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Harry John Gration (22 October 1950 – 24 June 2022) was an English journalist and broadcaster. He was one of the main anchors for the
BBC Yorkshire BBC Yorkshire is one of the English regions of the BBC. It was formed from the division of the former BBC North region into BBC Yorkshire and BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, based in Kingston upon Hull. Serving West, North and South Yorkshire a ...
regional magazine programme '' Look North''. He was often referred to as ''Mr. Yorkshire'' by the media.


Early life

Born in
Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...
, West Riding of Yorkshire, to Nina (nee Smith) and Morris Gration, Gration was raised in a
back-to-back house Back-to-backs are a form of terraced houses in the United Kingdom, built from the late 18th century through to the early 20th century in various guises. Many thousands of these dwellings were built during the Industrial Revolution for the rapidly ...
in the city. His father was a chemist who was a manager at a
Boots A boot is a type of footwear. Boot or Boots may also refer to: Businesses * Boot Inn, Chester, Cheshire, England * Boots (company), a high-street pharmacy chain and manufacturer of pharmaceuticals in the United Kingdom * The Boot, Cromer St ...
store in the city and promotion took the family first to
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...
, then
York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
. Gration was educated at
Leeds Grammar School Leeds Grammar School was an independent school founded 1552 in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Originally a male-only school, in August 2005 it merged with Leeds Girls' High School to form The Grammar School at Leeds. The two schools physicall ...
and at St Peter's School in York, and after leaving education, he initially spent five years as a history teacher and eventually, a head of history at
The Rodillian Academy The Rodillian Academy (formerly Rodillian School) is a mixed secondary School and sixth form with academy status located in Lofthouse, West Yorkshire, England. The school has 1,556 pupils aged between 11 and 18. The school also has Specia ...
, a school in Lofthouse, near
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...
.


Career

Whilst still teaching, Gration became a sports commentator on rugby league games which led to a three-month contract with the BBC. He then ended up resigning from his teaching post and went into broadcasting full-time when he joined BBC Radio Leeds in 1978. Gration started presenting ''Look North'' in 1982. By 2018, Gration had been broadcasting with the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
for 40 years, although he had a spell at
BBC South Today ''BBC South Today'' is the BBC's regional television news service for the south of England, covering Hampshire, Isle of Wight, West Sussex, much of Dorset and parts of Berkshire, Surrey and Wiltshire. Since 2000, an opt-out of the main progra ...
where he co-presented with Sally Taylor between 1995 and 1999. He presented alongside
Judith Stamper Judith Stamper (born 1952) is an English former television presenter, journalist and academic. Early life Stamper was born in Cockermouth, Cumberland. She attended Cockermouth Grammar School (now Cockermouth School). She graduated in English in ...
,
Clare Frisby Clare Kathleen Frisby (born 27 December 1966, Orpington) is a newsreader for '' Look North'' based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Early life She first attended Bennett Memorial Diocesan School. Later she was the head girl of Combe Bank Scho ...
,
Christa Ackroyd Christa Marion Ackroyd is an English journalist and broadcaster, best known as a former presenter for the regional TV news programmes ''Calendar'' (for ITV Yorkshire) and ''BBC Look North''. Early life Ackroyd, whose father was a policeman, at ...
, and his last co-anchor was
Amy Garcia Amy Garcia (born 24 May 1981) is an English journalist and broadcaster. She is currently the main anchor of the BBC Yorkshire regional magazine programme '' Look North''. Early life Garcia was born in Wakefield; her mother is English and her f ...
. He appeared on ''Top Gear'' in 2010. While supposedly reporting from
Braithwell Braithwell is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. It is about north from Maltby and south-east from Conisbrough. According to the 2001 Census the civil parish had a population of 1, ...
,
Jeremy Clarkson Jeremy Charles Robert Clarkson (born 11 April 1960) is an English broadcaster, journalist, game show host and writer who specialises in motoring. He is best known for the motoring programmes '' Top Gear'' and '' The Grand Tour'' alongside R ...
crashes a
Reliant Robin The Reliant Robin is a small three-wheeled car produced by the Reliant Motor Company in Tamworth, England. It was offered in several versions (Mk1, Mk2 and Mk3) over a period of 30 years. It is the second-most popular fibreglass car in history ...
in the background. Gration was appointed
Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
(MBE) in the 2013 Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting. Gration regularly appeared in the annual Christmas pantomime at the
York Theatre Royal York Theatre Royal is a theatre in St Leonard's Place, in York, England, which dates back to 1744. The theatre currently seats 750 people. Whilst the theatre is traditionally a proscenium theatre, it was reconfigured for a season in 2011 to offe ...
in a filmed segment with its main star and writer, Berwick Kaler. In the 2016 production of Cinderella, Gration appeared in women's underwear. On 13 October 2020, Gration announced his retirement from the BBC. His final appearance as lead presenter on ''Look North'' was 21 October 2020, the day before his 70th birthday.


