Jonathan Francis Kay (born 8 November 1969 in Hull,

East Riding of Yorkshire The East Riding of Yorkshire, or simply East Riding or East Yorkshire, is a ceremonial county and unitary authority area in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and west, South Yorkshire to t ...

) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

television presenter, newsreader, and journalist based in the West of England known for his work on

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

Early life

Kay was born on 8 November 1969 and grew up in Cheshire, attending Abbey Gate College, an independent school in Chester. From the age of 18 he studied at the

University of Exeter , mottoeng = "We Follow the Light" , established = 1838 - St Luke's College1855 - Exeter School of Art1863 - Exeter School of Science 1955 - University of Exeter (received royal charter) , type = Public , ...

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

. During his studies there, he "mucked around" in the studios of University Radio Exeter, which led to his decision to pursue a career in broadcast journalism. After graduation with a BA degree in Politics in 1992, he joined the BBC as a trainee local reporter.

Journalism career

After periods at BBC local radio stations, Kay became a full-time reporter for

BBC Radio Bristol BBC Radio Bristol is the BBC's local radio station serving Bristol, Bath and North & North East Somerset. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios at Broadcasting House in Bristol. According to RAJAR, the stati ...

, making an early documentary on the development of

Bradley Stoke Bradley Stoke is a town in South Gloucestershire, England, situated northeast of Bristol,OS Explorer Map, Bristol and Bath, Keynsham & Marshfield. Scale: 1:25 000.Publisher: Ordnance Survey B4 edition (2013). It is near the Severn Estuary of ...

.Bradley Stoke: 1994 documentary
BBC Bristol, 18 September 2007 Kay worked as a regional reporter for '' BBC Points West'' and then moved to the capital as a national news correspondent for '' BBC London News''. He is currently a news correspondent for

covering the South-West of the country, but he regularly covers stories in other parts of Britain and around the world. In 2014, Kay reported from Portugal on the investigation into the

disappearance of Madeleine McCann Madeleine Beth McCann (born 12 May 2003) is a British missing person who disappeared from her bed in a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, on the evening of 3 May 2007, at the age of 3. '' The Daily Telegraph'' described the disappear ...

and from Cape Town on the trial of Shrien Dewani (later exonerated for his wife's murder). He was ''

BBC News at Six The ''BBC News at Six'' is the evening news programme bulletin from the BBC. Produced by BBC News, the programme is broadcast on the BBC News channel and on British television channel BBC One on weekdays at 6:00pm. For a long period, the ''BB ...

'' correspondent during the London Olympics in 2012 and election correspondent during the 2015 general election campaign. Jon Kay is also a regular presenter on '' BBC Breakfast''. In July 2022, it was announced by the BBC that Kay will become the main presenter of ''BBC Breakfast'' from Monday to Wednesday.

Personal life

Kay met fellow BBC trainee Francesca Kasteliz during their secondment to the newsroom in BBC Bristol. The couple married in 1998, and have three children. Having worked as a BBC presenting coach, Kasteliz now works as a freelance TV coach.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kay, Jon 1969 births Living people Journalists from Kingston upon Hull Alumni of the University of Exeter English television presenters BBC newsreaders and journalists