-who-was-Richard-Dimbleby-journalist-Bergen-Belsen|url-status=live|access-date=3 October 2021|website=Express}}</ref>

===Broadcasting career===
After the war, Dimbleby switched to television, eventually becoming the BBC's leading news commentator. He is perhaps best remembered as the commentator on a number of major public occasions, including the [[Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II]] in 1953 and the funerals of [[George VI]], [[State funeral of John F. Kennedy|John F. Kennedy]] and [[Winston Churchill]]. He wrote a book about the coronation, ''Elizabeth Our Queen'', which was given free to many schoolchildren at the time. He also wrote a London crime novel ''Storm at the Hook'', published in 1948.

He took part in the first [[Eurovision]] television relay in 1951 and appeared in the first live television broadcast from the [[Soviet Union]] in 1961. He also introduced a special programme in July 1962 showing the first live television signal from the [[United States]] via the [[Telstar]] satellite. In addition to heavyweight journalism, he took part in lighter sound radio programmes such as ''[[Twenty Questions]]'' (as a panel member) and ''[[Down Your Way]]'' (which he hosted).<ref>{{DNB|prescript=|wstitle=Dimbleby, Richard Frederick}}</ref>

From 1955, he was the host of the flagship current affairs series ''[[Panorama (TV series)|Panorama]]''.<ref>{{Who's Who | surname = Dimbleby| othernames = Richard Frederick| id = U195346 | type = was | volume = 1920–2016 | edition = April 2014 online | accessed = 16 April 2019 }}</ref> This programme saw him use his journalistic skills to full advantage in conducting searching, but polite interviews with key figures of the day, while acting as an urbane presenter for the programme.{{Citation needed|date=June 2009}} He was able to maintain his reporting talents by visiting places like Berlin, standing [[Pariser Platz|in front of the Brandenburg Gate]] a week before the [[Berlin Wall]] was erected across it by the communist authorities of [[East Germany]].

Dimbleby's reputation was built upon his ability to describe events clearly yet with a sense of the drama and poetry of the many state occasions he covered. Examples included the Lying-in-State of [[George VI]] in [[Westminster Hall]], where he depicted the stillness of the guardsmen standing like statues at the four corners of the [[catafalque]], or the description of the drums at [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy's]] funeral which, he said, "beat as the pulse of a man's heart." His commentary for the funeral of [[Winston Churchill|Churchill]] in January 1965 was the last state event he commentated upon.

To produce his commentaries, he carried out encyclopedic research on all aspects of the venues of great events, their history and that of the ceremonies taking place, and the personalities involved. This was a necessary part of radio commentary, which transferred well to television coverage. He could also improvise extensively if there were delays in the schedule. His audience always felt that they were in "safe hands", especially in ''Panorama'' programmes like the one dealing with the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]].

Inevitably, because of his close association with establishment figures and royalty, some people criticised his "hushed tones" style of speaking at state occasions, claiming he was pompous. In an interview, he laughed off such attacks, explaining that even though he had to use a special microphone, which covered his mouth to obviate his speaking disrupting the solemn atmosphere, he still had to pitch his voice low to avoid his voice carrying. A more common touch was demonstrated in his friendly broadcasts like ''Down Your Way'' where he met thousands of ordinary people in towns and villages, and the many trade unionists, politicians and industrialists etc. who appeared on ''Panorama'' and other programmes. Dimbleby also showed stamina and imperturbability in marathon election night broadcasts which ran from 10pm, when the polls closed, until around 6 or 7am the following morning.

===Controversy and comedy===

During his time with ''Panorama'', Dimbleby narrated the famous [[spaghetti-tree hoax]] on 1 April 1957, as an [[April Fool's Day]] joke.<ref>{{cite news|title=ON THIS DAY – 1957: BBC fools the nation|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/1/newsid_2819000/2819261.stm|website=BBC News|date=April 1957|access-date=31 March 2015}}</ref>

After commentating for half an hour on Elizabeth II's state visit in 1965 to [[West Germany|Germany]], Dimbleby uttered the mild expletive, "[[Jesus wept]]," unaware that the microphone was live, after discovering that the TV pictures had failed for all 30 minutes, meaning he would have to repeat the commentary again.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Newcomb|first1=Horace|title=Encyclopedia of Television|date=2004|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781579583941|page=712|edition=2nd}}</ref>

