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Jeremy Paxman, began his television career as a reporter covering the troubles in Northern Ireland. A graduate in English of St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, he moved to Belfast after working in local radio. During his three years there, he became the first full-time television current affairs reporter, specialising in investigative journalism. In 1977 he moved to London to work as a reporter on 'Tonight', and after two years he became a reporter on 'Panorama'. His assignments over the next five years took him around the world. It was during this period he wrote A Higher Form Of Killing (with Robert Harris), an acclaimed history of chemical and biological warfare. His investigation into the mysterious death of Italian banker Roberto Calvi, 'Called To Account', won the Royal Television Society award for international current affairs. It was while travelling in El Salvador researching for his book about Central America, Through The Volcanoes, that he received a call inviting him to present the new 'Six O'Clock News'. In 1986, he moved to 'Breakfast News'. He joined 'Newsnight' in 1989, shortly before publication of his portrait of the British Establishment, Friends in High Places. He also hosted `You decide with Paxman', in the Summer of 1995. When ‘University Challenge’ was revived by the BBC two years ago, he became chairman. Jeremy was awarded a broadcasting award for outstanding contribution to television by the Voice of the Viewer and Listener in April 1994 and 1997 and was given the Richard Dimbleby Award, BAFTA’s most prestigious award for current affairs, in 1996. In 1998 he won the RTS Interview of the Year award for his famous questioning of Michael Howard. Jeremy has just published his latest book ‘English’ and taken over from Melvyn Bragg as the host of ‘Start The Week’.
Kirsty Wark joined the BBC in 1976 as a graduate researcher for BBC Radio Scotland. For the next six years she worked on daily and weekly radio programmes in the Current Affairs department. During this time she also spent six months in London as a producer on Radio 4's 'The World At One'. In 1982, Kirsty moved across to BBC Television in Scotland as a director and producer and later as a presenter. As BBC Scotland's main presenter on all its political programmes and election specials, Kirsty has interviewed many top politicians, but her most memorable interview was in 1990 when she conducted a headline-making interview with the then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. In the late eighties Kirsty presented BBC-1's 'Breakfast Time', and she also presented editions of 'The Late Show'. In the past few years, Kirsty has presented 'Upfront', BBC Scotland's weekly political programme and chaired the monthly studio debate, 'Axiom'. She also introduces 'Edinburgh Nights', BBC-2's coverage of the Edinburgh International Festival' and is a regular presenter with ‘One Foot In The Past’. Kirsty joined BBC-2's 'Newsnight' in October 1993. Alongside Jeremy Paxman, she anchors at least one in five editions of the late night news and current affairs flagship. In 1997, she won the BAFTA Scotland, Best Television Presenter Award. The BBC’s Rough Justice programme signed Kirsty as presenter in Feb 1998. Kirsty is married to the independent producer Alan Clements and they have two children.

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