Reeta Chakrabarti is a veteran BBC news journalist and correspondent (Community Affairs Correspondent, Politics and Education) and, since 2020, Chancellor of York St John University. She started her career at the BBC as a producer at BBC Radio 4 before becoming a presenter on Radio 5Live breakfast. She was appointed as news presenter in 2014 and is currently presenting the BBC News programmes at One, Six and Ten O’clock.
Reeta has reported from or been in the studio for some of the most significant events in recent history: she was anchor for the BBC coverage of the 70th anniversary of the Partition of India and Pakistan and was part of the studio team for the 2019 general election and the 2020 US presidential election. In 2022 she was the BBC’s main presenter in Lviv, Ukraine, and in 2024 was analysing results in the studio as part of the BBC’s general election coverage. An alumna and Honorary Fellow at Exeter College, she is returning to Oxford in 2026 to speak about her debut novel at the Oxford Literary Festival. We wanted to know what Makes Reeta…
Happy?
A job well done. Professionally, when I’m in the studio this can range from writing strong, punchy headlines and introductions to stories (yes, I do write them myself) to dealing smoothly with breaking news and technical gremlins. In my work as a novelist, it’s all about the granular detail of the writing: finding the right word, getting a good flow to a sentence, giving the language texture. At home, it’s sweeping the kitchen floor until it’s pristine, and clearing the fridge of 30 jars of ancient pickles.
Sad?
Inevitably many of the stories I report on are grim, and those that involve the suffering of children always affect me. But I’m also, if not saddened, then anxious about the world we are bequeathing younger people – a warming planet, divisive politics, an over-reliance on tech, the uncertainty around AI, the lack of opportunity for many.
Angry?
Bullies, narcissists, hypocrites, cheats and liars. Mansplaining. People talking loudly into their mobiles on public transport. People wearing large headphones and staring at their mobiles who don’t say sorry when they bump into you.
Reflective?
This is an interesting question on which I have had to reflect! Clever people who are original, constructive, and not dogmatic always provide food for thought. There are rarely easy answers to anything, and I admire people who are generous and can think outside the box. It’s also why fiction is so satisfying when it’s good, examining contradictions without trying to condemn or reason them away. The best novels find some sort of resolution within the mess.
Confident?
At work I feel confident if I’m supported by a good team – luckily in my day job as a news presenter, my colleagues are top rate and I know that if things are going wrong behind the scenes, they’ll do everything to make the programme still appear seamless. I enjoy my role enormously and I think that instils its own confidence.
Optimistic?
Having said that I’m saddened by/anxious about the world, I’m an optimist by nature and feel certain that we will find a way using our ingenuity and ability to adapt. I’m confident too that despite our present outwardly aggressive era, there is a quiet majority of people who are decent, sensible, open and rational. There is – I’m sure - a lot of good life out there.
Reeta Chakrabarti will be discussing her debut novel, Finding Belle, at The Oxford Literary Festival on Thursday 26 March. A story of mothers and daughters, Finding Belle stretches from the beaches of Mombasa to the suburbs of England and the streets of Kolkata as Belle’s daughter Mivvi attempts to reconcile the pieces of her troubled mother’s past.
The Oxford Literary Festival takes place this year between 21-29 March at various locations around Oxford’s city centre. This year’s programme continues the Festival’s commitment to Free Speech and the exploration of ideas with a lineup of more than 400 speakers including leading thinkers, writers, artists and public figures. oxfordliteraryfestival.org
