South East Today - Overview

Overview

Launched on 3 September 2001, South East Today airs eleven times a day on weekdays: Six bulletins in the morning during BBC Breakfast, a brief mid-afternoon bulletin at 3pm, a 15-minute programme at 13:30, the main half-hour programme at 18:30, a 30-second update at 20:00 and a seven-minute bulletin at 22:25. Four bulletins also air during the weekend: a lunchtime bulletin on Saturday, early evening bulletins on Saturday and Sunday and a late night bulletin on Sunday, following the BBC News at Ten. The times of these bulletins usually vary.

The programme can be watched in any part of the UK (and Europe) on digital satellite on the BBC UK regional TV on satellite service.

Launched with a sole main presenter Laurie Mayer, the programme was briefly the centre of a minor BBC scandal, after Mayer resigned amid accusations of management bullying. Mayer lost his case, but the managers concerned have since moved on.

The show then became double-headed, with Beverley Thompson (formerly the programme's Health Correspondent) and Giles Dilnot presenting, with John Young filling in for absences. In 2004, Geoff Clark joined the programme from ITV Meridian and Dilnot moved to reporting for BBC2's The Daily Politics. Clark and Thompson presented the programme together for five years until their departure in September 2009. Long-serving weather presenter Kaddy Lee-Preston, who had been with South East Today since its launch left the programme in March 2012.

The main presenters are Rob Smith and Polly Evans with weather presenter Rachel Mackley. The stand-in presenters for the programme are John Young, Ceri Perkins and Natalie Graham with former national weather forecaster Michael Fish as a stand-in weather presenter. The programme's editor is Quentin Smith, deputised by Michael Gravesande.

The main transmitters that relay the news are Bluebell Hill, Heathfield, Tunbridge Wells, Hastings, Dover, Hastings and Margate. Viewers in west Kent have the option of either viewing BBC London News via Crystal Palace or BBC South East Today via Bluebell Hill/Heathfield transmitters. As of 7 March 2012 (following digital switchover), the Whitehawk Hill transmitter (which serves the Brighton & Hove area) now carries BBC South East output instead of BBC South.