My friend Valerie Anderson, who has died aged 67, was one of the most popular BBC newsroom editors that Bush House and the World Service have ever known. She was brought up in Debden, Essex, the only child of Peggy and Harry Anderson, and was educated at Woodford County high school for girls. She arrived at the BBC as a young subeditor in the mid-1970s after working on newspapers in Bedfordshire, Hong Kong and Japan. Val spent some time at Television Centre, particularly enjoying the ill-fated World Service Arabic television service before its sudden demise forced her to return to Bush House in 1996. Perhaps Val’s biggest legacy was the encouragement she gave to new staff, especially those coming on attachment from the Bush House language services.

Source: The Guardian December 25, 2017 16:07 UTC