British newspaper publishing was astonished to learn of Janet Street-Porter's appointment as editor of the ailing Independent on Sunday in June. She began her career in newspapers on the fashion and arts pages of the Daily Mail and Evening Standard. Moving into television she made her name as a producer with LWT and soon, as pioneer of "Yoof" TV, moved on to become the BBC's first Head of Youth Programmes. In 1994 she joined the cable station L!ve TV, notorious for its news bunny and topless darts, but quit the station after a row with Kelvin McKenzie - caught on camera in the BBC documentary 'Nightmare at Canary Wharf'. Soon afterwards she denounced television executives, who were "male, middle-class, middle-aged and mediocre." She is vice-president of the Ramblers' Association and has presented the BBC Two programme Coast to Coast. She recently suggested that teenagers should be able to experiment with low-alcohol drinks in school in order to develop a mature approach to drinking. Four times divorced, she was born in Fulham as Janet Bull, but kept her first husband's name.