BBC News broadcaster Clive Myrie has opened up about the moment viewers spotted a tear falling down his cheek as he reported on the war in Ukraine live from Kyiv.
On 24 February, the journalist was fronting the BBC’s News At 10 from the Ukrainian capital following Vladimir Putin’s invasion earlier that day, when some viewers noticed he appeared to become emotional during the broadcast.
Clive was asked about this during an appearance on the Behind the Headlines podcast with Headlines Network (via Metro), where he discussed the emotions he felt after seeing how the city had changed in the course of a few hours.
“I’d flown into Kyiv something like 15, 16 hours… actually probably less than that, 12 hours before the invasion began,” he recalled. “So I saw for a sliver of time what the city was like before hostilities began.
“The capital was bustling, it’s quite a young population in the centre of the city, great restaurants, people all out, the sun was shining, it was a beautiful day.”
Clive explained that when the invasion began, he foresaw that it “was going to be a horrible, horrible war” due to Russia’s previous conflicts.
He continued: “It had been an emotional day, and I was standing on the rooftop of the hotel where we were broadcasting and it was frankly windy, it was windy.
“The wind blew across my face and through my eyes and a single tear came out. So I’m not saying that I was crying for Ukraine, because the wind was blowing. What I will say is that it was an emotional day, and that’s it.”
In the last few weeks, Clive has emerged as a frontrunner to succeed outgoing Newsnight host Emily Maitlis.
The long-serving presenter – who is leaving the BBC after more than 20 years to host a new daily podcast for Global radio – has also publicly endorsed Clive to land the role.
She told Radio Times: “I just think Clive’s terrific. I think he’s done so well. And I’m sure the team would give him a really, really warm welcome because they are the best in the business.
“And it’s the loveliest - it’s the loveliest [of] gangs, loveliest group of people. So I hope for his sake he gets it, too.”
The Behind The Headlines podcast is available to stream now.