Peter Sissons

Peter George Sissons (17 July 1942 – 1 October 2019) was an English journalist and broadcaster. He was a newscaster for ITN, providing bulletins on ITV and Channel 4, before becoming the presenter of the BBC's Question Time between 1989 and 1993, and a presenter of the BBC Nine O'Clock News and Ten O'Clock News between 1993 and 2003. He retired from the BBC in 2009 and died in 2019 from leukaemia at the age of 77.

Born at Smithdown Road Hospital in Liverpool on 17 July 1942, Sissons was the third of four brothers, sons of Merchant Navy officer George Robert Percival Sissons and his wife Elsie Emma (Evans), an employee in a department store. He attended Dovedale Junior School with John Lennon and Jimmy Tarbuck, passed the eleven-plus and attended the Liverpool Institute High School for Boys from 1953 to 1961 with the theatre producer Bill Kenwright, the politician Steven Norris, and George Harrison and Paul McCartney from the Beatles.

Sissons studied philosophy, politics and economics at University College, Oxford, where he was treasurer of the University College Players, with whom he also acted, produced, directed and organised.

Sissons joined ITN in 1964, working his way up to the role of journalist. He was wounded by gunfire whilst covering the Biafran War in 1968, sustaining severe nerve damage in his left leg. After recovering from his injuries, he became ITN's Industrial Editor, covering many high-profile disputes during the 1970s. On 6 September 1976, Sissons joined the list of presenters of ITN's lunchtime News at One bulletin, alternating with Leonard Parkin. He also co-presented ITN's coverage of the 1983 general election with Sir Alastair Burnet and Martyn Lewis, and again in 1987 with Burnet and Alastair Stewart.

In 1982, Sissons, along with Trevor McDonald and Sarah Hogg, presented the first edition of Channel 4 News. He remained on the programme for seven years, anchoring the only debate between National Union of Mineworkers leader Arthur Scargill and National Coal Board leader Ian MacGregor during the 1984–85 miners' strike. He was also the presenter on the night of the Lockerbie bombing in December 1988. In early 1989, Sissons received a death threat following his interview of an Iranian representative as part of the reaction surrounding the publication of The Satanic Verses, with the fatwa covering Salman Rushdie extended to cover him as well.

Sissons left ITN in 1989 to join the BBC.

In June 1989, Sissons took over from Sir Robin Day as the presenter of Question Time. He continued until December 1993, when he was succeeded by David Dimbleby. He co-presented the BBC's coverage of the 1992 general election with Dimbleby and Peter Snow.

From 1993, and for some years afterwards, he hosted Breakfast with Frost on Sunday mornings when regular host David Frost was unavailable.