Canadian journalist and television presenter
This article is about the BBC TV and radio journalist and presenter. For the France Television and radio journalist and presenter with similar sounding name, see
Elise Lucet
.
Lyse Doucet
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![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1d/Lyse_Doucet_MSC_2017_%28cropped%29.jpg/220px-Lyse_Doucet_MSC_2017_%28cropped%29.jpg) Doucet in 2017
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Born
| (
1958-12-24
)
24 December 1958
(age 65)
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Education
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Occupation(s)
| Journalist, television presenter
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Employer
| BBC
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Notable credits
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Relatives
| Andrea Doucet
(sister)
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Lyse Marie Doucet
CM
OBE
(
; born 24 December 1958) is a Canadian journalist who is the
BBC
's Chief International Correspondent and senior presenter. She presents on
BBC World Service
radio and
BBC World News
television, and also reports for
BBC Radio 4
and
BBC News
in the United Kingdom. She also makes and presents documentaries.
Early life and education
[
edit
]
Doucet was born on 24 December 1958 in
Bathurst, New Brunswick
, Canada,
[2]
where she grew up in an Anglophone family. Her father was Clarence "Boo" Emile Doucet and mother Norma. She is one of six children. Her sister is
Andrea Doucet
, a Canadian professor of sociology.
[3]
She has
Acadian
and
Irish
ancestry.
[4]
She graduated in 1980 with a
Bachelor of Arts
(BA) degree from
Queen's University at Kingston
,
Ontario
,
[2]
where she wrote for the university newspaper.
[5]
In her youth Doucet enjoyed
curling
, was on the curling team for her province and went to the
Canada Winter Games
.
[6]
She gained a
Master of Arts
(MA) degree in
international relations
from the
University of Toronto
in 1982.
[2]
[7]
[8]
The same year, she undertook a four-month volunteer assignment teaching English with
Canadian Crossroads International
in the
Ivory Coast
.
[5]
[9]
She is currently one of the organisation's honorary patrons.
[9]
Doucet is fluent in
English
and
French
, in addition to knowing some
Dari
and
Arabic
.
[
citation needed
]
Career
[
edit
]
From 1983 to 1988, she worked as a freelancer in West Africa for the Canadian media and for the BBC. This period proved a stepping stone to a longer-term career with the BBC.
[10]
[5]
Doucet reported from
Pakistan
in 1988, and was based in
Kabul
from late 1988 to the end of 1989 to cover the Soviet troop withdrawal and its aftermath. She was the BBC correspondent in
Islamabad
from 1989 to 1993, also reporting from
Afghanistan
and
Iran
. In 1994 she opened the BBC office in
Amman
, Jordan. From 1995 to 1999, she was based in
Jerusalem
, travelling across the Middle East. In 1999, she joined the BBC's team of presenters but continues to report from the field.
Doucet played a leading role in the BBC's coverage of the
Arab Spring
, reporting from
Tunisia
,
Egypt
and
Libya
. She has covered all major wars in the Middle East since the mid-1990s.
[
citation needed
]
Doucet has been a frequent visitor to Pakistan and Afghanistan since the late 1980s. Her work includes the aftermath of major natural disasters, including the
Indian Ocean tsunami
in 2004, which took her to
India
and
Indonesia
. She is a contributor on rotation with other BBC journalists to
Dateline London
on
BBC News Channel
and
BBC World News
.
[
citation needed
]
In 2014 she made the documentary
Children of Syria
with film-maker Robin Barnwell, which was nominated in the Best Single Documentary category at the
2015 BAFTA Awards
.
[11]
In 2015 she made the documentary
Children of the Gaza War
with film-maker
James Jones
.
[
citation needed
]
In 2018 she presented two documentaries titled
Syria: The World's War
for
BBC Two
and
BBC World
.
[
citation needed
]
Beginning on New Year's Day 2018, Doucet presented
Her Story Made History
, a five-part series on
BBC Radio 4
featuring in-depth interviews with five remarkable women. The theme is the relationship between women and democracy.
[12]
A second series was broadcast in the summer of 2019 on BBC Radio 4 and the
BBC World Service
.
Doucet reported extensively from
Kabul Airport
during August 2021, following the coalition withdrawal from Afghanistan after the
Taliban offensive
in the country.
[13]
In the second half of 2021, she recorded a 10-episode podcast for
BBC Sounds
entitled
A Wish for Afghanistan
[14]
In February 2022, alongside
Clive Myrie
, she contributed to the BBC's coverage of the
Russian invasion of Ukraine
, from
Kyiv
.
