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James Burke (science historian)
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James Burke (science historian)
James Burke (born 22 December 1936) is a broadcaster, science historian, author, and television producer. He was one of the main presenters of the BBC1 science series Tomorrow's World from 1965 to 1971 and created and presented the television series Connections (1978), and its more philosophical sequel The Day the Universe Changed (1985), about the history of science and technology. The Washington Post has called him "one of the most intriguing minds in the Western world".
Burke was born in Derry, Northern Ireland. During World War II he was evacuated to Downhill, County Londonderry where he lived between the ages of 4 and 9. When his father returned home after the war, the family moved to Kent, England, where James Burke attended Maidstone Grammar School. He then served in the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1955 to 1957 before being accepted at Jesus College, Oxford, where he studied Middle English, obtaining BA and MA degrees.[citation needed]
Burke married Frances Madeline Hamilton, a research assistant. She died in 2009. They had no children.
Upon graduation, he moved to Italy, where at the British School in Bologna, he was lecturer in English and director of studies, 1961–1963. He also lectured at the University of Urbino. Thereafter, he was headmaster of the English School in Rome, 1963–1965. He was involved in the creation of an English–Italian dictionary, and the publication of an art encyclopedia.[citation needed]
Burke's entry into television was explained by People magazine in 1979: "Television beckoned by chance one day on a Rome bus. Spotting an ad for a reporter for the local bureau of Britain's Granada Television, he says, 'I decided if the bus stopped at the next corner I would get off and apply for the job.' It did, he did, and the next thing he knew 'we went straight off to Sicily to do a series on the Mafia.'"
In 1966, Burke moved to London and joined the Science and Features Department of the BBC, for which he was host or co-host of several programmes. He also worked as an instructor in English as a foreign language at the Regency Language School in Ramsgate.[citation needed]
Burke established his reputation as a reporter on the BBC1 science series Tomorrow's World, and went on to present The Burke Special. He was BBC television's science anchorman and chief reporter for the Apollo missions, as the main presenter of the BBC's coverage of the first Moon landing in 1969.
In collaboration with Mick Jackson, he produced the 10-part documentary series Connections (1978), which was broadcast on the BBC, and subsequently on PBS in the United States. Connections traced the historical relationships between invention and discovery; each episode chronicled a particular path of technological development. Connections was the most-watched PBS television series up to that time. It was followed by the 20-part Connections2 (1994) and the 10-part Connections3 (1997). Connections: An Alternative View of Change was broadcast in more than 50 countries and the companion book Connections: An Alternative History of Technology (1978) sold well.[citation needed] In 1980, Burke created and Jackson produced the six-part BBC series The Real Thing, about perception.
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James Burke (science historian)
James Burke (born 22 December 1936) is a broadcaster, science historian, author, and television producer. He was one of the main presenters of the BBC1 science series Tomorrow's World from 1965 to 1971 and created and presented the television series Connections (1978), and its more philosophical sequel The Day the Universe Changed (1985), about the history of science and technology. The Washington Post has called him "one of the most intriguing minds in the Western world".
Burke was born in Derry, Northern Ireland. During World War II he was evacuated to Downhill, County Londonderry where he lived between the ages of 4 and 9. When his father returned home after the war, the family moved to Kent, England, where James Burke attended Maidstone Grammar School. He then served in the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1955 to 1957 before being accepted at Jesus College, Oxford, where he studied Middle English, obtaining BA and MA degrees.[citation needed]
Burke married Frances Madeline Hamilton, a research assistant. She died in 2009. They had no children.
Upon graduation, he moved to Italy, where at the British School in Bologna, he was lecturer in English and director of studies, 1961–1963. He also lectured at the University of Urbino. Thereafter, he was headmaster of the English School in Rome, 1963–1965. He was involved in the creation of an English–Italian dictionary, and the publication of an art encyclopedia.[citation needed]
Burke's entry into television was explained by People magazine in 1979: "Television beckoned by chance one day on a Rome bus. Spotting an ad for a reporter for the local bureau of Britain's Granada Television, he says, 'I decided if the bus stopped at the next corner I would get off and apply for the job.' It did, he did, and the next thing he knew 'we went straight off to Sicily to do a series on the Mafia.'"
In 1966, Burke moved to London and joined the Science and Features Department of the BBC, for which he was host or co-host of several programmes. He also worked as an instructor in English as a foreign language at the Regency Language School in Ramsgate.[citation needed]
Burke established his reputation as a reporter on the BBC1 science series Tomorrow's World, and went on to present The Burke Special. He was BBC television's science anchorman and chief reporter for the Apollo missions, as the main presenter of the BBC's coverage of the first Moon landing in 1969.
In collaboration with Mick Jackson, he produced the 10-part documentary series Connections (1978), which was broadcast on the BBC, and subsequently on PBS in the United States. Connections traced the historical relationships between invention and discovery; each episode chronicled a particular path of technological development. Connections was the most-watched PBS television series up to that time. It was followed by the 20-part Connections2 (1994) and the 10-part Connections3 (1997). Connections: An Alternative View of Change was broadcast in more than 50 countries and the companion book Connections: An Alternative History of Technology (1978) sold well.[citation needed] In 1980, Burke created and Jackson produced the six-part BBC series The Real Thing, about perception.
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