Ian McCaskill

Ian McCaskill (born John Robertson McCaskill;[1] 28 July 1938 – 10 December 2016) was a Scottish weather forecaster who frequently appeared on the BBC.

Ian McCaskill
McCaskill, c. 1980s
Born
John Robertson McCaskill

(1938-07-28)28 July 1938
Glasgow, Scotland
Died10 December 2016(2016-12-10) (aged 78)
Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England
EducationQueen's Park Secondary
Alma materUniversity of Glasgow
OccupationMeteorologist
Spouses
Lesley Charlesworth
​
​
(m. 1959; died 1992)​
    Pat Cromack
    ​
    (m. 1998)​

    Early life

    McCaskill attended Queen's Park Secondary in Glasgow, and then the University of Glasgow, where he studied geology and chemistry.[2]

    Career

    McCaskill joined the RAF in 1959 as part of his National Service and became an airman meteorologist, first in Scotland and then in Cyprus.[3] He once joked that when he joined the RAF he was given a choice between Catering and Meteorology, he did not know what meteorology was but he knew he could not cook. He left the RAF in 1961 and joined the Met Office, working at Glasgow Prestwick Airport, Malta and Manchester.

    In 1978, McCaskill began working at the BBC Weather Centre, and presented the weather forecast for the BBC on both television and radio. He retired on 31 July 1998.[3]

    McCaskill was known for his soft-spoken demeanor,[1] and his presentation style was widely imitated, including by the satirical comedy show Spitting Image and by impersonator Rory Bremner.[3] He was one of the weathermen mentioned on the novelty song "John Kettley Is a Weatherman".[3]

    McCaskill worked as a motivational speaker, and appeared on the BBC Television shows MasterChef and on Have I Got News for You, as well as in a number of TV advertisements. He also participated in the first series of Celebrity Fit Club in 2002.

    In 2006, he co-wrote the book Frozen in Time, about Britain's worst ever winters, with Paul Hudson.[4][5]

    Personal life and death

    McCaskill lived at Seer Green, near Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire.[6] He had two daughters with his first wife Lesley Charlesworth, to whom he was married from 1959 until her death from breast cancer in 1992. In 1998, he married Pat Cromack, becoming stepfather to her two sons.

    McCaskill was a fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society. In May 2000, he opened the first phase of the £1.2 million 11-hectare (27-acre) Lower Leas Coastal Park in Folkestone.[7]

    McCaskill was diagnosed with dementia in 2011 and died, in a nursing home in Leeds, on 10 December 2016, aged 78.[1][8][9]

    Books
    • McCaskill, Ian; Hudson, Paul (27 October 2006), Frozen in Time: The Worst Winters in History, Ilkley: Great Northern Books Ltd, ISBN 9781905080090
    • McCaskill, Ian; Hudson, Paul (1 October 2011), Frozen Britain, Ilkley: Great Northern Books Ltd, ISBN 9781905080984

    References
    1. The Guardian. "Ian McCaskill obituary". 12 December 2016. Retrieved on 12 December 2016.
    2. Ian McCaskill obituary The Guardian, 12 December 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
    3. BBC. "BBC - Weather - Ian McCaskill" Archived 15 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine. 26 March 2010. Retrieved on 11 May 2013.
    4. The Scarborough News. "Colder winters could be norm". 25 November 2011. Retrieved on 11 May 2013.
    5. McCaskill, Ian; Hudson, Paul (27 October 2006). Frozen in Time: The Worst Winters in History. Somerset: Great Northern Books Ltd. ISBN 9781905080090.
    6. Buckinghamshire Examiner Friday 14 January 1994, page 10
    7. Taylor, Alan F. (2002). Folkestone Past and Present. Somerset: Breedon Books. pp. 22–24. ISBN 1859832962.
    8. BBC News. Weatherman Ian McCaskill dies, aged 78 12 December 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
    9. "BREAKING: Former BBC weatherman Ian McCaskill dies aged 78". 12 December 2016.
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