BBC reporter Barron dies aged 69
Brian Barron
BBC war correspondent Brian Barron has died from cancer at the age of 69. He covered wars across five decades, from Aden in 1967 to Iraq in 2003, and served as the BBC’s man in some of the world’s major cities.
World News Editor Jon Williams said: “He was simply the most distinguished BBC correspondent of our age” Barron witnessed many major events and was honoured with several awards. He died at his home in Cornwall surrounded by his family.
Joining the BBC World Service in 1965, he witnessed the fall of Saigon and reported from Africa on the demise of Idi Amin. He covered the Falklands War from Chile, as well as working as Ireland correspondent at the height of the Troubles in the early 1980s.
‘An inspiration’
He won several Royal Television Society awards including Reporter of the Year in 1980 and the International Reporting Prize for his coverage from Latin America.After his official retirement, Brian and Eric Thirer, his friend and long-time cameraman, continued to work together in New York.
Two years ago, in what would be his final report for the BBC, he returned to Aden, 40 years after the end of empire. Jon Williams said: “It was vintage Brian – funny, poignant, but with a message. He was an inspiration to more than one generation of reporters, producers and editors.” Barron leaves his wife Angela and daughter Fleur.
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