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This tribute appeared in Newsupdate, the internal newsletter for BBC News staff:
One of the Radio Newsroom's most experienced producers, Andy Roberts, has died after a road accident outside Television Centre. Andy had worked in the Radio Newsroom for many years delivering material for bulletins and summaries on all Radio Networks. Before that he had enjoyed a distinguished on-air career as a reporter, both at home and abroad.
Andy’s current boss, Newsroom Editor, Richard Clark, paid this tribute:
“Appearances can be deceptive. At first glance, Andy was quiet, reserved, detached. He was certainly self-contained, maybe a little singular. He was, however, a journalist down to his socks… and one who had an undiminished interest in what was happening in the world. When editing the R4 1800 one came to expect Andy at the desk, copy in hand, quietly pressing for a story to be included in the bulletin. I suspect his first love was reporting but as a newsroom producer he had a shrewd understanding of what stories worked for our audiences.”
Former colleague, Peter Gallimore, now Head of Press and PR at the University of Derby, worked with Andy on Today:
"I was much saddened to hear of the untimely death of Andy. He was a man I'd worked with on Today - when pool reporters came to do their stint and I was assistant editor there. My memories of him are as a consistently good writer and broadcaster, with a dark toned voice which belied his tall yet spare frame. He was a good humoured and knowledgeable colleague whose working experience in local radio in the Midlands stood him in good stead when he made the transition to the network. When Andy was forced to work in TV as part of John Birt's failed bi-media experiment he became a much more reserved person who began to question his own worth to the Corporation. Luckily for the BBC and some more enlightened members of management Andy stayed on and his writing experience became a much valued part of the newsroom. His laconic humour and all round ability made him a unique colleague in a world which is very short of impressive characters. Andy certainly belonged to that category.”
His words were echoed by News correspondent Bob Sinkinson:
"Andy was what many journalists aspire to but rarely achieve. He was relentlessly dedicated to uncovering the truth, unswerving in his determination to be accurate, punctilious about the use of the English language but at the same time had a dry sense of humour that could put the pompous in their place and lighten the most boring of topics. He was one of those people that the BBC could rely on for the right touch whether it be the written or spoken word. He'll be fondly remembered by his many colleagues for his dedication to radio journalism, a medium which he loved. Andy was never someone you took for granted and was a bedrock to those who worked alongside him.”
World Affairs Correspondent Mike Wooldridge had this to say:
"I was immensely sad to hear of Andy's terrible accident and death. I go back a long way with him, and first worked with him covering tension and trouble on the streets of Birmingham. I could not have been alongside a finer, calmer and more effective fellow reporter on that day -- or in other capacities since then. To say that Andy never appeared fazed is an understatement. He dispensed wisdom, advice, fine judgement and gentle cajoling of correspondents just when they were needed, and he was a craftsman in the production of news. During all too brief chats with him in the newsroom or on his way to or from the tea bar he always had some wonderfully laconic observation about the world and its ways…or just possibly about the BBC. Andy's death is a real loss to the spirit of an organisation to which he had given so much."
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