And Now The Shipping Forecast

Peter Jefferson presented The Shipping Forecast for over 40 years, and his familiar voice continued to be heard reading quotations on BBC Radio 4's Quote... Unquote. This book is both an affectionate memoir and a history of the science and BBC programming behind the forecast.

Peter explains how it came out, who collects all the information and what it's like to read this bulletin. Even though the information in the forecast is now readily available in many formats, The Shipping Forecast is something of a 'must listen' for fans gathered over the decades.

For reasons not quite understood, it has become a much-loved part of the British cultural landscape with an avid following of listeners who find its poetry is the perfect cure for insomnia. This book is perfect for those fans.

About the Author

Peter Jefferson joined the BBC in 1964. In 1969 he became an announcer and newsreader, first on the BBC World Service then across all the domestic BBC Radio networks, which included reading the Shipping Forecast for 40 years - first on Radio 2 and later on Radio 4. He took early retirement in 2001 but continued working for Radio 4 in a freelance capacity until 2009, during which time he also appeared in several radio and TV programmes, including plays on Radio 4, being featured on The One Show on BBC1, and vocally or as an actor on EastEnders, Panorama, My Family, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, The Mighty Boosh, The Bill, Peak Practice and Holby City. He lives with his wife in Wiltshire.

Praise for And Now The Shipping Forecast

'For this daily dose of the beautiful to work, nothing is more important than the god who administers it. None has been more perfect in the last few years than Peter Jefferson, the voice of perfect modulation, the near-equal of the incomparable Charlotte Green, neither thin nor fruity, effortlessly clear, understanding that the beauty of the moment depends on restraint and the absence of any hint of doubt.'
– The Guardian

Table of Contents

• 1. Prologue
• 2. The genesis of the shipping forecast
• 3. Name changing but not name calling
• 4. The meteorological office and the shipping forecast broadcast
• 5. The lighter side
• 6. Unexpected outside broadcast
• 7. Sailing by
• 8. Sailing by the seat of your pants
• 9. A tale of shipping area turbulence
• 10. Part 1: A tale of shipping area turbulence
• 11. Part 2: Shedding some light... on lighthouses
• 12. Codes, conventions and traditions
• 13. Time and Greenwich Mean Time
• 14. A life on the ocean wave
• 15. A final note
• Glossary
• Sources & Further Reading
• Index