Headline news – Tasmin Lucia Khan

Tasmin Lucia Khan: Oxford Graduate, high profile media career, catwalk style and stunning model looks. Mela magazine profiles the woman who appears to have it all.

since making her mark as a Zee TV presenter, Tasmin Lucia Khan has rapidly proved her worth and worked her way up the TV ladder. Earlier this year, Tasmin became the presenter of BBC Three’s 60seconds news bulletin, joining the BBC after producing and hosting a sports show on Channel Five for three years.

Tasmin, aged 27, is no stranger to news and politics. She graduated from Oxford University with an honours degree in Politics, Philosophy and Economics and was a keen debater at Oxford where she specialised in International Relations and Economics.

On landing the much coveted position at BBC3 Tasmin said: “I’m very excited to be part of the new look BBC Three. I’ll be keeping our audiences up-to-date during the week with all the latest news, just the way they like it. It’s going to be short and sharp news bulletins on the hour and I’ve literally got only 60 seconds to deliver!”

TASMIN, AGED 27, IS NO STRANGER TO NEWS AND POLITICS. SHE GRADUATED FROM OXFORD UNIVERSITY WITH AN HONOURS DEGREE IN POLITICS, PHILOSOPHY AND ECONOMICS AND WAS A KEEN DEBATER AT OXFORD WHERE SHE SPECIALISED IN INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND ECONOMICS.”

In addition to 60seconds, Tasmin will also present Entertainment 24 on BBC News 24.

Tasmin’s presenting career began in 2000 at the Zee TV Network as entertainment presenter and news reporter. Later she hosted her own talk show interviewing celebrities from the world of film, music and business. She was also the London correspondent for PTV Prime, reporting the UK’s top news stories to a worldwide audience.

Tasmin gives credit to her mentor, Kevin Bakhurst, controller of BBC News, for his career guidance. When interviewed in the Independent newspaper she said of Kevin: “I was freelancing when I met Kevin Bakhurst in September last year. I was working as a sports presenter on Five and as a correspondent for PTV, an Asian channel, as well as running a production company when we met at a networking event for aspiring journalists called Move On Up In News, which is organised through the Audio Visual Entrepreneurship Development Partnership.

I knew that when Kevin had been editor of the Ten O’Clock News, the programme received a BAFTA for its coverage of the Madrid bombings, a second BAFTA for the 7/7 bombings and the Royal Television Society’s News Programme of the Year award. I immediately liked his manner and thought, this is someone I really respect.

Later on I found out that he thought I had a lot of potential and a personality that could translate really well on TV. He passed my showreel on to others in the BBC, saying he thought they could do something with me, and I was lucky that the opportunity to be one of the faces of BBC3 news came up. We talk on a regular basis and he’s really looked after my progress and gives me feedback. There have been times I haven’t been sure how I am coming across, and when you watch yourself you don’t always know. I really value his judgement and I feel well looked after. He is very friendly and always knows what he’s talking about you can’t do a job like that with so many members of staff and not have authority. Before meeting Kevin, I had interviews with two American networks. They wanted to hire me immediately because I was ‘exotic and very English’. But I wondered if I would actually learn anything, and if I would be able to develop. I really love the BBC and have been able to develop a lot. Working in its newsroom is a completely unique experience, especially when breaking news happens.”

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