The Crossbill News Desk
Veteran journalist and broadcaster Sir Mark Tully, long regarded as one of the most influential interpreters of South Asia for global audiences, passed away at the age of 90 in New Delhi.
Born in Calcutta on October 24, 1935, Tully went on to become a defining voice of the BBC in the Indian subcontinent, shaping how generations understood some of the region’s most turbulent moments.
Tully joined the BBC in 1964 and spent nearly three decades with the organisation, rising to prominence as its chief correspondent in India. Originally inclined towards the priesthood, he instead chose journalism, a path that would see him closely track the political and social upheavals of South Asia.
He resigned from the BBC in July 1994 following a bitter dispute with then Director General John Birt, who sought to reduce the broadcaster’s reliance on the established correspondents who had helped cement the BBC’s authority in the region.
During periods of restricted information flow, particularly the Emergency of 1975, Tully’s broadcasts became indispensable to Indian listeners.
With domestic media operating under censorship, many relied on shortwave radios to hear BBC reports anchored by him. His stature grew further when the government of the day asked him to leave India during the Emergency, effectively making him part of the national political conversation.
Several defining events in South Asian history were reported and interpreted through Tully’s journalism, leaving a lasting imprint on public memory. These included the India-Pakistan wars, the 1984 Bhopal Gas tragedy, Operation Blue Star, the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, and the demolition of the Babri Masjid. His reporting style and editorial choices played a significant role in how these events came to be understood by audiences across the region.
His longtime colleague Andrew Whitehead described him as “a child of the British Raj” and chronicled his transformation into a relentless chronicler of India, eventually earning him the reputation as the BBC’s “Voice of India.” Whitehead recalled a particularly dangerous episode during the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, writing that “in the small north Indian city of Ayodhya in 1992, he faced a moment of real peril.
He witnessed a huge crowd of Hindu hardliners tear down an ancient mosque. Some of the mob – suspicious of the BBC – threatened him, chanting ‘Death to Mark Tully’. He was locked in a room for several hours before a local official and a Hindu priest came to his aid.”
Beyond broadcasting, Tully was a prolific author. He wrote nine books, beginning with Amritsar: Mrs Gandhi’s Last Battle (1985), co-authored with fellow BBC journalist Satish Jacob. His final book, published in 2017, Upcountry Tales: Once Upon A Time In The Heart Of India, offered a collection of stories from rural north India.
In recognition of his work, Tully was knighted in 2002. India honoured him with the Padma Shri in 1992 and the Padma Bhushan in 2005. Media analysts have often observed that the enduring restrictions on radio in India were influenced by the demonstrated power of the medium, underscored by the reach and impact of broadcasters such as Tully.
Even after leaving the BBC, his association with radio and storytelling continued. In 1994, he featured in BBC’s Great Railway Journeys, travelling from Karachi to the Khyber Pass, and later worked on Steam’s Indian Summer as part of the World Steam Classics series. A keen railway enthusiast, he remained deeply engaged with broadcasting and presented BBC Radio 4’s Something Understood until 2019.
Based in New Delhi’s Nizamuddin since 1994, Tully worked as an independent journalist and broadcaster. He lived with his partner, fellow journalist Gillian Wright. Both were fluent in Hindi and spoke several other Indian languages.
Admired by colleagues and listeners alike, Tully was also remembered for the simplicity that marked his life in India.
For decades, the modest nameplate outside his Nizamuddin East home read simply “Mark Tully,” a residence that effectively doubled as the BBC’s India headquarters. It was only in 1994 that the BBC established a separate office in Delhi at the All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society on Rafi Marg.
Born in Calcutta on October 24, 1935, Tully went on to become a defining voice of the BBC in the Indian subcontinent, shaping how generations understood some of the region’s most turbulent moments.
Tully joined the BBC in 1964 and spent nearly three decades with the organisation, rising to prominence as its chief correspondent in India. Originally inclined towards the priesthood, he instead chose journalism, a path that would see him closely track the political and social upheavals of South Asia.
He resigned from the BBC in July 1994 following a bitter dispute with then Director General John Birt, who sought to reduce the broadcaster’s reliance on the established correspondents who had helped cement the BBC’s authority in the region.
During periods of restricted information flow, particularly the Emergency of 1975, Tully’s broadcasts became indispensable to Indian listeners.
With domestic media operating under censorship, many relied on shortwave radios to hear BBC reports anchored by him. His stature grew further when the government of the day asked him to leave India during the Emergency, effectively making him part of the national political conversation.
Several defining events in South Asian history were reported and interpreted through Tully’s journalism, leaving a lasting imprint on public memory. These included the India-Pakistan wars, the 1984 Bhopal Gas tragedy, Operation Blue Star, the assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, and the demolition of the Babri Masjid. His reporting style and editorial choices played a significant role in how these events came to be understood by audiences across the region.
His longtime colleague Andrew Whitehead described him as “a child of the British Raj” and chronicled his transformation into a relentless chronicler of India, eventually earning him the reputation as the BBC’s “Voice of India.” Whitehead recalled a particularly dangerous episode during the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, writing that “in the small north Indian city of Ayodhya in 1992, he faced a moment of real peril.
He witnessed a huge crowd of Hindu hardliners tear down an ancient mosque. Some of the mob – suspicious of the BBC – threatened him, chanting ‘Death to Mark Tully’. He was locked in a room for several hours before a local official and a Hindu priest came to his aid.”
Beyond broadcasting, Tully was a prolific author. He wrote nine books, beginning with Amritsar: Mrs Gandhi’s Last Battle (1985), co-authored with fellow BBC journalist Satish Jacob. His final book, published in 2017, Upcountry Tales: Once Upon A Time In The Heart Of India, offered a collection of stories from rural north India.
In recognition of his work, Tully was knighted in 2002. India honoured him with the Padma Shri in 1992 and the Padma Bhushan in 2005. Media analysts have often observed that the enduring restrictions on radio in India were influenced by the demonstrated power of the medium, underscored by the reach and impact of broadcasters such as Tully.
Even after leaving the BBC, his association with radio and storytelling continued. In 1994, he featured in BBC’s Great Railway Journeys, travelling from Karachi to the Khyber Pass, and later worked on Steam’s Indian Summer as part of the World Steam Classics series. A keen railway enthusiast, he remained deeply engaged with broadcasting and presented BBC Radio 4’s Something Understood until 2019.
Based in New Delhi’s Nizamuddin since 1994, Tully worked as an independent journalist and broadcaster. He lived with his partner, fellow journalist Gillian Wright. Both were fluent in Hindi and spoke several other Indian languages.
Admired by colleagues and listeners alike, Tully was also remembered for the simplicity that marked his life in India.
For decades, the modest nameplate outside his Nizamuddin East home read simply “Mark Tully,” a residence that effectively doubled as the BBC’s India headquarters. It was only in 1994 that the BBC established a separate office in Delhi at the All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society on Rafi Marg.
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