Raymond Frederic Baxter OBE (25 January 1922 – 15 September 2006) was an English television presenter, commentator and writer. He is best known for being the first presenter of the

BBC Television BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...

science programme ''

Tomorrow's World ''Tomorrow's World'' is a former British television series about contemporary developments in science and technology. First transmitted on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003. The ''Tomorro ...

'', continuing for 12 years, from 1965 to 1977. He also provided radio commentary at the

coronation of Queen Elizabeth II The coronation of Elizabeth II took place on 2 June 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London. She acceded to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of her father, George VI, on 6 February 1952, being proclaimed queen by her privy and executive ...

, the funerals of

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

and Lord Mountbatten of Burma, and the first flight of

Concorde The Aérospatiale/BAC Concorde () is a retired Franco-British supersonic airliner jointly developed and manufactured by Sud Aviation (later Aérospatiale) and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). Studies started in 1954, and France an ...

Early life

Baxter was born in Ilford in

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

. His father was a science teacher. He was educated at

Ilford County High School Ilford County High School (often abbreviated to ICHS) is a selective secondary grammar school for boys located in the town of Barkingside of the London Borough of Redbridge. The school was formerly called ''Park High Grade School'' and as a res ...

, a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

for boys, from which he was expelled after being caught smoking. He did not go on to a college or university. Baxter worked for a brief period at the

Metropolitan Water Board The Metropolitan Water Board was a municipal body formed in 1903 to manage the water supply in London, UK. The members of the board were nominated by the local authorities within its area of supply. In 1904 it took over the water supply functi ...

RAF career

In August 1940, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, he joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

and trained as a

fighter pilot A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, air-to-ground combat and sometimes electronic warfare while in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and ...

in Canada. He first flew

Supermarine Spitfire The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, from the Mk 1 to the Rolls-Royce Gri ...

s with

No. 65 Squadron RAF No. 65 Squadron was a squadron of the Royal Air Force. First World War The squadron was first formed at Wyton on 1 August 1916 as a squadron of the Royal Flying Corps with a core provided from the training station at Norwich. It served as a tra ...

in Britain, based in Scotland. He joined No. 93 Squadron RAF, flying over

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

in 1943, where he was

mentioned in dispatches To be mentioned in dispatches (or despatches, MiD) describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face ...

. He returned to England in 1944 as an instructor and was later a flight commander, returning to active service with

No. 602 Squadron RAF 602 (City of Glasgow) Squadron is a Royal Auxiliary Air Force squadron. Originally formed in 1925 as a light bomber squadron, its role changed in 1938 to army co-operation and in 1939 to that of a fighter squadron. During the Second World War, ...

in September 1944. On 18 March 1945, Baxter took part in a daylight raid on the Shell-Mex building in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital o ...

, which was then the German headquarters for V-1 and

V-2 rocket The V-2 (german: Vergeltungswaffe 2, lit=Retaliation Weapon 2), with the technical name ''Aggregat 4'' (A-4), was the world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was develop ...

attacks on southern England. The commander of the raid, Max Sutherland, received a bar to his DFC and Baxter, along with the three other pilots, was again mentioned in dispatches. In an interview about his wartime career, Baxter described flying over a V-2 site during a launch on 14 February 1945, and his wingman firing on the missile: "I dread to think what would have happened if he'd hit the thing!" He later flew

North American Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

and

Douglas Dakota The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in ...

aircraft for a year, then worked in Forces Broadcasting Service (FBS) from 1945 to 1949, based in

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metr ...

and then

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

, becoming its deputy director. He was demobbed in 1946 as a

flight lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior Officer (armed forces)#Commissioned officers, commissioned rank in air forces that use the Royal Air Force (RAF) RAF officer ranks, system of ranks, especially in Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries. I ...

BBC career

Baxter joined the BBC in 1950. He provided radio commentary on the funerals of

in 1952 and

in 1965, the former commentary given while suspended from the ceiling of

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

. He also reported at the

in 1953, reporting from

Trafalgar Square Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson comm ...

. Baxter was an accomplished

rally Rally or rallye may refer to: Gatherings * Demonstration (political), a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade * Pep rally, an event held at a United States school or college sporting event Sports ...

driver and competed in the

Monte Carlo Rally The Monte Carlo Rally or Rallye Monte-Carlo (officially ''Rallye Automobile de Monte-Carlo'') is a rallying event organised each year by the Automobile Club de Monaco. The rally now takes place along the French Riviera in Monaco and southeas ...

twelve times, six of them as a member of the BMC Works Team. He also competed in numerous

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

Tulip Tulips (''Tulipa'') are a genus of spring-blooming perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes (having bulbs as storage organs). The flowers are usually large, showy and brightly coloured, generally red, pink, yellow, or white (usually in warm ...

and RAC Rallies, which was satirised in the character ''Roland Thraxter'' in

Peter Ustinov Sir Peter Alexander Ustinov (born Peter Alexander Freiherr von Ustinov ; 16 April 192128 March 2004) was a British actor, filmmaker and writer. An internationally known raconteur, he was a fixture on television talk shows and lecture circuits ...

