Trish Bertram
Encyclopedia
Trish Bertram is a British television continuity announcer and voice-over artist
.
. She is the longest serving female television continuity announcer in British television, and is particularly well known for her work with LWT, where she worked on and off for over twenty years - starting as a local cover announcer for Channel 4
transmission before becoming a duty announcer alongside colleagues such as Peter Lewis
, Sue Peacock, Ruth Anders and Keith Harrison. Bertram and the rest of the announcing team also read short LWT News Headlines bulletins in-vision during shifts.
She left LWT in 1987 and joined the pan-European satellite channel Super Channel
as an announcer and presenter before returning to London Weekend as a freelancer in 1989. Bertram next joined British Satellite Broadcasting
in March 1990 and became the chief announcer for Galaxy, the company's general entertainment channel, which closed after just over eight months on-air. After a short stint contracted to TVS
(where Bertram was a regular freelance announcer), she re-joined LWT again and in 1997, became the station's Senior Announcer and relief Broadcast Manager. She was also the first announcer to broadcast to the ITV network on 31 August 1997 when she was called on to link the day's transmission following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales
. In its capacity as nominated contractor, LWT was required to become 'ITV' for the day and transmitted to the rest of the network with Bertram as its announcer.
Alongside colleague Glen Thompsett
, she made the last announcement (a recorded in-vision link) on LWT's last night as an on-air brand on 27 October 2002. Prior to LWT's on-air demise, Bertram had signed off as chief announcer on 6 October 2002. The following month, both Bertram and Thompsett began freelancing for ITV1. She joined Five shortly afterwards but continued to freelance for ITV1
as an announcer and promotions voice-over
and was the only announcer to regularly be heard on air on 2 different terrestrial networks at the same time.
Bertram has also worked as a live announcer for Westcountry
, The Family Channel and BBC World. She was also the first presentation editor for UK Gold. During the 1990s, she was the station voice for Talk Radio and for London's LBC. She went on to make guest appearances as a newspaper reviewer for the station.
and pre-recorded continuity for ITV3
and Film24. She is also a regular promotions voice for QVC
. Bertram also does voice over work for various companies in the corporate sector, including Microsoft
(she was chosen as the voice-over for Bill Gates
' presentation to the UN in 2006) as well as for BBC Local Radio
, where Bertram is currently the station voice of BBC Radio Manchester
and BBC Radio Leeds
. She is also the station voice for Radio Pembrokeshire
Radio Scilly
and Radio Caroline
and for Celador's newest radio franchise in the South of England, The Breeze. In 2010, she also became the voiceover for the movie magazine programme Films and Stars on Film 24.
Bertram has also devised various television presentation-related courses for announcers, voice-over artists, promotion producers and continuity scriptwriters. In September 2010 she was hired as the voice coach & studio director for Rosetta Stone's Advanced British English Course.
2006 in Doha
, Qatar
- two events broadcast to 3.8 billion viewers across the world that were the largest and most expensive Olympic ceremonies produced to date, including Beijing 2008.
Voice acting
Voice acting is the art of providing voices for animated characters and radio and audio dramas and comedy, as well as doing voice-overs in radio and television commercials, audio dramas, dubbed foreign language films, video games, puppet shows, and amusement rides.Performers are called...
.
Background
Bertram has been a live TV announcer for over twenty five years, starting her career in 1982 with London Weekend TelevisionLondon Weekend Television
London Weekend Television was the name of the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties including south Suffolk, middle and east Hampshire, Oxfordshire, south Bedfordshire, south Northamptonshire, parts of Herefordshire & Worcestershire, Warwickshire, east Dorset and...
. She is the longest serving female television continuity announcer in British television, and is particularly well known for her work with LWT, where she worked on and off for over twenty years - starting as a local cover announcer for Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
transmission before becoming a duty announcer alongside colleagues such as Peter Lewis
Peter Lewis (announcer)
-Life and career:Before his career had begun, Peter's family were already well known in Wales and the West of England. His father, Bruce Lewis, had already been a hugely popular presenter for Television Wales and West , where Peter began announcing during the mid to late 1960s...
, Sue Peacock, Ruth Anders and Keith Harrison. Bertram and the rest of the announcing team also read short LWT News Headlines bulletins in-vision during shifts.
She left LWT in 1987 and joined the pan-European satellite channel Super Channel
NBC Europe
NBC Europe was a satellite television channel based in the United Kingdom that broadcast across Europe...
as an announcer and presenter before returning to London Weekend as a freelancer in 1989. Bertram next joined British Satellite Broadcasting
British Satellite Broadcasting
British Satellite Broadcasting was a British television company which provided direct broadcast satellite television services to the United Kingdom...
in March 1990 and became the chief announcer for Galaxy, the company's general entertainment channel, which closed after just over eight months on-air. After a short stint contracted to TVS
Television South
Television South was the ITV franchise holder in the south and south east of England between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 1992. The company operated under various names, initially as Television South plc and then following reorganisation in 1989 as TVS Entertainment plc, with its UK...
(where Bertram was a regular freelance announcer), she re-joined LWT again and in 1997, became the station's Senior Announcer and relief Broadcast Manager. She was also the first announcer to broadcast to the ITV network on 31 August 1997 when she was called on to link the day's transmission following the death of Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
. In its capacity as nominated contractor, LWT was required to become 'ITV' for the day and transmitted to the rest of the network with Bertram as its announcer.
