Richard Dimbleby

Richard Dimbleby, radio and television broadcaster, has a memorial in the south choir aisle of Westminster Abbey. In the stone wall slab is inserted a bronze portrait relief by his son Nicholas. The memorial was designed by Donald Buttress and lettered by Dick Reid. It was unveiled on 12th November 1990. The inscription around the portrait reads:

Richard Dimbleby. Broadcaster

with the date 1913 and 1965 in the corner.

He was born at Richmond in Surrey on 25th May 1913, the son of Frederick, a journalist, and his wife Gwendoline (Bolwell). He began his career as a reporter and was taken on by the BBC where he was one of the first people to introduce eye witness reports of incidents in the news. In 1939 he reported on the royal tour of Canada and became a war correspondent for the BBC in the same year. He witnessed action in North Africa, the Middle East and Greece and flew in a bomber on a raid on Berlin. Later he reported the crossing of the Rhine after D-Day and made broadcasts from Berlin and Belsen concentration camp on its liberation. He worked on radio and television and presented the first TV programme to be made inside the Abbey in 1952. His hushed tones were heard on coverage of the 1953 coronation from his position high in a commentary box in the Abbey triforium. He was married to Dilys (Thomas) and their children were David, Jonathan, Nicholas and Sally. A memorial service was held in the Abbey on 4th January 1966 which many people attended and large crowds assembled outside.

Further reading

"Richard Dimbleby, a biography" by Jonathan Dimbleby, 1975

"Richard Dimbleby, broadcaster, by his colleagues" edited by L. Miall, 1966

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography 2004