's ''Grand Prix du Rock''. He was a crew member in the New Zealand Air Race in 1953, in a

British European Airways British European Airways (BEA), formally British European Airways Corporation, was a British airline which existed from 1946 until 1974. BEA operated to Europe, North Africa and the Middle East from airports around the United Kingdom. The a ...

Vickers Viscount The Vickers Viscount is a British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner. The Vi ...

. Having an authoritative voice, he frequently commentated on motoring and aviation events. He was the BBC's motoring correspondent from 1950 to 1966, including at least twenty

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

races, the

Le Mans Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le ...

24-hour race, and the

. To parody this, he was invited to appear in an episode of ''

Hancock's Half Hour ''Hancock's Half Hour'' was a BBC radio comedy, and later television comedy series, broadcast from 1954 to 1961 and written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. The series starred Tony Hancock, with Sidney James; the radio version also co-starr ...

'' when Hancock entered the rally, and onto ''

I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue ''I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue'' is a BBC radio comedy panel game. Billed as "the antidote to panel games", it consists of two teams of two comedians being given "silly things to do" by a chairman. The show was launched in April 1972 as a pa ...

'' to commentate on sessions of

Mornington Crescent Mornington Crescent is a terraced street in Camden Town, Camden, London, England. It was built in the 1820s, on a greenfield site just to the north of central London. Many of the houses were subdivided into flats during the Victorian era, an ...

. In 1960, he narrated

Look at Life (film series) ''Look at Life'' was a regular British series of short documentary films of which over 500 were produced between 1959 and 1969 by the Special Features Division of the Rank Organisation for screening in their Odeon and Gaumont cinemas. The films ...

' 'Against the Clock', a short film about the

RAC Limited RAC Limited (The RAC) is a British automotive services company headquartered in Walsall, West Midlands. Its principal services are roadside assistance and general insurance, and its subsidiaries include RAC Motoring Services Ltd, RAC Financial ...

's 2,000-mile UK rally. From 1967 to 1968, he was briefly Director of Motoring Publicity for the

British Motor Corporation The British Motor Corporation Limited (BMC) was a UK-based vehicle manufacturer, formed in early 1952 to give effect to an agreed merger of the Morris and Austin businesses.Morris-Austin Merger Company Named. ''The Times'', Friday, 29 February ...

, while still presenting for the BBC. Following BMC's takeover by Leyland Motors, it was decided to dispense with Baxter's services in this post, and he returned to work full-time for the BBC. He presented the BBC's coverage of

Farnborough Airshow The Farnborough Airshow, officially the Farnborough International Airshow, is a trade exhibition for the aerospace and defence industries, where civilian and military aircraft are demonstrated to potential customers and investors. Since its fir ...

s from 1950 to 1986. He reported on the first flight of

and was the first reporter to broadcast from an aeroplane, ocean liner and underwater. For thirty years, he was the regular commentator at the

Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants, as well as all others in ...

's annual Festival of Remembrance at the

Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...

and at the Royal Tournament. He presented the opening ceremony of the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it, Giochi Olimpici estivi del 1960), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad ( it, Giochi della XVII Olimpiade) and commonly known as Rome 1960 ( it, Roma 1960), were an international multi-sport event held ...

, deputising for an indisposed

Richard Dimbleby Frederick Richard Dimbleby (25 May 1913 – 22 December 1965) was an English journalist and broadcaster, who became the BBC's first war correspondent, and then its leading TV news commentator. As host of the long-running current affairs ...

. He presented the science series ''Eye on Research'' from 1959 to 1963, and was the first (and initially sole) host of the long-running popular science show ''

'' for 12 years from July 1965, reaching an audience of up to 10 million viewers. He was the presenter of the first live transatlantic broadcast from the US via Telstar in 1962, the first live telecast from Australia in November 1966, and interviewed South African surgeon

Christiaan Barnard Christiaan Neethling Barnard (8 November 1922 – 2 September 2001) was a South African cardiac surgeon who performed the world's first human-to-human heart transplant operation. On 3 December 1967, Barnard transplanted the heart of accident-v ...

by telephone in 1967, within hours of the completion of the world's first heart transplant operation. Baxter also undertook commercial commissions. He was the presenter for the launch of

Gillette Gillette is an American brand of safety razors and other personal care products including shaving supplies, owned by the multi-national corporation Procter & Gamble (P&G). Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was owned by The Gill ...

