BBC presenter Clive Myrie has revealed that he sometimes feels grateful he and his wife Catherine decided not to have children, as he worries about the world his nephews, nieces and friends' children are growing up in.
Career and marriage
The 61-year-old has spent much of his career reporting from dangerous regions including Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. He and Catherine, a former publishing executive who now works as a furniture restorer, met at a book launch in London in the early 1990s and married in 1998.
The couple have previously said their careers were among the reasons they decided against having children. But Myrie has now said that watching the world change has also reinforced the decision.
'Thank God I didn't have kids'
Speaking to The i Paper, Myrie said: "I have a multitude of nephews and nieces and children of friends around me, and I don't like how this world is turning out for them. Few job opportunities, a lack of international co-operation, social media which makes the world feel meaner and nastier. I see all this, and there's a big, big part of me that thinks, thank God I didn't have kids."
His outlook has been shaped by his career, which has taken him into wars and humanitarian crises. While reporting in Iraq, the danger was so acute that he wrote a farewell letter to his family.
Living a rounded life
Myrie has previously spoken about the lasting impact of his work, admitting some scenes remain difficult to forget. He said: "I've got better at compartmentalising as I've got older. Some things live with you, obviously. There is no question that some of the images I saw reporting from Ukraine, or some of the more disturbing stories I've had to read on the news, stay with you. But, on the whole, I can shut that out and switch off."
He added that he wants his life to be about "the good, interesting stuff", saying: "I don't particularly want to be thinking about Donald Trump or Keir Starmer on my deathbed. I want to be thinking about art or music or something uplifting."
He said he tries to live a rounded life, making time for galleries, concerts and lunches with friends, because that is what helps keep him going.
