I never desired to go into war zones. I never had any thought about it. It sort of just happened as part of the job.

I have never been attracted to any kind of violence.

The better the information it has, the better democracy works. Silence and secrecy are never good for it.

I was timid and frightened as a child. Yours truly did not shin up mountains or do any other kind of adventurous stuff.

I also read modern novels - I have just had to read 60 as I am one of the judges for the Orange Fiction Prize.

On the Northern Ireland question, for instance, the British and Irish governments prohibit media contact with members of the IRA, but we have always gone ahead, believing in the right to information.

War zones are dangerous, protests can be violent, also, natural disasters are difficult to cover, so there are going to be risks.