[15]
Other activities
[
edit
]
Doucet is a former Council Member of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (
Chatham House
). She is a founding member of the
Marie Colvin
Journalists' Network along with
Lindsey Hilsum
and Lady Jane Wellesley, a trustee of the
Frontline Club
for journalists, and a member of the Canadian Journalism Forum on Trauma and Violence. She is also involved with Friends of
Aschiana
UK, which supports working street children in
Afghanistan
, and is an honorary patron of Canadian
Crossroads International
. Doucet takes pride in her ancestry and attends the
Acadian World Congress
, which is held every five years. She notes: "It would be hypocritical to spend all my time learning about other tribes if I were to neglect my own."
[5]
She featured on BBC Radio 4's
Desert Island Discs
on 30 January 2022. Her choices included "Habibi Nour Al Ain" by
Amr Diab
, "Passionate Kisses" by
Mary Chapin Carpenter
, "
Annie's Song
" by
John Denver
and
"L Einaudi: Elegy For The Arctic" by
Ludovico Einaudi
.
[16]
Awards and recognition
[
edit
]
In 2002 she was the only journalist to accompany Afghan President
Hamid Karzai
to his brother's wedding, where an assassination attempt was made.
[
citation needed
]
She and her team were later nominated for a
Royal Television Society
Award for their exclusive coverage of the attempt.
[
citation needed
]
Doucet last interviewed
Ahmed Wali Karzai
in April 2011, shortly before his assassination.
[17]
In 2003 she was awarded a Silver
Sony Award
for News Broadcaster of the Year for her interview with
Yasser Arafat
in his compound in
Ramallah
.
[
citation needed
]
In 2007 she was named International Television Personality of the Year by the Association for International Broadcasting. She also received the News and Factual award from the organisation Women in Film and Television.
[
citation needed
]
Doucet won a
Peabody
and a
David Bloom
award in 2010 for her film on maternal mortality in Afghanistan, along with producer Melanie Marshall, Shoaib Sharifi and cameraman Tony Jolliffe. She won Best News Journalist at the 2010
Sony Radio Academy Awards
.
[
citation needed
]
In 2012 her team was awarded an Edward Murrow award for radio reports from Tunisia.
[
citation needed
]
In 2014 her team was part of the BBC's Emmy award for its coverage of the Syrian conflict. Doucet was also awarded the ITV Studios Achievement of the Year Award at the annual Women in Film and Television Awards in London.
[
citation needed
]
In 2015 Doucet won the
Sandford St Martin
trustees’ award
[18]
"for her commitment to journalism and her intelligent and clear reporting of the religious elements of global events".
[19]
She also received a
Bayeux-Calvados Award for war correspondents
. She also won One World Media's Radio Award for a documentary on Afghan women.
[
citation needed
]
In 2016 she was awarded the Columbia School of Journalism Award for exceptional journalist achievement.
[
citation needed
]
At the 2017 International Media Awards, Doucet was awarded the Outstanding Contribution to Broadcasting Award. The award is given to journalists whose body of work has led to better understanding, and as a consequence increased prospects for peace.
[20]
She also received the
Charles Wheeler
Award for Outstanding Contribution to Broadcast Journalism by the
British Journalism Review.
[
citation needed
]
In 2017 her team won the Luchetta Prize, awarded for work which raises the awareness of the plight of children in war, for its story on a Syrian teenager in the Syrian city of Homs.
[
citation needed
]
In 2018 she was awarded "The Trailblazer Award" from
Georgetown University's Institute for Women, Peace and Security
. She also received the #ChangeTheCulture award from Their World, a global children’s charity based in London UK.
[
citation needed
]
Doucet has an
honorary doctorate
in Civil Law from the
University of King's College
in
Halifax, Nova Scotia
, an honorary
Doctor of Letters
degree from the
University of New Brunswick
(2006),
[5]
an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from
University College
at the
University of Toronto
(2009),
[5]
an honorary doctorate in journalism from
Universite de Moncton
, and an honorary doctorate from Queen's University in Kingston.
[
citation needed
]
In Britain, Doucet has received honorary doctorates from the
University of York
(2011),
[
citation needed
]
the
University of St Andrews
(2014),
[
citation needed
]
Liverpool Hope University
Doctor of Humane Letters Honoris causa (c.f. Liverpool Hope University Honorary Degree List on Website)(2015),
[
citation needed
]
York St John University
(2015),
[
citation needed
]
the
University of Bedfordshire
(2017),
[
citation needed
]
the
University of Sussex
(2018),
[
citation needed
]
Queen's University Belfast
(2019),
[
citation needed
]
Cranfield University
(2019),
[
citation needed
]
the
University of Exeter
(2022)
[
citation needed
]
and the
University of Oxford
(2023).
[21]
She was appointed an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
(OBE) in the
2014 Birthday Honours
for services to British broadcast journalism.
[22]
[23]
She was appointed as a member of the
Order of Canada
in December 2018.
