The Sunday Times Magazine • 21From top: Myrie holds the Mastermind
cards, August 2021; helming the BBC News
as Russia threatens Ukraine in Januarythe war in Ukraine has
pointed that up amazingly.
The breadth and depth
of the coverage across
so many platforms.
What is it, 40-odd pence
a day? Peanuts!”
After a long and
increasingly illustrious
career, and with other BBC
giants such as Andrew
Marr, Emily Maitlis and
Jon Sopel out of the way,
there’s seemingly no
stopping Myrie. Is he eyeing
up the Newsnight gig? “I’m
pretty happy with what I’ve
got,” he says, cards close
to his chest. “I mean, who
knows what opportunities might turn up?”
For now he is focused on returning to
Ukraine: “I was very sad to leave people
behind and they were sad to see me go.
You want to go back, you want to find out
what’s going on with them and to continue
telling the story.” This won’t be reassuring
for supporters who have been stopping him
in the street to express their relief he was
home: “[They’re] saying, ‘Thank God
you’ve come back, thank God you’re alive.’
It’s nice because it shows that people care.
Is it slightly weird too? Yeah.”The government
scheme Homes for
Ukraine has been
inundated with Britons
wanting to help; will the
Myrie household take
in a refugee? “We talked
about it, we just didn’t
feel that we had enough
space ...” he says, shiftily.
Surely he has a spare
bedroom and bathroom
at home? “Yeah, yeah,
yeah. Is it space? I actually
think, fundamentally ...
I don’t know if that would
alter the public perception
of me as a journalist
covering this particular
story.” If he were to offer someone a roof,
he wouldn’t make that decision public,
he concludes.
My time is up — Myrie must go and
prepare for his 10pm newsreader shift.
Walking towards Broadcasting House in
the drizzle, a bus driver spots him, grins
and toots his horn in appreciation. Myrie
waves back while the soggy tourists on the
open top deck peer down at us, confused.
Is the tooting common these days?
“Oh yeah, yeah, yeah,” he says, with a
BBC wide smile. “It’s great.” n