John Humphrys

Who is John Humphrys?

Being a journalist for BBC is a pretty good achievement for the journalist and news reporters. Today we are talking about a prominent journalist and one of the highest-paid employee of BBC, and he is none other than John Humphrys.

Humphrys is a Welsh news broadcaster. He also worked for BBC News' Nine O' Clock News as the main presenter from 1981 to 1987. Moreover, he also presents the program Today, along with Justin Webb, Mishal Husain, Martha Kearney, and Nick Robinson. 

John was born as Desmond John Humphrys on 17th August 1943, in Addamsdown, Wales, United Kingdom. Born to his English parents Edward George Humphrys and Winifred Mary, He is of White ethnicity and holds British nationality.

Image: Early days of John Humphrys

His father worked as a French polisher, and mother was a hairdresser. Furthermore, there is no information about his family background. 

Talking about his education, he completed his eleven plus exam and joined Cardiff High School. However, he was not fit to attend middle-class environment. At the age of fifteen, Humphrys left the school and began serving as a reporter on the Penarth Times. Later he worked for the Western Mail.

John began his professional career serving at TWW. He was the first reporter on the scene of the Aberfan disaster in 1966. Later, he joined BBC as the district reporter for the Northwest and Liverpool.

He later served as a foreign correspondent, left his family for nine-month periods at a time when his children were still small. Later, John took his family to the U.S.A in order to open a news bureau.

Humphrys was disappointed with living in hotels and as a foreign correspondent. Later, he returned to London in 1980 to work as BBC's Diplomatic Correspondent.

Image: John while working for BBC

John was offered to work on Today all of a sudden when John Timpson was about to retire in late 1986. Humphrys began presenting news on Today along with his co-host Brian Redhead. 

On 28 August 2004, John made the headlines for giving the yearly MacTaggart Lecture, where he made scathing criticism of the 'dumbing-down' of British television. Moreover, Humphrys is also popular as the presenter of the revived version of Mastermind.

Humphrys has also presented Panorama. Additionally, Humphrys received many industry awards which include, Journalist of the Year in 2000 by The House Magazine and the Gold Sony Radio Award in 2003; and a silver platter for Crystal Clear Broadcasting from the Plain English Campaign. He has also been the host of the BBC Two quiz show named Mastermind.

In March 2017, Humphrys argued that Thomas Mair, who killed MP Jo Cox was a terrorist despite him being prosecuted and described by the Crown Prosecution Service as one, claiming it "muddied the waters." Moreover, he was criticized for his statement.

Is he Married or Single?

John Humphrys has been married twice till date. Read down to know more about his marriage and wife. 

John Humphrys' First Wife

Humphrys married Edna Wilding (ex-spouse) in 1964. There is no further information about Edna. From the nuptial, Humphrys and Edna shares two children, a son Christopher and a daughter Catherine. 

Image: Humphrys with his first spouse and children

However, the couple could not last long and decided to split. Their divorce was finalized the late 1980s. After the divorce, Edna Wilding passed away due to cancer in Glamorgan. 

John Humphrys's Second Wife

Soon after the divorce, Humphrys married Valerie Sanderson (second spouse). There is no information about the exact date and venue of their wedding. Talking about Sanderson, she is a newsreader at BBC News 24 and a radio producer.

Image: Humphryswith his second spouse Valerie

John and Sanderson share a child together, a son Owen James (born on 2nd June 2000). However, the pair separated after some time. Both of them does not wish to reveal the reason behind their split. 

John Humphrys' Relationships

In 2009, Humphrys began dating Catherine Bennett, who is a journalist and a contributor to The Observer. Just like his previous relationships, Catherine and John could not last long and broke-up. However, they did not mention about the separation. 

The split was confirmed after; Humphrys was seen dating Sarah Butler-Sloss. She is well known as the beloved child of Lord Sainsbury of Preston Candover. As of now, the pair might be dating together or separated, because no updates are available about John and his girlfriend.

Net Worth & Salary

John Humphrys makes staggering money from his career as a broadcaster and journalist for BBC and other networks. Till date, he has credited in numerous news coverage and events which adds a good sum to his current wealth. 

According to BBC, Humphrys makes $727,758 to $788,403 remuneration as a news presenter for BBC. He is also known as one of the highest-paid journalists on BBC. 

Moreover, in 2018, John took a voluntary in the light of the gender pay gap controversy, making a pay cut to the $303,232 to $363,879. As of 2019, John's total net worth is estimated to be in huge million dollars, but the exact number is still under review.