Alongside colleague Glen Thompsett
Glen Thompsett
Glen Thompsett is a British television presenter, radio presenter, voiceover artist and continuity announcer.Glen's career has included working in Radio with British Independent Local Radio stations Heart in Gloucester , Heart in Wiltshire , Mercia Sound and Invicta FM.Glen was hosting the...
, she made the last announcement (a recorded in-vision link) on LWT's last night as an on-air brand on 27 October 2002. Prior to LWT's on-air demise, Bertram had signed off as chief announcer on 6 October 2002. The following month, both Bertram and Thompsett began freelancing for ITV1. She joined Five shortly afterwards but continued to freelance for ITV1
ITV1
ITV1 is a generic brand that is used by twelve franchises of the British ITV Network in the English regions, Wales, southern Scotland , the Isle of Man and the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey. The ITV1 brand was introduced by Carlton and Granada in 2001, alongside the regional identities of their...
as an announcer and promotions voice-over
Voice-over
Voice-over is a production technique where a voice which is not part of the narrative is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations...
and was the only announcer to regularly be heard on air on 2 different terrestrial networks at the same time.
Bertram has also worked as a live announcer for Westcountry
Westcountry Television
Westcountry Television, is the ITV franchise holder in the South West of England, replacing its predecessor, TSW , from the 1 January 1993...
, The Family Channel and BBC World. She was also the first presentation editor for UK Gold. During the 1990s, she was the station voice for Talk Radio and for London's LBC. She went on to make guest appearances as a newspaper reviewer for the station.
Current work
Currently, she continues to voice promosTeaser trailer
A teaser campaign is an advertising campaign which typically consists of a series of small, cryptic, challenging advertisements that anticipate a larger, full-blown campaign for a product launch or otherwise important event. These advertisements are called "teasers" or "teaser ads"...
and pre-recorded continuity for ITV3
ITV3
ITV3 is an entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom that is owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. The channel was launched on 1 November 2004. ITV3 is the second largest UK multi-channel, second only to ITV2.-History:...
and Film24. She is also a regular promotions voice for QVC
QVC (UK)
QVC UK is a digital television shopping channel broadcast in the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1993 when QVC, Inc. formed a deal with Sky TV to create a UK version of the US channel. "QVC — The Shopping Channel" first broadcast in the UK on 1 October 1993. QVC UK - 20% owned by Sky - moved into...
. Bertram also does voice over work for various companies in the corporate sector, including Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
(she was chosen as the voice-over for Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
' presentation to the UN in 2006) as well as for BBC Local Radio
BBC Local Radio
BBC Local Radio is the BBC's regional radio service for England and the Channel Islands, consisting of 40 stations. They cover a variety of areas with some serving a city and surrounding areas, for example BBC Radio Manchester; a county, for example BBC Radio Norfolk; an administrative region for...
, where Bertram is currently the station voice of BBC Radio Manchester
BBC Radio Manchester
BBC Radio Manchester is a BBC Local Radio station broadcasting to Greater Manchester in North West England. It broadcasts 24 hours a day from studios at MediaCityUK in Salford Quays via a transmitter at Holme Moss, with a small repeater at Saddleworth covering Tameside and Saddleworth...
and BBC Radio Leeds
BBC Radio Leeds
BBC Radio Leeds is the BBC Local Radio service for the English metropolitan county of West Yorkshire.- Frequencies :It broadcasts from its studios at St...
. She is also the station voice for Radio Pembrokeshire
Radio Pembrokeshire
Radio Pembrokeshire is an independent local radio station located in Narberth, Pembrokeshire, Wales.- History :The prelude to Radio Pembrokeshire was Haven FM, which broadcast on 107.0 MHz from a small makeshift studio at Bethany Chapel in Pembroke Dock during the summer of 1999...
Radio Scilly
Radio Scilly
Radio Scilly is a not for profit, non-profit distributing community radio station, owned and run by Keri Jones. It launched at 2pm on 3 September 2007, and broadcasts to 2,100 residents of the Isles of Scilly...
and Radio Caroline
Radio Caroline
Radio Caroline is an English radio station founded in 1964 by Ronan O'Rahilly to circumvent the record companies' control of popular music broadcasting in the United Kingdom and the BBC's radio broadcasting monopoly...
and for Celador's newest radio franchise in the South of England, The Breeze. In 2010, she also became the voiceover for the movie magazine programme Films and Stars on Film 24.
Bertram has also devised various television presentation-related courses for announcers, voice-over artists, promotion producers and continuity scriptwriters. In September 2010 she was hired as the voice coach & studio director for Rosetta Stone's Advanced British English Course.
Asian Games Doha 2006
One of Bertram's biggest voice-over roles was as the live stadium announcer for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Asian GamesAsian Games
The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
2006 in Doha
Doha
Doha is the capital city of the state of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf, it had a population of 998,651 in 2008, and is also one of the municipalities of Qatar...
, Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
- two events broadcast to 3.8 billion viewers across the world that were the largest and most expensive Olympic ceremonies produced to date, including Beijing 2008.