TV’s Fiona: I dye my hair to read news

BBC newsreader Fiona Bruce has complained that age is still a problem for women working in TV.

But Bruce, 48, who dyes her hair to cover up the grey, said there was no point getting angry about the double standards in the industry.

The Antiques Roadshow presenter said: “Age is definitely an issue for women in TV. So far, it hasn’t been for me, but I know I need to make the best of
myself… I have a few grey hairs. I dye them.

“I don’t let my grey hair show when I’m reading the news.”

Bruce said she would not consider cosmetic surgery as her husband would never forgive her. But she added: “Of course, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation if I was a 48-year-old man.”

The BBC anchorwoman said she used to become irritated by the situation, but conceded that she would never be able to change the system on her own.

In February, the BBC’s then 
director general, Mark Thompson, admitted the “BBC has a case to answer about the way it treats older women on the air”.

Bruce, who used to present Crimewatch, revealed she had many ambitions for life after
television, including working as a magistrate: “You don’t present a show like Crimewatch without developing a real respect for the justice system in this country.”