Bosanquet was born in Chertsey, Surrey, on 9 August 1932,^[1] the only child of Bernard Bosanquet, the cricketer who invented the googly.^[2] His mother, Margaret, was the daughter of the journalist Kennedy Jones.^[3] Bosanquet was of Huguenot descent through two refugees who became financially successful silk merchants.^[2] He became an orphan at the age of seven,^[4] and was evacuated to Canada during the Second World War.^[5]

In Canada, Bosanquet was educated at Ashbury College in Ottawa and then at Lower Canada College in Montreal.^[6] Upon returning to England, he was taught at Wellesley House School,^[7] before continuing his education at Winchester College.^[1][5] Bosanquet won a scholarship to attend New College at the University of Oxford, where he read history.^[6][8] He graduated with a second-class degree and did his two years of national service with the first battalion of the King's Royal Rifle Corps in Germany.^[6]

In 1955, after leaving Oxford, Bosanquet was encouraged to go into television by Lord Clark and Huw Wheldon.^[3] He asked Independent Television News (ITN) for a job, telling them he wanted fame to which they replied that he could begin working for them as a tea-boy.^[5][9] He was recruited by Aidan Crawley,^[2] and soon became a sub-editor and was made a reporter in 1957.^[8] Bosanquet worked on programmes such as Roving Report between 1957 and 1962, Dateline London from 1961 to 1962 and Dateline as a newsreader from 1962 to 1967.^[1][5] In 1960, he was appointed ITN's diplomatic correspondent.^[8] Bosanquet visited 52 countries in the course of his reporting career.^[10]

Bosanquet was made one of the lead anchors of the half-hour ITV News at Ten nightly bulletin when it launched on 3 July 1967.^[11] He often worked alongside Andrew Gardner, Leonard Parkin, Sandy Gall and, mostly late in his tenure, Alastair Burnet.^[8] Bosanquet served as ITN's chief newsreader from 1974 to 1976,^[1] but was suspended for a month by ITN editor Nigel Ryan in May 1976 following revelations about his marital troubles that were published in a Sunday newspaper.^[12] He made his final on-screen appearance for ITN on 8 November 1979.^[13] Bosanquet then resigned from ITN, amid claims and denials and rows in the studio but he explained that he no longer wanted to do the job.^[3]

His partnership with Anna Ford on News at Ten was popular with viewers in the late 1970s. As Ford has since revealed, this rapport could prove distressing: on one occasion Bosanquet, having somehow discovered the birth-date of Ford's mother, wished her a "happy birthday" at the end of the broadcast, unaware that she had died some time previously.^[14] Ford recalled in 2007: "Reggie was a dear. I mean, you wouldn't have chosen a man who had epilepsy, was an alcoholic, had had a stroke and wore a toupée to read the news, but the combination was absolute magic."^[14]

Although held in considerable affection by the public (he was commonly addressed by family, friends and the media as "Reggie"), Bosanquet was not without his critics as a newsreader. At times he could appear puzzled by unfamiliar foreign names^[1] while his trademark slurred delivery fed contemporary suspicions that he was a heavy drinker.^[15] Such rumours became raw material for wags and comedy writers: Bosanquet acquired such nicknames as "Reginald Beaujolais", "Reginald Boozalot" and "Reginald Boozatten".^[1]

In early 1980, he presented The Bosanquet View series of three special film reports entitled Divorce, The World of Gossip Columns and Tennis that were broadcast on the BBC1 programme Nationwide.^[16][17] Bosanquet also made a second set of three film reports for Nationwide on fashion,^[18] the aristocracy,^[19] and wine that were shown later in the year.^[20] In 1981, he appeared in a series of three television advertisements for orange juice that were filmed in Málaga.^[21]

Bosanquet was elected the 110th rector of the University of Glasgow on 3 November 1980.^[22] Illness prevented him from being more active in the role as he would have liked,^[5] attending 10 out of the 35 University Court meetings held during his rectorship.^[9] Bosanquet's three-year term ended on 5 March 1984.^[23]

In 1980, Bosanquet "sang" (or, more accurately, narrated in the style of a newscast) the lyrics on the disco single "Dance with Me". It was voted no. 1 in the Bottom 30 by listeners of British DJ Kenny Everett.^[24] His autobiography Let's Get Through Wednesday ghostwritten by Wallace Reyburn was published in September 1980.^[25][26] Bosanquet was the author of the 1982 children's book Filboyd's Frogs.^[27] In 1982, he took part in the production of a one-hour videotape called Private Spy containing explicit sex scenes.^[28] Bosanquet was the patron of the Campaign for Equality in Divorce,^[29] and was a member of the World Wildlife Fund's Administrative Panel.^[30]

He was married three times.^[26] His first marriage was to the Norwegian Karin Lund on 2 April 1955 at St. Michael's Chester Square.^[3][31] A second marriage followed with Felicity Fearnley-Whittingstall between August 1964 and 11 February 1975.^[5][32] Although Bosanquet told an interviewer that he would not remarry,^[3] his final marriage was to Joan Adams, whom he married at Chelsea Register Office on 23 August 1983.^[33] Bosanquet had one child each from his first two marriages.^[30]

In late 1978, a woman claimed that Bosanquet was the biological father of her third child.^[34] Blood tests conducted in 1979 confirmed that he was not the child's father.^[35] The case was dropped in March 1979.^[36] Two years later, he was given a three-month conditional discharge and ordered to pay £50 in costs on charges of being drunk and disorderly in James Street, Covent Garden.^[37]

Bosanquet died from pancreatic cancer at his home in Chelsea on the evening of 27 May 1984 following a period of ill health.^[26][38][39] His funeral took place privately at Putney, South London on 2 June,^[40] and was cremated at Putney Vale Cemetery.^[41] Bosanquet was given a memorial service attended by colleagues and family members at All Souls Church, Langham Place in Westminster on the afternoon of 4 July.^[42][43]

Bosanquet is portrayed by Matthew Cottle in the 2022 miniseries Pistol.^[44] A parody song was sung by actress Pamela Stephenson in season 1 episode 4 of the BBC comedy programme Not the Nine O'Clock News referencing him leaving his news reading role. A running gag in that and earlier episodes referenced his bouffant toupe. ^[45]

• Baron Scales
• John Le Carre's autobiography
• Tyndall family