Anita West
Anita West | |
|---|---|
 West in the 1960s | |
| Born | 30 November 1934 |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, television presenter |
| Known for | Blue Peter |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
Anita West (born 30 November 1934) is a British actress and former television presenter.
Blue Peter
[edit]On 7 May 1962, she joined the British children's television show Blue Peter as co-host, following the departure of Leila Williams. She remained with the programme for only sixteen editions, the last being shown on 3 September 1962, making her one of the programme's shortest-serving presenters (other than stand-ins Ann Taylor, Tony Hart and Sandra Michaels). She voluntarily resigned from the show because of her imminent divorce (in 1962) from the musician Ray Ellington; she believed that audiences would find it inappropriate for a divorcée to present a children's programme. West never divulged her reasons for leaving to the producers, who deemed her "unprofessional" for simply walking out on the show.[1]
West's tenure was so short that, for several decades, she was not officially recognised as a Blue Peter presenter, only being added to the official list of presenters upon the show's 40th anniversary in 1998.[2] In contrast, her replacement, Valerie Singleton, ahead of whom West had come in earlier auditions,[2] became the show's longest-serving female presenter until Konnie Huq.[3] Additionally, due to the BBC's policy of not recording programmes at the time, no footage of West's time on Blue Peter exists.[4]
Later career
[edit]After leaving Blue Peter, West appeared in such shows as Space: 1999, Crossroads as Doctor Hilary Maddox, The Saint and Lovejoy. She also briefly returned to Blue Peter in 1998 to appear in its pantomime.
In the 1970s, she was a PR hostess at the Palm Beach Casino Club in Mayfair.
She appeared in the films Impact, Shadow of Fear (1964), Ring of Spies and Joey Boy.[4]
Personal life
[edit]West was married to Ray Ellington for six years; the couple had a son, Lance, and a daughter, Nina.[5][6] In 1998, she told Blue Peter's 40th-anniversary documentary BP Confidential that she had no regrets about quitting the show, other than on a professional level, as her children were the most important thing in her life.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ Marson, Richard (21 September 2008). "Blue Peter" 50th Anniversary Book: The Story of Television's Longest-running Children's Programme. Hamlyn. ISBN 978-0-600-61793-8.
- ^ a b c Putrid Heron Archive (8 March 2022). "Anita West: The 'lost' Blue Peter presenter" – via YouTube.
- ^ Radio Times staff (12 January 2017). "Konnie Huq voted Britain's favourite Blue Peter presenter". Radio Times. Retrieved 24 March 2025.
The 41-year-old television presenter, who hosted the show for more than ten years between 1997 and 2008, is also the longest serving female presenter of the BBC children's magazine show – a record previously held by Valerie Singleton.
- ^ a b "BBC – Anita West presenter biography". BBC.
- ^ Cottrell, Hannah (19 November 2022). "Lance Ellington's life from very famous dad to Strictly appearances". My London.
- ^ "Singer And Bandleader Ray Ellington With Wife Actress Anita West (ann Wuest) And 2yo Son Lance And Their New Daughter Nina At Their Home In Finchley". Shutterstock Editorial.
External links
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