Dundee Literary Festival launches today and one of its speakers is Nick Robinson, political editor of the BBC. Perhaps one of the most influential journalists in Britain, he tells Jack McKeown why George Bush was his best interview … and Gordon Brown the worst.
Nick Robinson should sound tired but he doesn’t. As soon as the political journalist finished the hectic party conference season he headed to Edinburgh to report on David Cameron and Alex Salmond’s historic agreement on the independence referendum.
Is he worried he might lose a third of his patch if Scotland votes for independence? He chuckles and neatly sidesteps the question: ”I think the next two years are going to be a fascinating time.
“Two years is a good stretch and there will be times when people are bored and even frustrated with it. There will be times when not much happens.
”But there will also be key moments when everything flares up and people are really engaged with it.
”My job and (the BBC’s Scottish political editor) Brian Taylor’s job is to recognise when those moments are and make sure the public are informed and involved with events.”
At the moment the odds look stacked against the First Minister winning the referendum he has waited a lifetime to hold.
But only last year the SNP went from trailing Labour badly in the polls to winning a landslide victory – and a majority in a system that was specifically designed to prevent one.
Should he pull off another remarkable turnaround and gain independence for Scotland, could David Cameron carry on in his post?
”Well, obviously, I don’t think he wants that on his CV. It would be a pretty big scar on his career. But it wouldn’t be a cause for him to resign.”
Nick (49) wanted to become a journalist in order to emulate his best friend Will’s dad, Brian Redhead, who was a presenter on The Today Show.
When he was 18, Nick, Will and their friend James were in a head-on collision in France. Will and James were killed instantly. Nick, who was in the back seat, was badly burned and fortunate to survive. His middle child, Will, is named in memory of his boyhood friend.
Nick went on to study politics, philosophy and economics at Oxford University. He was president of the university’s Young Conservative Association – a position which has since come back to haunt him, with Alastair Campbell among those to accuse him of anti-Labour bias because of it.
He countered this by pointing out that, at the same time he was a Conservative, Tony Blair had long hair and was playing guitar with the Ugly Rumours.
The then Prime Minister responded: ”Yes, Nick, but I wish I still was.”
He joined the BBC in 1986 and worked as a producer for television and radio programmes, including Newsround and Crimewatch.
In 1993, he became deputy editor of Panorama, the world’s longest-running current affairs programme and in 1996 he became a political correspondent for Radio 5 Live. He was made ITV News’s political editor in 2005.
Three years later, he took over as political editor of the BBC when Andrew Marr moved on from the role.
The last seven years have seen him cover the tail end of the Blair years, Gordon Brown’s short and ill-fated premiership and the awkward Con-Lib coalition that has existed since the Kirkcaldy MP fell short when he finally faced the electorate.
Nick is a man for whom former US President George Bush reserved a particular ire: ”I challenged him on British inmates at Guantanamo Bay. He had described them as ‘all bad guys’. As far as I was concerned, that was a matter for the courts to decide, not for the President to proclaim on.
”This was in the aftermath of 9/11 in a context where American journalists were being extremely patriotic. The press there is already more deferential towards the President because he’s head of state.
”He gets treated more like we treat the Queen.
”After the news conference at Camp David we were outside in the hot sun. He told me I should put a hat on my bald head.
”When I thought he was out of earshot I muttered: ‘I didn’t know you cared’. He turned round and shot back: ‘I don’t’.”
Despite this, President Bush remains Nick’s favourite interview: ”What you’re looking for is that great little soundbite or outburst. Love him or loathe him – and most people are in the latter – he delivered you a little bit of theatre or a punchline every time.”
And his worst interview? ”Gordon Brown. Doing interviews were a horror for Gordon. He knew he wasn’t being seen at his best and found that hugely frustrating.
”He felt awkward and that made me feel awkward. He never found the technique for coming across well or communicating better.
”It’s a pity because I’ve seen him when he is relaxed and Gordon on form is one of the cleverest, engaging and erudite men I’ve come across. But even one of his closest colleagues, Alistair Darling, described a meeting with Gordon as like going to the dentists without anaesthetic.”Nick Robinson is appearing at the Dundee Literary Festival on Friday October 26. He’ll be speaking on Politics, Power and the Media in the Bonar Hall at 1pm. Tickets, priced £5/£3, are available from 01382 386995 or dundee.ac.uk/literarydundee.