Rob Smith (journalist)
{{Short description|English television presenter}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Rob Smith
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| occupation = Television presenter
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| nationality = English
| credits = South East Today (2009—2020)
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Rob Smith is an English television presenter, who has been a co-anchor on the BBC South East Today news programme. Rob Smith and Polly Evans took over the co-anchor roles from Geoff Clark and Beverley Thompson in September 2009.{{cite web |first=Trevor |last=Sturgess |date=1 July 2009 |title=Geoff Clark and Beverley Thompson ousted by 'misinterpreted' research |url=http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent/news/geoff-clark-and-beverley-thompso-a96265/ |publisher=kentonline.co.uk |accessdate=30 May 2014}}
Career
Smith joined the BBC in the South East in 1994.
He started his career on BBC Radio Kent. He was at the radio station for seven years, ending up producing and presenting the evening drivetime show.{{cite web |title=South East Today |year=2014 |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006pfp8 |publisher=bbc.co.uk |accessdate=31 May 2014}}
Smith was a presenter and reporter with BBC South East Today since the programme started in 2001.
As a news journalist, Smith has covered a range of stories, from hard news, talking to victims of crime or circumstance, to the more amusing items, such as the man who kept a lizard in a bath.
In 2008, Smith sailed around Britain in his yacht Wild Rover - a Sadler 32, designed by David Sadler - a voyage of some 2,000 miles which raised over £15,000 for Leukaemia Research.{{cite web|first=Rob|last=Smith|title=For Leukaemia Research|url=http://www.stbf.bizland.com/2008/rob-smith.htm|publisher=stbf.bizland.com|accessdate=31 May 2014}}{{cite web|page=3|title=Bulletin Issue 12|date=August 2008 |url= http://www.qub.ac.uk/research-centres/CentreforCancerResearchCellBiology/Impact/News/Bulletins/Filetoupload,311015,en.pdf|format=pdf|publisher=qub.ac.uk|accessdate=31 May 2014}}
In 2012, he cycled at Brands Hatch for the 2012 Cyclothon.{{cite web|date=10 June 2012|title=BBC’s Rob Smith to ride for Abigail’s Footsteps|url=http://www.abigailsfootsteps.co.uk/news/bbcs-rob-smith-to-ride-for-abigails-footsteps/|publisher=Abigail's Footsteps |website= abigailsfootsteps.co.uk|accessdate=30 May 2014|url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130917031930/http://www.abigailsfootsteps.co.uk/news/bbcs-rob-smith-to-ride-for-abigails-footsteps/|archivedate=17 September 2013}}
In 2014, Smith was the compere of the Top Choir Competition on 12 April at the Shirley Hall in Canterbury.{{cite web |title=Top Choir Kent 2014 – Report |date=12 April 2014 |url=http://www.topchoirkent.org/tck-2014/report-final-2014.html |publisher=topchoirkent.org |accessdate=31 May 2014}}
Smith left the BBC in November 2020.{{cite news |title=Rob Smith: Presenter to step down from BBC South East Today |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-54649116 |accessdate=27 October 2020 |work=BBC News |date=23 October 2020}}