Emma Vardy

Biography

Emma Vardy is a BBC Presenter and Correspondent with extensive experience covering major stories across the UK and US, spanning Politics, Business, Sport, Entertainment and Technology.

Emma regularly appears across BBC television and radio. She has presented BBC Breakfast and anchored on the BBC News Channel, alongside appearances presenting Newsnight and the BBC News at One. At BBC Radio 5 Live, she has presented Breakfast and Drivetime, as well as covering for Naga Munchetty, Nicky Campbell and Stephen Nolan. She also recently presented a BBC Panorama programme examining racism and misogyny in the Met Police.

As the BBC’s Los Angeles Correspondent from 2023 to 2025, Emma covered the US Presidential Election, the Trump Presidency, the LA wildfires and major Hollywood awards including the Oscars, Emmys and Grammys. Her reporting also took in some of the biggest stories of the period, including the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race, the global tech outage and protests on US college campuses. She also wrote for The Sunday Times following an exclusive interview with Celine Dion.

Previously, as Ireland Correspondent, Emma reported extensively on the political complexities of Northern Ireland, including investigations into paramilitary violence. During eighteen years at the BBC, she has also reported from Ukraine, Washington DC and Westminster. Her work has been recognised with several Royal Television Society Awards, and she was named the Political Studies Association’s Journalist of the Year.

Away from broadcasting, Emma is a keen sportswoman. She has played women’s football and rugby, surfs around the world and, since becoming a mother, has explored changing attitudes towards sport and fitness during pregnancy and parenthood. She once described her most daunting assignment as answering the questions herself in the famous chair on Celebrity Mastermind.

Emma brings a warm and accessible style to hosting, moderating and speaking, with a particular interest in making complex subjects engaging for a broad audience. She has chaired the annual conference for the Institute of Chartered Accountants and hosted events for organisations including the Political Studies Association, the Royal College of Midwives and Queen’s University, as well as a Good Friday Agreement 25th Anniversary event with Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern, and the Belfast Book Festival.