's G2 Razors held at the Heathrow Hotel, London, in 1973. He left the ''Tomorrow's World'' programme in 1977, after disagreements with its new editor, Michael Blakstad, who described Baxter as "the last of the dinosaurs", while Baxter reputedly said he could not work with someone who arrived at the BBC each day on a bicycle. Baxter was invited to present the first Raymond Baxter Award for Science Communication in July 2000. He was surprised to find that he was the first recipient.

Other activities

In 1975 Baxter narrated "The

Hammond Organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated ...

40th Anniversary Album", issued by Ad-Rhythm Records. Baxter also narrated ''The Story of Rolls-Royce'', a 1988 film about the history of the world's most prestigious motor car, made by the

Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts' Club The Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts' Club (RREC) is an international association for owners and admirers of Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars. It was founded by eleven people on 11 August 1957 in the living room of Edward Harris in Oxfordshire, England. ...

.RREC DVD. http://www.rrec.org.uk/shop/category.php?cat=9 He also presented and narrated two

fire safety Fire safety is the set of practices intended to reduce the destruction caused by fire. Fire safety measures include those that are intended to prevent the ignition of an uncontrolled fire and those that are used to limit the development and eff ...

training films in the 1970s; the first for Consort Films, entitled ''Fire Danger in Hospitals'' in 1972, about what fires can break out due to carelessness and another, undated, entitled ''Hospital Evacuation and You''. Baxter was made an Honorary

Freeman Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

of the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

in 1978 and awarded the OBE in 2003. He was a member of the Committee of Management of the

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. It i ...

from 1979 to 1997, and Vice-President from 1987 to 1997. He became a Life Vice-President in 1997. In 1998 he was the subject of ''

This Is Your Life This Is Your Life may refer to: Television * ''This Is Your Life'' (American franchise), an American radio and television documentary biography series hosted by Ralph Edwards * ''This Is Your Life'' (Australian TV series), the Australian versio ...

'' when he was surprised by

Michael Aspel Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television newsreader and host of programmes such as '' Crackerjack'', ''Aspel & Company'', '' Give Us a Clue'', ''This is Your Life'', '' Strange but True?'' and ''Antiques Ro ...

with the help of

Stirling Moss Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss (17 September 1929 – 12 April 2020) was a British Formula One racing driver. An inductee into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, he won 212 of the 529 races he entered across several categories of com ...

, at a

Soho Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century. The area was deve ...

recording studio. Baxter was a founder member of the Association of

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.

Little Ships – he owned one of the small vessels that evacuated British troops from the beaches – and its Honorary Admiral from 1982, and Honorary Chairman of the

Royal Aeronautical Society The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a British multi-disciplinary professional institution dedicated to the global aerospace community. Founded in 1866, it is the oldest aeronautical society in the world. Members, Fellows, ...

from 1991. He was on the Council of the

Air League The Air League is an aviation and aerospace non-profit organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's largest provider of aviation and aerospace scholarships and bursaries. The Air League aims to inspire, enable, and support the next ...

from 1980 to 1985.

Personal life

He married his American wife, Sylvia Kathryn Johnson, in 1945. They had a son, Graham, and a daughter, Jenny who is a fencing coach. Sylvia died in 1996. Baxter died 15 September 2006 at the age of 84 at the

Royal Berkshire Hospital The Royal Berkshire Hospital (RBH) is a large NHS hospital in the town of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. It provides acute hospital services to the residents of the western and central portions of Berkshire, and is managed by the R ...

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spell ...

, close to his home in

Henley-on-Thames Henley-on-Thames ( ) is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in Oxfordshire, England, northeast of Reading, west of Maidenhead, southeast of Oxford and west of London (by road), near the tripoint of Oxfordshire, Berkshire and Buckin ...

. In a statement his family said: "He had a love of innovation and challenge both professionally and personally." Baxter was the uncle of the American

minimalist In visual arts, music and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in post– World War II in Western art, most strongly with American visual arts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Prominent artists associated with minimalism include Do ...

artist,

Carl Andre Carl Andre (born September 16, 1935) is an American minimalist artist recognized for his ordered linear and grid format sculptures and for the suspected murder of contemporary and wife, Ana Mendieta. His sculptures range from large public art ...

Filmography

*'' The Fast Lady'' (1962) – Himself *''

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

'' (1966) – BBC interviewer (uncredited)

Books

* * (autobiography)

References

TV presenter Raymond Baxter dies

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 broadc ...

, 16 September 2006
Obituary: Raymond Baxter

, 15 September 2006
Obituary
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'', 18 September 2006
Obituary
''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'', 18 September 2006

External links

Baxter's account of the V2 shooting incident (see ''Early life and war service'', above)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baxter, Raymond 1922 births 2006 deaths BBC people English television presenters Motorsport announcers People from Ilford Officers of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Ilford County High School Royal Air Force pilots of World War II Royal Air Force officers