George Alagiah shared a powerful message in his final report on BBC News before his death.
The award-winning journalist died on Monday (24 July) aged 67 from bowel cancer. Alagiah, who had presented the BBC News At Six for the last 20 years, was first diagnosed with the condition in 2014.
At the end of Monday’s night’s edition of the programme, his former colleague Sophie Raworth shared that Alagiah had hoped to come into the BBC studio one last time to thank the viewers. However, he did not get the chance.
In a video montage in his honour which featured clips and pictures, Alagiah admitted it had taken him time to process the diagnosis after he was first told he had bowel cancer.
“My life, for what it is worth, is divided into pre-cancer and post-cancer. The weird thing about a bowel cancer journey is you don’t really know the beginning and you don’t really know the end,” he said in the video.
“So I know the day I was diagnosed with bowel cancer, but I don’t know when it started. Because I was at the top of my game, I was having a fantastic time at work and home, and then suddenly you hear those words ‘I’m sorry to tell you Mr Alagiah, you’ve got bowel cancer’.
“At first when you’re told, you don’t know how to respond and it took me a while to understand what I needed to do.”
He continued: “For me, I had to get a place of contentment and the only way I knew how to do that was literally to look back at my life.
Award-winning journalist George Alagiah died on Monday— (PA Wire)
“Actually, when I look back to my journey, where it all started, looked at the family I had, the opportunities my family had, the great good fortune to bump into Fran who’s been my wife and lover for all these years. The kids that we brought up, it didn’t feel like a failure.
“I wish I hadn’t had cancer, obviously. But I have cancer and I’m glad of the things I’ve learned about myself and about my community, my friends and my family as a result
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“I have gotten to a place to see life as a gift. Rather than kind of worrying about when it’s going to end and how it’s going to end, I’ve got to a place where I can see it for the gift it is. I feel that gift keenly every morning.”
Before airing the video on the BBC’s News At Six, Raworth remembered Alagiah as a “man of great values and indomitable spirit”.
She recalled launching the evening news show with him 20 years in January 2003, saying that he felt “enormously proud and privileged” to be presenting the programme.
“He loved being in the newsroom, being part of the team, and he made a good cup of tea as well. We all adored him,” Raworth added.
“He felt a real connection with the audience too. After he was diagnosed with cancer, just over nine years ago, he received thousands of letters and messages from people who wrote to him as if they knew each other, strangers who spoke to him as a friend.
“He was really touched by your support. George was a man of great values and indomitable spirit. A big smile of velvety love, a great friend.”
Additional reporting by Press Association.
