Peter Snow

Peter John Snow was born on 20 April 1938 in Dublin, Ireland. He is the son of John FitzGerald Snow and Margaret Mary Pringle. Snow is the grandson of Sir Thomas D'Oyly Snow, a First World War general. He is related to notable individuals including Jon Snow, the former presenter of Channel 4 News, who is his first cousin; George D'Oyly Snow, a schoolmaster and bishop, who was his uncle; and Margaret MacMillan, a historian and writer, who is his sister-in-law. His son, Dan Snow, is also a television presenter.

During his early childhood, Snow lived in Benghazi, Libya, where his father was stationed. In 1956, his father became the deputy Fortress commander at Gibraltar. Snow attended Wellington College, an independent school in Berkshire, England. Subsequently, he studied Greats at Balliol College, Oxford University, where he was taught by Russell Meiggs, a classicist and ancient historian, and R. M. Hare, a moral philosopher. Between 1956 and 1958, Snow completed his National Service as a junior officer in the Somerset Light Infantry, serving in Plymouth and Warminster.

Snow’s career began in journalism and broadcasting. He was a foreign correspondent, defence and diplomatic correspondent, and occasional newscaster for Independent Television News (ITN). He joined ITN in 1962 and contributed to their coverage of general elections from the 1960s through the 1970s, serving as an election analyst and co-presenter.

In 1979, Snow was recruited to become the main presenter of Newsnight, a new in-depth news program on BBC Two, which launched in January 1980. He remained with Newsnight until 1997. After leaving Newsnight, Snow presented programmes such as Tomorrow’s World (with Philippa Forrester), as well as radio quiz shows including Masterteam and Brain of Britain on BBC Radio 4.

Snow has participated extensively as an election analyst, presenting live results programs at ITN from 1966 to 1979 and at the BBC from 1983 to 2005. At the BBC, he took on responsibility for statistical analyses of election results, including the use of props and graphics, and became associated with the BBC Swingometer. He used visual aids like sandpits during the Falklands War in 1982 and the First Gulf War in 1991 to illustrate military progress.

Snow’s involvement in broadcasting was recognized in 1998 when he received the Judges’ Award from the Royal Television Society for services to broadcasting. He presented various documentary series, including collaborations with his son Dan Snow, such as Battlefield Britain (2004), 20th Century Battlefields (2006), and other history programmes exploring British and world history. Together, they authored several books corresponding to their series, including titles on battlefield history and significant documents of British and world history.

In 2005, the BBC announced Snow would cease working on election broadcasts, citing age as a factor. Snow has authored books on historical subjects such as the Battle of Waterloo, the British invasion of Washington in 1814, and collections of historical documents. His published works include "Leila’s Hijack War" (1970), "Hussein" (1972), "To War with Wellington" (2010), and others.

Snow has been married twice and has six children from three relationships. His first marriage to Alison Carter in 1964 produced a son and a daughter; they divorced in 1973. In 1976, Snow married Ann MacMillan, with whom he has a son, Dan Snow, and two daughters, Rebecca and Kate. His eldest son, Matthieu, was born before his first marriage and is a French citizen; Snow was unaware of Matthieu’s existence until adulthood.

He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2006 New Year Honours for services to broadcasting. Snow has hobbies including model railways, and he possesses an OO gauge layout in his loft.