Angela Rippon has said she is “thrilled” to see so many female broadcasters in the newsroom nowadays as she reflected on how she had to hold her own when she started out.
Rippon, now 78, became the first regular female news anchor on the BBC in 1975 and went on to host shows including Top Gear, Children In Need and the original Come Dancing.
However, when she was in her 50s, the BBC told Rippon her career on TV was over and she should move aside for younger women.
Speaking with Prima magazine nearly 30 years on, she said: “Well, that was 28 years ago – and I’m still here!
“Young women are indeed coming up behind me, and I love it. I’m thrilled to see so many female broadcasters now reading the news, filming it, producing and editing it.”
Before Rippon, Nan Winton broke new ground for the BBC as its first female newsreader in 1960 as part of an experiment.
However, she was removed a short while later after audience research concluded it was “not acceptable” for a woman to read the late news.
Reflecting on what attitudes were like when she entered the industry, Rippon recalled: “If I’d gone in acting like the tea girl, maybe it would have been different, but I’d worked in the studio, I’d done stints in Northern Ireland and I’d covered the oil crisis from Norway and Sweden – I’d proven I could do the job.
“There were very few women in the newsroom back then, but I didn’t let that bother me. I just held my own.”
She still does not let preconceptions stand in her way as she continues to work, including presenting on GB News.
“I’ve met people at 92 who still have the enthusiasm for life of a 30-year-old – and I’ve met 30-year-olds who, frankly, have one foot in the grave!” she said.
“The way I see it, you only have one go at life, so get as much out of it as you can, whatever you do.”
She plans to travel more this year – without a camera crew following her.
“I’ve travelled around the world for work, but I now want to travel just for me,” she added.
“I recently visited Thailand and Bhutan, and next I’m hoping to go to India, where I’ve never been. I even have my camera back out and I’m taking pictures again, which I’m loving.”
Read the full interview with Angela Rippon in the April issue of Prima, on sale now.