John Tusa

Sir John Tusa (born 2 March 1936) is a Czech-born British television journalist and manager of arts and broadcasting organisations.

Early life

Born in Czechoslovakia in March 1936, Tusa moved to England with his family in 1939. His father, another John Tusa, was managing director of British Bata Shoes, established by the Czech shoe company, which, following its international pattern, also created a pioneering work-living community around its factory in East Tilbury, Essex. Two days before the German occupation of Czechoslovakia on 15 March 1939, Tusa senior flew out of Czechoslovakia on a Bata company plane, via Poland, Yugoslavia and France. He then became general manager of the Bata factory and its associated village in East Tilbury, where his son grew up.

Tusa junior was educated at St Faith's School, Cambridge, Gresham's School, Holt, and Trinity College, Cambridge.

Career

In 1960, he joined the BBC as a trainee. After presenting the BBC's " Newsnight" programme (from its inception in 1979) and also 24 hours, he went on to become managing director of the BBC World Service from 1986 to 1993. He was then a newsreader on BBC's One O'Clock News for two years during the mid-1990s. He anchored the BBC's coverage of the Hong Kong handover on June 30th 1997. From 1995 until 2007 he was managing director of the Barbican Arts Centre in the City of London. Since 1998 he has been chairman of the board of the Wigmore Hall in London and was appointed chairman of the University of the Arts London in 2007. He was announced as having accepted the position of chairman with the Victoria and Albert Museum on 18th June 2007, but stepped down from the post a month later, recognising a conflict of interest with his position at the University of the Arts London.

Tusa continues to write and broadcast widely. Among his written output, he wrote two books jointly with his historian wife Ann Tusa: "The Nuremberg Trial" (1983) and "The Berlin Blockade" (1988).

John Tusa's most recent book is "Engaged with the Arts: Writings from the Frontline" [Published by I.B. Tauris, London & New York, February 2007. ISBN 978 1 84511 424 4] which explores ways that the arts can be encouraged within a cultural and political climate in which funding is ever threatened.

After retiring from his BBC World Service post, John Tusa has been critical of some BBC policies. He deprecated the former director general John Birt's focus and management style and has been vociferous about subsequent decisions to pare down World Service activities in Europe, including the Czech section. [ [http://www.cbw.cz/phprs/2005111412.html Czech Business Weekly] ]

Honours

Tusa was awarded a knighthood in the Queen's birthday honours list in June 2003.

References