Francis Wilson (meteorologist)

Francis Alfred Wilson, FRMetS, CMet (Chartered Meteorologist),^[1] (born 27 February 1949)^[2] is a Scottish-born weather forecaster, from Buckinghamshire, who was a presenter and the Head of Weather on the BBC's Breakfast Time and Breakfast News from 1983 until 1992, and Sky News from 1993 until 2010.^[3]

Early life

Wilson was born in Irvine, North Ayrshire, Scotland. Went Newtown Infants School, Whitehill Junior School, Germains County Secondary School and Dr Challoner's Grammar School. He grew up in Chesham, firstly in Pond Park.^[4] Around the age of 16, he looked after an Alsatian dog called Wander, at a kennel at Wigginton, Hertfordshire.^[5][6] When he took flying lessons, and had to land a light aircraft, and could feel turbulence, he took an interest in weather. After leaving school, he gained his private pilots licence, but didn't want to be a commercial pilot. He took a year off to go travelling around Europe.^[7]

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics from Imperial College London, taking a meteorology module in his last year.

Career

Wilson worked as a Meteorological Office forecaster from 1972, with five years at Prestwick Airport. He then worked at the RAE in Farnborough, Hampshire with the airborne RAF Meteorological Research Flight (MRF), using a high-altitude Canberra aircraft for three years,^[8] This aircraft would have taken part in the 1974 Global Atmospheric Research Program. In later years the research aircraft was a Hercules. From 2001 MRF was superseded by the NERC (FAAM) at Cranfield in Bedfordshire.^[9] He became a Fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society in 1973, and later a Chartered Meteorologist.

In 1978, he joined Thames TV as weatherman, where he wore jeans, and an open-necked shirt, which gained him much fan mail, possibly for the audacity or novelty. He joined the BBC's Breakfast Time team in 1983,^[10] using computer-generated graphics for the first time on British television. At the BBC, he would have to get out of bed at 3am, five times a week, which he did not like. He presented from Lime Grove. On the way to work, he would collect satellite information from Imperial College.^[11] On 15 July 1985, an episode of Favourite Walks, in Chesham, was shown. ^[12][13]

Wilson joined Sky News in 1993 and, until June 2010, headed the weather department, which broadcast weather forecasts for Europe 24 hours a day.

In 1979, Wilson was invited by Ian Anderson to contribute to the Jethro Tull album Stormwatch. He reads the Shipping Forecast on the track "North Sea Oil", and the spoken introduction to "Dun Ringill".

In 1998, Wilson was invited to Morocco by Sir Richard Branson to advise on meteorological conditions for his Virgin Earth Challenge balloon attempt.^{[citation needed]}

Awards

Wilson has won the title of "Best Television Weather Presenter - Worldwide" at the International Television Weather Forecasters Festival in 1995, 1997, 2000 and 2003.^[14] He also won a Gotcha Award after being pranked by Mr Blobby.^[15] He is also the author of seven books, including The Great British Obsession (1990).

Publications

In the 1980s he wrote children's books about weather, published by Macdonalds.^[16][17]

Personal life

His son Josh Wilson was born in April 1982.His second son James Wilson was born November 1990

References

This page was last edited on 6 November 2023, at 14:18