==Private life and honours==
Dimbleby married Dilys Thomas in [[Copthorne, West Sussex]], in 1937.<ref>''"Richard Dimbleby, Broadcaster"'', 1975. A biography written by Jonathan Dimbleby.</ref> The couple had four children, two of whom, [[David Dimbleby|David]] and [[Jonathan Dimbleby|Jonathan]], have followed in his footsteps to become major broadcasting figures in their own right, both [[anchorman|hosting]] election night broadcasts (David on the BBC, Jonathan on [[ITN]]). In addition, Dimbleby's third son, Nicholas, sculpted the plaque in his father's name that was placed in [[Poets' Corner]] in 1990. Dilys Dimbleby died in 2009.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shute |first=Joe |date=2019-02-01 |title=Jonathan Dimbleby on his brushes with cancer… and the lowest point of his life |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/jonathan-dimbleby-brushes-cancer-lowest-point-life/ |access-date=2022-06-05 |issn=0307-1235}}</ref>

In June 1946, Dimbleby was appointed [[Officer of the Order of the British Empire]] (OBE) for services as a war correspondent.<ref name="LG 21 June 1946">{{London Gazette |issue=37624 |date=21 June 1946 |page=3213 |supp=y}}</ref> In the 1959 [[Queen's Birthday Honours]], he was promoted to [[Commander of the Order of the British Empire]] (CBE).<ref name="LG 5 June 1959">{{London Gazette |issue=41727 |date=5 June 1959 |pages=3706–3707 |supp=y}}</ref>

==Death and legacy==
[[File:Dimbleby1-wyrdlight.jpg|thumb|[[Blue plaque]] dedicated to Dimbleby]]
On 22 December 1965, Dimbleby died<ref>'Mr. Dimbleby Dies At 52' [[The Times]] (London, England), Thursday, December 23, 1965, Issue 56512, p.8.</ref> in [[St Thomas' Hospital]], London,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thepeerage.com/p19624.htm#i196238|title=Person Page|website=thepeerage.com}}</ref> at the age of 52. He had been suffering from [[testicular cancer]] which had been diagnosed five years earlier. In 1962 he had presented a documentary on the links between heavy [[tobacco]] smoking and [[lung cancer]]. Dimbleby decided to admit he was ill with cancer, which, at the time, was a taboo disease to mention.<ref>{{cite news|first=Clifford|last=Davis|title=Dimbleby's illness is cancer, says son|newspaper=[[Daily Mirror]]|location=London|date=1965-11-06|page=1|quote="he is very strongly opposed to the idea of cancer being an unmentionable disease..." Although the secret has been kept from viewers, it was known to friends at the BBC.}}</ref> It was helpful in building public consciousness of the disease and investing more resources in finding a cure. The '''Richard Dimbleby Cancer Fund''' was founded in his memory. Dimbleby was [[cremation|cremated]], the ceremony receiving national publicity.<ref name=introduction>{{Cite web |url=http://www.srgw.demon.co.uk/CremSoc/History/HistSocy.html#introduction|title= Rapid expansion|work= Internet |publisher= The Cremation Society of Great Britain|access-date=2 December 2010}}</ref>

In 1986 "Celebration of a Broadcaster",<ref>[http://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/12444390d13040a080a14d921f2a352e] BBC Celebration of a Broadcaster, 1986</ref> commemorating Dimbleby, was held in Westminster Abbey. In April 2013 he was honoured by the [[Royal Mail]] in the UK, as one of six people selected as subjects for the "Great Britons" [[Great Britain commemorative stamps 2010–2019|commemorative postage stamp]] issue.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.royalmailgroup.com/royal-mail-celebrates-%E2%80%98great-britons%E2%80%99-launch-latest-special-stamp-collection |title=Royal Mail celebrates 'Great Britons' with launch of latest special stamp collection |publisher= royalmailgroup.com |date=17 April 2013 |access-date=26 April 2013}}</ref>

===Richard Dimbleby lecture===
The [[Richard Dimbleby Lecture]] was founded in his memory in 1972 and is delivered every year by an influential public figure. Speakers have included:

* 2004 – [[James Dyson]]
* 2005 – [[Ian Blair]]
* 2006 – [[Mike Jackson (British Army officer)|Mike Jackson]]
* 2007 – [[Craig Venter]]
* 2009 – [[Prince Charles]]
* 2010 – [[Terry Pratchett]]
* 2011 – [[Michael Morpurgo]]
* 2012 – [[Paul Nurse]]
* 2013 – [[Bill Gates]]
* 2014 – [[Christine Lagarde]]
* 2015 – [[Martha Lane Fox]]
* 2016 – [[Gregory Doran]]
* 2017 – [[John O Brennan]]
* 2018 – [[Jeanette Winterson]]
* 2019 – [[Tim Berners-Lee]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/D/htmlD/dimblebyric/dimblebyric.htm Biography from museum.tv]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p009y82w Richard Dimbleby on the BBC]
* {{IMDb name|0227232}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dimbleby, Richard}}
[[Category:1913 births]]
[[Category:1965 deaths]]
[[Category:English television presenters]]
[[Category:English male journalists]]
[[Category:Commanders of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:Dimbleby family|Richard]]
[[Category:Panorama (British TV programme)]]
[[Category:People educated at Mill Hill School]]
[[Category:Deaths from testicular cancer]]
[[Category:English war correspondents]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in England]]

