Find out more about Richard Gaisford, Daybreak's chief correspondent.
Richard Gaisford joined Daybreak from GMTV where he was Chief Correspondent. Since joining GMTV as a Correspondent in 2000, Richard has had a front row seat to major historical events worldwide for more than a decade. In 2003 he was the first journalist to report live from inside Basra whilst "embedded" with a tank regiment during the conflict in Iraq. Richard’s frontline reports were seen daily on GMTV, BBC, ITN, Channel 4 and Channel 5, Sky, CNN, Fox, ABC and NBC amongst others.
Other major international stories Richard has covered include the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 , the devastating earthquakes in Pakistan, and the death of Pope John Paul II. In 2008 Richard travelled to Beijing to front coverage of the Olympics, and more recently he travelled to South Africa to report on the 2010 World Cup.
Richard’s career in journalism began during the first Gulf War, when he worked at ITN on both radio and television newsdesks. He went on to work as a desk journalist at Sky News, and a reporter for Westcountry Television and London Tonight – where he was the first television reporter on the scene of the Docklands bomb.
1. What do you most enjoy about working on Daybreak?
The variety of stories I get to tell, the people I meet and the huge range of locations around the country and world I visit.
2. Who would you most like to meet/interview that you haven't already?
The Queen, who always keeps her thoughts very much to herself. It would be an massive privilege to get an insight into all of the highs and lows of her 60 year reign, and the Queen's opinion of the historical events she has lived through.
3. Who is the most memorable celebrity/personality you have ever met and why?
I tend not to remember the big names and celebrities, rather the real people who have made the headlines. Over nearly 13 years of working as a correspondent I've been lucky enough to meet characters at the centre of some of the biggest national and world events.
4. If you weren't a journalist, what would you be doing as a job?
I've been working in broadcasting since I left school, so it's hard to know what else I'd be good at. A passion for food would probably lead me to work in a restaurant, although the hours are just as anti- social as my current job.
5. Are you a good morning person?
Most certainly - you can't do this job without being able to fire on all cylinders when most other people are still in bed. Breakfast TV certainly isn't for everyone - we're the kind of people who are so perky in the morning that night owls find us annoying.
6. Who would you choose to play you in a film version of your life?
Jonathan Swain.
7. Is there one fact about yourself that we'd be surprised to learn?
I often work and travel around the world alone - filming and editing my own stories, and broadcasting using my own portable satellite dish.
8. What is your routine for working early each day?
When I'm in the UK and at home in Hampshire I tend to go to bed at about 10.30pm every night, having watched the News at Ten and scanned the early newspaper headlines online. The alarm goes off anytime between 02.30am and 03.30am, depending on where I have to travel and how much needs to be done before going on air at six in the morning. Four hours sleep overnight is the minimum I really need, although sometimes I don't even get that. I drive myself to location or the studio.
On the way I'll grab a strong coffee and a snack to fire the body into action. After we come off air I'll take the crew for a big breakfast - it's more like lunch to us, and after 13 years I'm now an expert on where to eat well in the morning all over the UK. I'll try and get home by lunchtime for an afternoon siesta, it's the only way I can guarantee being sociable with the family later in the afternoon and evening!