Martin Bashir is ‘seriously unwell’ with coronavirus: BBC says journalist who interviewed Princess Diana 25 years ago is suffering ‘complications’ from the disease
- Journalist Martin Bashir is ‘seriously unwell’ with Covid-19 related complications
- The 57-year-old is currently working as the BBC News channel’s religion editor
- Illness comes amid renewed interest in his career-making 1995 Panorama interview with Princess Diana
Veteran journalist Martin Bashir is ‘seriously unwell’ with coronavirus-related complications, the BBC has said.
The 57-year-old, best known for his 1995 interview with Diana, Princess of Wales, currently works as the BBC News religion editor.
A spokeswoman for the BBC said: ‘We are sorry to say that Martin is seriously unwell with Covid-19 related complications.
Veteran journalist Martin Bashir is ‘seriously unwell’ with coronavirus-related complications, the BBC has said
‘Everyone at the BBC is wishing him a full recovery.
‘We’d ask that his privacy, and that of his family, is respected at this time.’
His colleague Simon McCoy sent a message of support on hearing the news: ‘Wishing you well – and thinking of you.’
Bashir began working as a journalist in 1986 but made headlines around the world in 1995 for his BBC interview with Diana, Princess of Wales for Panorama.
That interview has seen renewed interest in the lead up to a new Channel 4 film, which examines the circumstances behind their meeting, airing on Wednesday night.
News of Bashir’s illness comes amid renewed interest in his career-making 1995 Panorama interview with Princess Diana
Bashir’s other high-profile interviews have included the suspects in the Stephen Lawrence murder case, entertainer Michael Barrymore, Jeffrey Archer and Major Charles Ingram, dubbed ‘the coughing major’.
In 2003, he conducted a series of interviews with pop singer Michael Jackson for the controversial ITV documentary Living With Michael Jackson.
He later moved to the US where he co-anchored the current affairs show Nightline on ABC before moving to MSNBC, where he served as a political commentator until 2013.
He subsequently returned to the BBC as the broadcaster’s religion editor.
October 2019 saw him compete in the celebrity spin-off of X Factor.
