Otters!

I've been out filming on the River Don in Sheffield on the search for otters! There's new evidence that the animal's thriving in that was once thought to be the most polluted in Europe. Staff and volunteers from the Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust have tracked down the elusive animal thanks to a series of infrared cameras dotted along the River Don. I thoroughly enjoyed filming this : )



BBC Copyright

Live Reporting on Terrorism Arrests

I've been reporting on the terror arrests in Sheffield and Chesterfield this week.

I headed to the Meersbrook area of Sheffield soon after the story of the four arrests broke and reported live on the BBC News Channel...



On BBC Radio 2...



I was then live on BBC Look North's main programme...



...and the late Look North...



It was a very full-on day. Just to give you an insight into what it's like to be a regional TV reporter - in-between reporting on the terror arrests in the morning and evening I filmed for two hours at the Mother Goose panto at the Lyceum in Sheffield! The job is very varied and that's one of the aspects of it that I really enjoy.

BBC Copyright

Loneliness

I've been filming a really important story in Doncaster which highlights a wider problem. The charity b:Friend has estimated around one in four older people are chronically lonely, where someone feels lonely all or most of the time. I really enjoyed meeting Alan and Julia...



BBC Copyright

Since my story was broadcast I'm really pleased to report that more than 100 people have contacted the charity to volunteers as befrienders - showing that by highlighting issues in our society, us journalists can help make a difference.

Brian Cookson Interview

Earlier this week I was at the Tour de Yorkshire launch in Halifax and was determined to use the opportunity to film the first broadcast interview with Brian Cookson since he lost the UCI (world cycling's governing body) presidency. I had prepared the areas I wanted to ask him about. Among many other things, he said Sir Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky should have their reputations "reinstated" following unproven doping allegations. Here's a clip from my tweet...

In his 1st broadcast interview since losing UCI presidency Brian Cookson told me Wiggins & Team Sky should have their reputations "reinstated" following unproven doping allegations. I started by asking him about Shane Sutton's comments on using TUES to "find the gains" #cycling pic.twitter.com/GkgC5J9sQu

— Mark Ansell (@MarkAnsell) December 6, 2017

An extensive article on the BBC Sport website used practically the whole interview. After the BBC's Sports Editor Dan Roan tweeted about my interview, it went viral.

Cookson on Wiggins & Team Sky... good work by @MarkAnsell of @BBCLookNorth https://t.co/Hml3qOTihU

— Dan Roan (@danroan) December 6, 2017

My interview was picked up by The Times and many cycling websites including Cycling Weekly: http://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/reputations-team-sky-bradley-wiggins-reinstated-jiffy-bag-investigation-says-cookson-361669 

Cycling News: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/brian-cookson-calls-for-wiggins-reputation-to-be-reinstated/

And TCNEWS in France: https://todaycycling.com/brian-cookson-ex-president-de-luci-veut-retablir-la-reputation-de-bradley-wiggins/  


More than a week and a half after my interview with Cookson, newspapers were still quoting it. Following the interview, Cookson admitted he knew of Chris Froome’s adverse analytical finding for salbutamol before telling me Team Sky's reputation "should be reinstated":
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cycling/2017/12/16/former-uci-president-brian-cookson-knew-chris-froome-failed/

This just shows that if you can secure interviews with the right person at the right time and know the right questions to ask, your story can have a big impact.

Westways Primary Strike

Parents have been demonstrating in support of teachers who are due to go on strike at a primary school in Sheffield. Teachers at Westways Primary in Crookes are due to start four days of strike action next Wednesday over changes brought in by the new executive headteacher. Their union says there's a loss of morale and increasing stress caused by growing workloads and management style at the school - but the head says the children are making better progress.


BBC Copyright

Flood Church

A church in Mytholmroyd has re-opened, two years after it was badly damaged in the boxing day floods. St Michael's was under four feet of flood water after storms hit the Calder Valley in 2015. The community had to replace floors, renovate pews and rebuild the organ. The Archbishop of York helped to re-dedicate it.



BBC Copyright