Kirsty Wark has built up a reputation as one of the UK’s most formidable and versatile television journalists. She is best known as an anchor on the BBC’s flagship News and Current Affairs show Newsnight.

Born in Dumfries and now based in Glasgow, Kirsty’s broadcasting career began in 1976 when she joined the BBC as a graduate researcher. She produced a range of radio programmes in Scotland before spending time in London as a producer on Radio Four’s The World at One and PM. In 1983 she moved to television to produce Reporting Scotland and was the first woman to edit the programme.

Kirsty was one of the first television journalists to arrive on the scene when PAN AM Flight 103 was blown up in the skies above Lockerbie in 1988. Two years later, she famously locked horns with Margaret Thatcher in a headline making interview which propelled her into the national spotlight. In addition to political reporting, Kirsty presents many arts and cultural programmes; career highlights have included interviews with Madonna, Nobel Prize-winning playwright Harold Pinter, Damien Hirst and George Clooney, to name just a few.

In addition to presenting on television, Kirsty also broadcasts on the radio and is the host of The Reunion on BBC Radio 4.

In the June 2023 Graduation Ceremonies at University of St Andrews, Kirsty was awarded Doctor of Letters (DLitt) in recognition of her outstanding career in journalism and broadcasting.

Kirsty has written two novels – The Legacy of Elizabeth Pringle and The House by the Loch – both published by Two Roads. She is currently writing her third novel.

In Conversation with Kirsty Wark discusses Kirsty’s own novels, and what fiction impacted on her and her audience.

Check out the A Blether O’ Books 2025 Collection for other events in this series.

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