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:33, 24 August 2024
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	He took part in the first [[Eurovision\|Eurovision]] television relay in 1951 and appeared in the first live television broadcast from the [[Soviet Union\|Soviet Union]] in 1961. He also introduced a special programme in July 1962 showing the first live television signal from the [[United States\|United States]] via the [[Telstar\|Telstar]] satellite. In addition to heavyweight journalism, he took part in lighter sound radio programmes such as ''[[Twenty Questions\|Twenty Questions]]'' (as a panel member) and ''[[Down Your Way\|Down Your Way]]'' (which he hosted).<ref>{{DNB\|prescript=\|wstitle=Dimbleby, Richard Frederick}}</ref>		He took part in the first [[Eurovision\|Eurovision]] television relay in 1951 and appeared in the first live television broadcast from the [[Soviet Union\|Soviet Union]] in 1961. He also introduced a special programme in July 1962 showing the first live television signal from the [[United States\|United States]] via the [[Telstar\|Telstar]] satellite. In addition to heavyweight journalism, he took part in lighter sound radio programmes such as ''[[Twenty Questions\|Twenty Questions]]'' (as a panel member) and ''[[Down Your Way\|Down Your Way]]'' (which he hosted).<ref>{{DNB\|prescript=\|wstitle=Dimbleby, Richard Frederick}}</ref>

	From 1955, he was the host of the flagship current affairs series ''[[Panorama (TV series)\|Panorama]]''.<ref>{{Who's Who \| surname = Dimbleby\| othernames = Richard Frederick\| id = U195346 \| type = was \| volume = 1920–2016 \| edition = April 2014 online \| accessed = 16 April 2019 }}</ref> This programme saw him use his journalistic skills to full advantage in conducting searching, but polite interviews with key figures of the day, while acting as an urbane presenter for the programme.~~{{Citation needed\|date=June 2009}}~~ He was able to maintain his reporting talents by visiting places like Berlin, standing [[Pariser Platz\|in front of the Brandenburg Gate]] a week before the [[Berlin Wall\|Berlin Wall]] was erected across it by the communist authorities of [[East Germany\|East Germany]].		From 1955, he was the host of the flagship current affairs series ''[[Panorama (TV series)\|Panorama]]''.<ref>{{Who's Who \| surname = Dimbleby\| othernames = Richard Frederick\| id = U195346 \| type = was \| volume = 1920–2016 \| edition = April 2014 online \| accessed = 16 April 2019 }}</ref> This programme saw him use his journalistic skills to full advantage in conducting searching, but polite interviews with key figures of the day, while acting as an urbane presenter for the programme. He was able to maintain his reporting talents by visiting places like Berlin, standing [[Pariser Platz\|in front of the Brandenburg Gate]] a week before the [[Berlin Wall\|Berlin Wall]] was erected across it by the communist authorities of [[East Germany\|East Germany]].

	Dimbleby's reputation was built upon his ability to describe events clearly yet with a sense of the drama and poetry of the many state occasions he covered. Examples included the Lying-in-State of [[George VI\|George VI]] in [[Westminster Hall\|Westminster Hall]], where he depicted the stillness of the guardsmen standing like statues at the four corners of the [[catafalque\|catafalque]], or the description of the drums at [[John F. Kennedy\|Kennedy's]] funeral which, he said, "beat as the pulse of a man's heart." His commentary for the funeral of [[Winston Churchill\|Churchill]] in January 1965 was the last state event he commentated upon.		Dimbleby's reputation was built upon his ability to describe events clearly yet with a sense of the drama and poetry of the many state occasions he covered. Examples included the Lying-in-State of [[George VI\|George VI]] in [[Westminster Hall\|Westminster Hall]], where he depicted the stillness of the guardsmen standing like statues at the four corners of the [[catafalque\|catafalque]], or the description of the drums at [[John F. Kennedy\|Kennedy's]] funeral which, he said, "beat as the pulse of a man's heart." His commentary for the funeral of [[Winston Churchill\|Churchill]] in January 1965 was the last state event he commentated upon.