He insisted that the next producer should be a mother.Female colleagues considered him a sincere supporter in their efforts to attain equal status at the BBC But he was not a feminist. MacGregor recalls that Bonarjee once demanded the removal of Women’s Liberation posters from the walls of an office at Woman’s Hour.Bonarjee fought hard to increase radio listening at a time when audience ratings were not always deemed a suitable topic for discussion; he was a very early exponent of the view that BBC programmes must function as “products” with proven appeal in the marketplace.Stephen Bonarjee was born in Erith in Kent to an Indian father and a Scottish mother. To colleagues Bonarjee seemed well suited to managing new demands. In a document explaining his ambitions to colleagues he wrote that it should concern itself mainly with broad extrovert human interests and talking points, but should not be afraid to be serious when necessary.That broad outline defined the programme’s character in time for an era of profound social change.

Bonarjee was determined that Today should “invariably be a lively, polished product”. In 1963, when Today was moved from its original home in the BBC’s Talks Department to Bonarjee’s Current Affairs empire, he pioneered a distinct break from the frivolous geniality to which it had aspired at launch. Sue MacGregor, the former Today presenter, knew Bonarjee when she was a young reporter on World at One She remembers him as a clever man Not a Dalek or a speak-your-weight machine. He was cautious but willing to take decisions that might prove controversial.Among these was Bonarjee’s decision to make Today a “sharper, harder” programme, very different from the ragbag of whimsical items as it was when it started in 1957. He was an example of the generation of BBC executives who rose through the ranks of programme makers and remained in touch with their instincts and ambitions. He created From Our Own Correspondent and defined the purpose of the Today programme, setting it on course to become the nation’s daily agenda setter.As Programme Editor Current Affairs Sound from the early 1960s Bonarjee had almost absolute power over radio current affairs.

Bonarjee designed radio programmes that remain staples of the Radio 4 schedule three decades after he retired. Stephen Wilson Bonarjee, radio editor: born Erith, Kent 15 May 1912; married; died London 14 September 2003.
Stephen Bonarjee was the father of analytical journalism on BBC Radio. At a time when colleagues expected listeners to defect to television, he recognised the enduring power and intimacy of the senior service. Stephen Bonarjee was the father of analytical journalism on BBC Radio. It is reasonable to make all schools publish their results – but the two things are quite different.”.