Public office

In December 2009, Gration followed in the footsteps of his '' Look North'' colleague and Mayor of
Wetwang Wetwang is a Yorkshire Wolds village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, west of Driffield on the A166 road. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 761, an increase on the 2001 census figure of 672. Toponymy Th ...
, Paul Hudson, when he was declared honorary Mayor of
Burn A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, cold, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ultraviolet radiation (like sunburn). Most burns are due to heat from hot liquids (called scalding), solids, or fire. Burns occur mainl ...
. In June 2018, Gration performed the wedding ceremony between
Keeley Donovan Keeley Emma Donovan (born 14 May 1983) is an English journalist and broadcaster, working for the BBC as a weather presenter for television and radio stations in the North of England. Early life Donovan was born in Grimsby and grew up in nearb ...
and Johnny I'Anson in Knaresborough; Donovan is a ''Look North'' weather presenter and reporter and I'Anson also broadcasts for the BBC. He was a Deputy Lieutenant of North Yorkshire.


Personal life

Gration was married three times and had six children. His first two marriages, to Hilary Gardner (m. 1974) and Rowena Cluness (m. 1984), ended in divorce. He married his third wife, Helen Chene, in 2001. Gration died of cancer on 24 June 2022 at the age of 71. A memorial service was held for Gration on 1 August 2022, which is
Yorkshire Day Yorkshire Day is a yearly celebration on 1 August to promote the historic county of Yorkshire, England. It was celebrated by the Yorkshire Ridings Society in 1975, initially in Beverley, as "a protest movement against the local government re ...
, at
York Minster The Cathedral and Metropolitical Church of Saint Peter in York, commonly known as York Minster, is the cathedral of York, North Yorkshire, England, and is one of the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The minster is the seat of the Arch ...
. It was attended by
Geoff Boycott Sir Geoffrey Boycott (born 21 October 1940) is a former Test cricketer, who played cricket for Yorkshire and England. In a prolific and sometimes controversial playing career from 1962 to 1986, Boycott established himself as one of England's m ...
,
Dickie Bird Harold Dennis "Dickie" Bird, (born 19 April 1933), is an English retired international cricket umpire. During his long umpiring career, he became a much-loved figure among players and viewing public, due to his excellence as an umpire, but al ...
and former
Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers th ...
Dr John Sentamu John Tucker Mugabi Sentamu, Baron Sentamu, (; ; born 10 June 1949) is a retired Anglican bishop and life peer. He was Archbishop of York and Primate of England from 2005 to 2020. Born near Kampala in Uganda, Sentamu studied law at Makerere Un ...
.


References


External links

*
BBC presenter profile

TV Newsroom profile

Returning to the BBC Leeds studio in 1999
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gration, Harry 1950 births 2022 deaths BBC newsreaders and journalists British reporters and correspondents Deputy Lieutenants of North Yorkshire English rugby league commentators English television presenters Mass media people from Bradford Members of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Leeds Grammar School People educated at St Peter's School, York Television personalities from West Yorkshire People from York