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Friday
Mar252016

BBC John, the Mighty Atom (1937-2016)

I attended a funeral in Southend on Wednesday.

It was a sad occasion because the death was unexpected and followed what I understand was a relatively short illness.

On the other hand, like many funerals, it was also a celebration of a life well lived.

I had known John Hosken for more than 20 years. I was editing the monthly Mensa magazine (he was a member, I was merely a hired hand) and he rang to tell me, in his characteristically urbane way, that a clue to one of the puzzles contained an error.

I couldn't have been less interested, to be honest, because puzzles weren't my thing but John loved to talk and so we chatted and I quickly discovered he was a broadcaster and writer who had enjoyed a long and successful career at the BBC.

He agreed to be interviewed and that led to our first meeting, at the old BBC Club at Broadcasting House in London.

I discovered he was a proud Cornishman whose first job in journalism was with the West Briton newspaper. Thereafter he moved to Manchester and joined the BBC.

John may not have been a household name – although he did sit in for Jimmy Young on Radio 2 on several occasions and presented his own programme, Late Night Friday, for a few years – but he was a distinguished industrial correspondent, well thought of by unions and bosses alike.

He later moved to air and then transport but one of his proudest achievements career wise was being asked to commentate on state occasions including the State Opening of Parliament, royal weddings and the Remembrance Day Service at the Cenotaph when his knowledge and attention to detail were a winning combination. Unlike many of today's broadcasters, he didn't dumb down or regard his audience as simpletons.

John officially left the BBC in 1988 but continued making programmes for the corporation as a freelance broadcaster. Many were broadcast on the World Service and one or two concerned his beloved Cornwall.

In 2011, in recognition of his "promotion of Cornwall through the media", John was made a Bard of the Cornish Gorsedh, an organisation that exists "to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall".

That same year, aged 73, he also published Sophie Storme, a children's book that was set, naturally, in Cornwall.

At his funeral on Wednesday the tribute was given by a schoolfriend who had known John since they were five years old. Even though life took them in different directions they remained close friends.

I was aware of John's nickname, The Mighty Atom (in recognition of his long distance running ability). I didn't know he was known locally in Essex, where he lived for many years, as "BBC John".

After the tribute we heard some clips from John's broadcasting career. As his mellifluous Cornish voice filled the chapel, the contrast with today's more excitable style of broadcasting was clear to all.

Long after I met and interviewed him, John and I kept in touch. When I was a journalist I commissioned him to write a number of articles on issues that interested him (Concorde and the first jet aircraft are two that spring to mind).

It was an annual treat to get a Christmas card from the Hoskens because John was a keen photographer who made his own cards using a print of one of his own photographs, seasonal or not!

Once or twice we met for a drink. His wife Gillian, who also worked for the BBC as a producer, would join us. John was an irrepressible raconteur and mimic and I always enjoyed their company.

Together they attended several Forest events – our annual boat party, Smoke On The Water, and one or two events at Boisdale.

If I have a regret it's that I was often too busy on these occasions to have more than a cursory chat.

RIP, John. Thanks for your friendship and support.

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