[24]
She was nominated for another
Peabody Award
in 2021, for her work as a writer and reporter on Afghanistan: Documenting A Crucial Year.
[
citation needed
]
In March 2023 Doucet was awarded the
Mungo Park Medal
by the
Royal Scottish Geographical Society
at a ceremony in
Perth, Scotland
.
[
citation needed
]
In January 2024 she was awarded an
honorary degree
from
Keele University
, for "her distinguished and extensive achievements in journalism.
[25]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"Lyse Doucet"
.
From Our Own Correspondent
. 8 June 2013.
BBC Radio 4
. Retrieved
18 January
2014
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Doucet, Lyse Marie, (born 24 Dec. 1958), presenter and correspondent, since 1999, and Chief International Correspondent, since 2012, BBC World News TV and BBC World Service Radio"
.
Who's Who 2024
. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2023
. Retrieved
20 January
2024
.
- ^
Doucet, Andrea (2006).
Do Men Mother?: Fathering, Care, and Domestic Responsibility
. University of Toronto Press. p. xi.
ISBN
9780802085467
.
- ^
"BBC World Service ? Institutional ? Lyse Doucet"
.
bbc.co.uk
. Retrieved
19 January
2013
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
Gordon, Sheldon (2010).
"With an accent on the news"
.
Queen's Alumni Review
. Archived from
the original
on 15 January 2013
. Retrieved
30 April
2012
.
- ^
Anthony, Andrew (1 March 2015).
"Lyse Doucet: 'Our job is to make sure people don't turn away'
"
.
The Guardian
.
ISSN
0261-3077
. Retrieved
12 July
2023
.
- ^
"Lyse Doucet"
.
BBC News
. London:
BBC
. Retrieved
30 April
2012
.
- ^
"Reception hosted by The Hon. David R. Peters on, Chancellor"
.
University of Toronto
. 2011
. Retrieved
30 April
2012
.
- ^
a
b
"Honorary Patrons"
. Canadian Crossroads International. 2008
. Retrieved
15 February
2021
.
- ^
Wells, Matt (8 January 2002).
"Shooting star"
.
The Guardian
. London:
GMG
.
ISSN
0261-3077
.
OCLC
60623878
.
- ^
"Television in 2015 - BAFTA Awards"
.
- ^
"BBC - Search results for Her Story Made History"
.
www.bbc.co.uk
. Retrieved
12 December
2019
.
- ^
Andrea, Bellemare (23 August 2021).
"
'An incredibly sad time,' says journalist reporting on Afghans fleeing country"
.
CBC News
. Retrieved
31 August
2021
.
- ^
"BBC Sounds - A Wish for Afghanistan"
.
www.bbc.co.uk
. Retrieved
4 February
2022
.
- ^
"BBC News reporters take shelter in Kyiv as it's 'too dangerous to be on streets'
"
. 25 February 2022.
- ^
"Lyse Doucet, journalist"
.
Desert Island Discs
. BBC Radio 4
. Retrieved
30 January
2022
.
- ^
"Ahmad Wali Karzai: Meeting Kandahar's Mr Fix-it"
. BBC News. 12 July 2011.
- ^
Jackson, Jasper (28 May 2015).
"BBC's Lyse Doucet wins religious broadcasting award"
.
The Guardian
. Retrieved
14 July
2015
.
- ^
"2015 Award Winners"
. Sandford St Martin Trust. 27 May 2015. Archived from
the original
on 14 July 2015
. Retrieved
14 July
2015
.
- ^
"The Next Century Foundation"
.
The Next Century Foundation
. Retrieved
19 July
2017
.
- ^
"Honorary degrees awarded at Encaenia 2023"
.
University of Oxford
. 21 June 2023
. Retrieved
21 June
2023
.
- ^
"No. 60895"
.
The London Gazette
(Supplement). 14 June 2014. p. b26.
- ^
"BBC journalists Lyse Doucet and Tin Htar Swe made OBEs"
.
BBC News
. 13 June 2014.
- ^
"Governor General Announces 103 New Appointments to the Order of Canada"
Archived
27 December 2018 at the
Wayback Machine
, The Governor General of Canada, 27 December 2018.
- ^
"Distinguished BBC correspondent receives honorary degree from Keele University"
.
Keele University
. 17 January 2024
. Retrieved
19 January
2024
.
External links
[
edit
]
Media offices
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Preceded by
?
|
Chief International Correspondent:
BBC News
???
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Incumbent
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![BBC World Service logo](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2c/BBC_World_Service_2022_%28Boxed%29.svg/100px-BBC_World_Service_2022_%28Boxed%29.svg.png) | Programmes
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Former programmes
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Language services
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Closed services
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Miscellaneous
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Transmitter sites
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