About Emily Buchanan
Born 1958. Emily Buchanan is a British journalist.
Emily Margesson Buchanan is a British journalist who has worked for the BBC, in both radio and television.
Early life Born in Hammersmith, West London, Buchanan is the daughter of George Buchanan, a novelist and poet from Northern Ireland, and the Hon. Janet Margesson, whose father was David Margesson, 1st Viscount Margesson, a Conservative cabinet minister in the 1930s. Her mother, a manic depressive, committed suicide when Buchanan was nine. She was educated at the St. Paul's Girls' School, an independent school in Hammersmith. and read History, French and Spanish at the University of Sussex. After graduation, Buchanan studied for an MA in Radio Journalism from the City University London, which she received in 1982.
Career Buchanan began her career at the BBC in Bush House, then the base of the BBC World Service, where her first interview was with Desmond Tutu, After a period producing The Week in Westminster, she joined BBC Television and worked for BBC 2's Assignment programme. During 1992, while working in Zimbabwe, Buchanan survived an accident when her plane crash-landed.
Her Assignment programmes won awards. "Let Her Die", a report about infanticide in India, won the Golden Nymph at the Monte-Carlo Television Festival, "The Disposables", about the killing of the poor and criminals in Colombia, was nominated for an Amnesty International UK Media Award
Towards the end of 1994 she was appointed the corporation's BBC's Developing World Correspondent. Subsequently, she became the Religious Affairs Correspondent for three years, from around 1998 to 2001, and is now the BBC's World Affairs Correspondent.
Adoption After experiencing three miscarriages, Buchanan with her husband Gerald Slocock, explored the possibility of adopting children as their only means of having a family.
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Important facts
People in Emily Buchanan's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
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Frequently asked questions
Who is Emily Buchanan?
British journalist
When was Emily Buchanan born?
Emily Buchanan was born on 7 October 1958 in Hammersmith.
What is Emily Buchanan's occupation?
Emily Buchanan is a journalist.
What nationality is Emily Buchanan?
Emily Buchanan is British.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Emily Buchanan. https://biography.guide/emily-buchanan/
MLA: "Emily Buchanan." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/emily-buchanan/.
Chicago: "Emily Buchanan." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/emily-buchanan/.
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